eCORP and Advanced Drilling Solutions Agree to Offer a Slim Hole Evaluation Drilling Service
14.05.2012/XNUMX/XNUMX Houston - eCORP Europe Holding Limited (“eCORP”), a subsidiary of eCORP International, LLC and Advanced Drilling Solutions GmbH, an affiliate of BG Management Consulting (“ADS”), are pleased to announce that they have a Agreement to develop a diagnostic unit to study the earth's crust. This includes a specially designed drilling rig (coring / core drilling) and a mobile geological laboratory and is known as Slim Hole Evaluation Drilling ("SHED"; rig with a small borehole diameter especially for exploratory drilling). The equipment will collect technical data that will benefit science and will also be of paramount importance to energy companies developing oil, gas, geothermal energy and other natural resources.
Thanks to the small borehole size, the facility, which was designed on the model of a core drilling system for hard minerals, but has been expanded by an automatic and fast liquid handling system for positive control of the drilling, has a small footprint and accordingly minimal impact on the earth's surface during of the company. It was developed for use on land. eCORP will be the first company to use the SHED unit in operations in Europe. The company will strictly adhere to the legal requirements or even exceed them during the drilling project and is currently planning to permanently close these "fine needle punctures" before the drilling rig is withdrawn, so that the soil samples will have practically no long-term effects. In the event that future scientific data acquisition is required or planned, the boreholes can be fitted with electronic systems for underground data acquisition that are compatible with the final setting of the boreholes. On site, the SHED unit will continuously collect rock samples from all layers drilled to a depth of 3.500 meters and immediately record the relevant data collected during the core drilling.
Under the terms of the SHED agreement, eCORP and ADS will carry out market research and regulatory research, and then complete the design and construction of a first equipment system to be used in Western and Central Europe. There, eCORP holds a number of promising licenses in excellent catchment areas and is currently discussing a significant expansion of these concessions. In the future, further units will be produced.
Bouchra Lamik-Thonhauser, Managing Director of ADS, stated:? This partnership will allow us to apply the unique technology we have developed and advance our expertise in developing drilling and evaluation tools to enable exploration activities with the least possible environmental impact possible. "
Gerhard Thonhauser, ADS Chief Technology Officer, commented: “The SHEDS system will be a groundbreaking exploration tool, transforming industry technology in Europe and the global marketplace. The integration of a compact drilling and evaluation system using the latest technology for automation and remote-controlled operation gives us a unique level of efficiency in terms of costs and environmental impact. "
John Thrash, Chairman and CEO of eCORP said, “The SHED unit is another important component that we are adding to our range of high quality, low cost, environmentally friendly exploration tools. We are fortunate to work with the pioneers of this technology who have had experience with this proven technology since the 1980s. "
During the production phase in the fields, eCORP plans to drill using the "pad" drilling technique (multiple drilling), in which several drill heads are limited to a small drilling point above ground, as well as other proven drilling technologies that can be carried out with less environmental impact than traditional methods . At the same time, eCORP will use propane reservoir stimulation as an additional tool for environmentally friendly delivery measures, which is offered by ProStim, another service provider jointly owned by eCORP. Using gelled propane to boost production of hydrocarbon reservoirs is a natural solution that addresses recent concerns about well stimulation - propane, used in millions of households, is a constituent of natural gas produced, albeit usually in low concentrations . We believe this breakthrough technology will be welcomed not only by lawmakers and the industry, but also by the general population. GASFRAC, eCORP's partner in the ProStim project, has successfully used this technology in North America and performed over 1.350 reservoir stimulations from Alberta, Canada to South Texas, USA. In addition, eCORP has extensive experience with gaseous propane and butane, as they used these components back in the 1980s in South Texas for improved oil production in conventional reservoirs.
Since its inception in the year of 1978, eCORP and its predecessors have accumulated extensive experience in the oil and gas industry, including underground gas storage, natural gas transportation, improved oil production in conventional deposits using propane and butane, exploration and development of conventional and natural gas unconventional reservoirs, in power generation and in the marketing of electricity and gas. The company was one of the pioneers in developing the Marcellus Formation in Pennsylvania and New York, USA, recognizing its potential while developing its acclaimed Stagecoach storage project in New York. eCORP has acquired additional deposits in Europe after the concession in the Marcellus Formation. The company's world-class management team will leverage its in-depth knowledge of both Europe and the US to develop oil and gas fields, gas storage and power generation systems that leverage their full range of environmentally-friendly exploration and development tools.
Founded in 2008, ADS engages in research and development in the areas of drilling depth and reach, development of state-of-the-art drilling technology, and metrology systems above and below ground. Technologies include extended-reach drilling composite drill rods, unique surface monitoring systems to evaluate drilling equipment, and underground communication and measurement systems. Drilling technology is being developed for the oil and gas industry as well as for geothermal applications such as geothermal storage solutions. ADS brings together highly skilled engineering teams that bring together their combined knowledge of electronics, embedded systems and automation, as well as engineering and materials science.
For media inquiries about eCORP, please contact: Mark Stauss Director of Commercial Operations Email: ppgad@pucrs.br[mailto:ppgad@pucrs.br] Phone: + 1-713-416-0280
