Project Gasbuggy - Status Report
Authors: Atkinson Charles H. , Ward Don C. 
Published: December 2007

Project Gasbuggy is a joint government-industry experiment to test the effectiveness of underground nuclear explosions for stimulating oil and gas production from low-permeability reservoirs. The project was approved by the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in 1965, and federal funds became available in Nov., 1966. The Project Gasbuggy contract was signed by the AEC, El Paso Natural Gas Co. (EPNG) and U. S. Dept. of the Interior in Jan., 1967. One month later, two preshot wells were drilled and tested at the expense of EPNG as part of industry's $1.8 million share of the $4.7 million project cost. Drilling the 28-in. hole for the 26-kiloton explosive began in June, 1967. All technical and safety programs are scheduled for a shot date of Nov. 14, 1967.

Preshot core, log and test data, and hydrological data obtained in accordance with the reservoir evaluation program developed by the primary technical participantsEPNG, USBM and Lawrence Radiation Laboratory (LRL), Livermore, Calif. revealed that the Pictured Cliffs gas reservoir met criteria for site acceptability, including considerations of safety. This article discusses preshot reservoir and production data, and programs related to safety, public information and postshot exploration.

Introduction

The 26-kiloton nuclear detonation for Project Gasbuggy scheduled on Nov. 14, 1967, will occur at 4,240 ft, 40 ft below the base of the 300-ft thick Pictured Cliffs gas sand in Rio Arriba County, N. M. This reservoir at the east edge of the San Juan basin has a history of low productivity, and development of the area has been sparse. Details of the project's early history have been covered in previous publications.

Fig. 1 shows the organization of Project Gasbuggy established by the AEC and its contractors. The project manager, who is manager of the AEC Nevada operations office in Las Vegas, executes the field program and provides for public safety, both on and off site. He provides security for classified material and is responsible for providing evaluations of the project to the AEC. The scientific advisor serves as chairman of the advisory panel which evaluates safety and operational aspects relating to executing the experiment. The test director has over-all responsibility for directing, organizing and executing the scientific program and for collecting data from all phases of the experiment with the cooperation of EPNG and USBM. The site coordinator, site manager and deputy project manager for operations are responsible for such work as construction and support operations, communications, security, safety and site visits.

Programs and Plans

In drilling the explosive emplacement hole, the 30-in. conductor pipe was set at 50 ft; a 28-in. hole will be drilled to 4,350 ft and 20-in. OD casing will be run. The explosive canister will be attached to 7-in. casing with electrical cables strapped to the outside, and this assembly will be run in a dry hole. All holes in the immediate vicinity will be stemmed with cement and sand prior to detonation. The reservoir evaluation program calls for additional logging when Gasbuggy test wells 1 and 2 (GB-1 and GB-2) are mudded up prior to stemming. A schedule of activities to the ready date for detonation is shown in Fig. 2.