Monitoring Utilizing Multiple Data Sets for the Carbon, Capture, Storage, and Utilization Project at Farnsworth Unit, TX

The Southwest Partnership on Carbon Sequestration (SWP) is a CO₂ carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) project sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, with a goal of permanently storing and monitoring 1,000,000 tonnes of CO₂. The SWP project is located in a mature field undergoing enhanced oil recovery (EOR) at Farnsworth Unit (FWU), Texas, USA. Utilized CO₂ is anthropogenic, sourced from a fertilizer and an ethanol plant. The field has 15 CO₂ injectors and has injected 1.5 million tonnes of dense phase CO₂, with over 900,000 tonnes stored, since 2013. Major project goals consist of generating best practices for CCUS and developing ways of characterization, optimization of production, and monitoring. To help ensure that the injected CO₂ is being stored in the reservoir, monitoring is required in multiple forms.

The ongoing monitoring program at FWU in the Morrow B reservoir includes geophysical methods such as time lapse vertical seismic profiling (VSP) and microseismic monitoring. The baseline VSP and three subsequent monitor surveys make plume tracking possible in one four-spot injection pattern. A detailed workflow integrating geologic interpretation, VSP time lapse studies, tracer tests, and subsequent recovery at producing wells aid in the understanding of flow controls in the reservoir. Microseismic activity has been identified on the original borehole array and more recorded events are expected on the new, low noise borehole array. As the reservoir is monitored, any additional information will be added to our geologic and simulation models in order to better assess the CO₂ storage and production optimization.

Funding for this project is provided by the U.S. Department of Energy under Award No. DE-FC26-05NT42591. Additional support has been provided by site operator Perdure Petroleum LLC.