Classification: DCL-Internal

Moving Produced Water From A 

Waste to a Resource

RICK MCCURDY

SENIOR ENGINEERING ADVISOR
Classification: DCL-Internal

AGENDA

• Chesapeake Energy

• Water Use In Oil & Gas Operations

• Water Intensity of Various Energy 

Sources

• Water Use in Value Creation

• Water Reporting in Oil and Gas 

Operations

˃ What are we doing well?

˃ Where can we improve?

• Case Study – Industry Partnering 

With a State to Reduce Fresh Water 

Demand

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 2
Classification: DCL-Internal

WHO WE ARE

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 3

Data taken from 2017 CHK Annual Report

Utica Shale

938,000 net acres

Eagle Ford Shale

245,000 net acres

Marcellus Shale

577,000 net acres

Haynesville Shale

358,000 net acres

Mid-Continent

1,044,000 net acres

Oklahoma City

Powder River Basin

275,000 net acres

• 2nd largest US Natural Gas Producer

• 13th largest US Crude Oil Producer
Classification: DCL-Internal

AGENDA

• Chesapeake Energy

• Water Use In Oil & Gas Operations

• Water Intensity of Various Energy 

Sources

• Water Use in Value Creation

• Water Reporting in Oil and Gas 

Operations

˃ What are we doing well?

˃ Where can we improve?

• Case Study – Industry Partnering 

With a State to Reduce Fresh Water 

Demand

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 4
Classification: DCL-Internal

FRESH WATER

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 5
Classification: DCL-Internal

LIFE CYCLE OF WATER: OIL & GAS 

OPERATIONS

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 20186
Classification: DCL-Internal

Drilling

•Used as a base fluid for drilling mud

•Common volume is 1 barrel (42 US gal) per foot of well depth

•Smaller volumes use for cleaning rigs and dust suppression

Hydraulic Fracturing

•Single largest usage

•8-10 years ago – common usage was 3-5 million gallons per 

well

•Current longer laterals, denser completions are requiring 5-

15 million gallons per well

Other Operations

•Well workovers, Drill outs

•Displacement fluid in remedial operations such as acidizing

Chemical Treatments

•Salt removal in wells prone to salting

•Flush for regularly scheduled batch treatments such as application of 

corrosion inhibitors

COMMON WATER USE AREAS IN OIL AND GAS 

OPERATIONS

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 7
Classification: DCL-Internal

RECENT EVOLUTION OF WATER USE IN HYDRAULIC 

FRACTURING

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 8

2008 – Only 

freshwater suitable for 

high volume, high rate 

hydraulic fracturing

2011 – Exceptional 

droughts in several 

O&G areas result in 

expansion of brine 

treatment and reuse

2018 – Brine 

treatment and reuse 

and brackish water 

use continues to grow 

throughout the O&G 

industry

2009 – High cost of 

brine disposal in the 

Marcellus Shale 

incentivize operators 

to experiment with 

brine tolerant 

completion fluids

2015 – Texas 

Legislature passes 

bills encouraging 

more reuse of 

produced brine in 

operations
Classification: DCL-Internal

PRODUCED WATER IN THE U.S.

• Data from John Veil, April 2015, “U.S. Produced Water Volumes and 

Management Practices in 2012”

• In 2012, onshore and offshore U.S. oil and gas wells produced 

21,180,646,000 barrels of water.

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018
Classification: DCL-Internal

AGENDA

• Chesapeake Energy

• Water Use In Oil & Gas Operations

• Water Intensity of Various Energy 

Sources

• Water Use in Value Creation

• Water Reporting in Oil and Gas 

Operations

˃ What are we doing well?

˃ Where can we improve?

• Case Study – Industry Partnering 

With a State to Reduce Fresh Water 

Demand

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 10
Classification: DCL-Internal

BEST PRACTICES

• Efficient Use of Water

˃ High rate hydraulic fracturing in 

horizontal wells can be water 

intensive

˃ Ten years ago volumes per well were 

in the 3-5 million gallons range

˃ With longer laterals denser 

completion profiles, we are now 

seeing 5-15 million gallons per well

˃ However, water efficiency 

(gal/mmbtu) is staying flat or 

improving on a gallon of water per 

million British Thermal Units of 

energy standpoint

Chart: http://www.worldenergyoutlook.org/media/weowebsite/2012/WEO_2012_Water_Excerpt.pdf

0.66 6.6 66.0

Gal / MMBTU

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 11
Classification: DCL-Internal

AGENDA

• Chesapeake Energy

• Water Use In Oil & Gas Operations

• Water Intensity of Various Energy 

Sources

• Water Use in Value Creation

• Water Reporting in Oil and Gas 

Operations

˃ What are we doing well?

˃ Where can we improve?

• Case Study – Industry Partnering 

With a State to Reduce Fresh Water 

Demand

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 12
Classification: DCL-Internal

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 13

Gabrielle Collins, J.D., Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University, “How Much Water Does It Take To Produce a Billion Dollars of Economic output?”
Classification: DCL-Internal

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 14

Gabrielle Collins, J.D., Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University, “How Much Water Does It Take To Produce a Billion Dollars of Economic output?”
Classification: DCL-Internal

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 15

Gabrielle Collins, J.D., Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University, “How Much Water Does It Take To Produce a Billion Dollars of Economic output?”
Classification: DCL-Internal

AGENDA

• Chesapeake Energy

• Water Use In Oil & Gas Operations

• Water Intensity of Various Energy 

Sources

• Water Use in Value Creation

• Water Reporting in Oil and Gas 

Operations

˃ What are we doing well?

˃ Where can we improve?

• Case Study – Industry Partnering 

With a State to Reduce Fresh Water 

Demand

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 16
Classification: DCL-Internal

WHAT ARE WE DOING WELL?

• Water Usage on Hydraulic Fracturing 

Activities

˃ Usually Required by States or BLM

• FracFocusTM

˃ Created and maintained by GWPC

˃ Initially, voluntary submissions by Operators 

but many States now mandate its use

˃ Data submitted includes

• Water volume for completion

• Sand (proppant) volume

• Chemical composition and quantity for each HF 

additive

Photo courtesy of BJ Services Company

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 17
Classification: DCL-Internal

WHAT CAN WE IMPROVE?

• More Transparency in Base Fluid for Completions

˃ Produced water 

˃ Brackish groundwater

˃ Municipal effluent streams

˃ Industrial wastewater

˃ FracFocus reporting

˃ States request 

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 18
Classification: DCL-Internal

WHAT CAN WE IMPROVE?

• Spill Reporting

˃ Required by States and BLM

˃ Reporting requirements vary

˃ Many Operators track more stringently

• You cant improve what you don’t track!

˃ Industry discussion in incubation phase 

regarding a universally acceptable, 

more robust method

Photo property of Alaska Department of Environmental Quality

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 19
Classification: DCL-Internal

AGENDA

• Chesapeake Energy

• Water Use In Oil & Gas Operations

• Water Intensity of Various Energy 

Sources

• Water Use in Value Creation

• Water Reporting in Oil and Gas 

Operations

˃ What are we doing well?

˃ Where can we improve?

• Case Study – Industry Partnering 

With a State to Reduce Fresh Water 

Demand

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 20
Classification: DCL-Internal

TEXAS WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARD

BRACKISH AQUIFER CHARACTERIZATION SYSTEM (BRACS)

Moving Produced Water From a Waste to a Resource– June 5, 2018 21
Classification: DCL-Internal

Moving Produced Water From A 

Waste to a Resource

RICK MCCURDY

SENIOR ENGINEERING ADVISOR