ABSTRACT

Hydraulicfracturingisanunconventionaldrillingtechniqueofoilandnaturalgas
extraction which requires the pumping of mixture of water, sand, and useful
chemicalsathighpressuresintoawelldrilledvertically,andthenhorizontallyintothe
rocks.Fracking has no doubt revolutionized the oil and gas industry and thus creating
emerging potential petrol-states from none OPEC countries like U.S, Canada and
China. Environmental impacts of fracking ranges from surface water contamination,
earthquake and seismic activitiy, emission of greenhouse gases, release of air
pollutant, disruption of human activities to intoxication of underground water water.
Hydraullic fracking has a lower Energy Return on Investment (EROI) in comparison
with the conventional oil drilling technique, as the extraction processes are more
complicated and thus involve huge financial commitment. More energy is required to
extract the oil than in turn will generate energy. While fracking involves huge capital
investment, however, hydraulic oil plays have the opportunity to be repeated many
times. For instance if five wells are drilled on a spread across 100,000 acres, and the
five wells are repeatable, another 1,000 more wells could be drilled.
Fracking innovation may boost economies and local demands for natural gas in U.S,
Australia, Canada and China, However, oil-exporting and totally dependent
economies may be in for the shock of their economic lives. A number of countries are
highly vulnerable to a potential trade quake as a result of change in US oil imports
including Angola, Congo, and Nigeria. Short term and long-term impacts of oil price
fall include inflation, budgetary adjustment in totally oil-dependent exporting
countries, reduction in international trade volumes due to drop in GDP, fall in standard
of living for countries whose citizens live on the edge, reduction in local national
expenditure which is evidenced in Nigeria and Venezuela, rise in rate of employment.
The insignificant concentration of unconventional oil in the Middle East and higher
concentration of non-conventional oil in once oil importing states may strike a
balance in global oil trade.

1.0 Introduction
Innovations in hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling have by and large
engineered high-tech revolution in natural gas and oil extraction. This twenty-first
century break-through, this competitive-advantage renaissance in oil and gas
exploration has in a way relegated to the background the age-old comparative
advantage theory that oil rich states have cashed in on for centuries to monopolize the
oil global market. Fracking radical breakthrough has engineered huge production feat
in oil and natural gas production in the United States and other former major oilimporting countries. The revolution is the product of strides and advances made in oil
and natural gas production technologynotably, a novel combination of horizontal
drilling and hydraulic fracturing. Substantial availability of local energy resources
benefits the United States by drastically reducing dependence on imported energy and
diversifying the economy (CFR, 2013).
Fracking operations involves preliminary survey of the target reserve, drilling
production operations and post-production activities. The high pressure attempts to
produced and enlarge fractures in the geological formation and induce the flow of oil
and gas resources. Environmental impacts of fracking can be threatening and these
impacts include surface contamination, ground water intoxication, emission of
greenhouse gases, pervasive air pollution and induction of earthquakes and earth
tremors (Zhenbo etal., 2014).
Hydraullic fracking is said to have a lower Energy Return on Investment (EROI) in
comparison with the conventional oil drilling technique, as the extraction processes
are more complicated and thus involve huge financial commitment. Basically, more
energy is necessary to extract the oil than in turn will generate energy. However,
despite the lower EROI, oil producers are employing unconventional sources more
and more, to try to keep up with the increasing oil demand (Clara, 2013).
Fracking innovation may boost economies and local demands for natural gas in U.S,
Australia, Canada and China, However, oil-exporting and totally dependent
economies may be in for the shock of their economic lives. A number of countries are
highly vulnerable to a potential trade quake as a result of change in US oil imports
including Angola, Congo, and Nigeria. A surge in fracking in China with the same
size in the trade shock would double the domino effect. The total estimated effects
from a reduction in US oil imports from African countries amount to US$32 billion.
The net impacts on exporters will depend on their ability to find other markets, and
the conditions under which they do so (Zhenbo etal., 2014).
This report aims to review hydraulic fracturing operations, analyse its cost
implications, environmental impacts and assess how worthy of investment it is in
comparison with conventional oil drilling technique.

2.0 Manufacturing/ Operation perspectives

2.1 Stages in Hydraullic Fracking
2.1.1 Preliminary stage
Operators explore the subsurface geology to be able to design hydraulic fracturing
operational program to implement during production activities. This underground
characterisation attempts to uncover the hydrogeological and mechanical properties of
the coal seams and surrounding units (Beckwith, 2010). Software simulaion are
explored to forecast the probable geometry of fractures, while the orientation is
determined from the in situ stress field (Bennett et al., 2005).

2.1.2 Production

Awellisdrilledverticallytothedesigndepth,thenturnsatrightangleandcontinues
horizontallyforseveralthousandfeetintotheshaleappraisedtocontainthetrapped
naturalgasandoil.
Amixtureofwater,sand,andassortedchemicalsisinjectedintothewellatveryhigh
pressureinanattempttoproducedandcreatefissuresintheshalethroughwhichthe
oilandgascanbeextracted.
Naturalgasandoilescapethroughtheperforationsandisdrawnbackupthewellto
thegroundsurface,whereitisprocessed,refined,andshippedtomarket.Flowback
recedestothesurfaceafterthehydraulicfracturingprocesscycleiscompleted(CWA,
2015).

.
Figure 2.1.2 A typical fracking process (CWA, 2015)
Globally acceptable practices require the use of a larger volume of flowback fluid to
be recovered from a well relative to the volume of injected fluid after hydraulic
fracturing is completed (Golder Associates, 2010b). The Australian government
suggests that the quality and quantity of the ebbing fluid must be keenly monitored
until a volume is removed equivalent to 150 per cent of the fluid used in the fracking.

This would ensure that all water used for the fracking is carefully separated and
removed (DEHP, 2013).
A number of techniques exist for directly or indirectly gauging fracture growth.
Nonetheless, all of these methods have drawbacks in field requirements, resolution
and the range of measurable fracture properties. The methods include: detection of
radioactive tracers, if they have been used, in the hydraulic fracturing fluid or
proppant, temperature surveys to detect fracturing fluid which is typically a different
temperature to the water in the well, production logs or down hole video to assess
where most water is entering the well; and tiltmeter and micro-seismic mapping
(Bennett et al., 2005).

2.1.3 Refining
Distillation is a widely common processing method in oil refineries. Shale ga is distilled into
constituents fractions at different boiling point ranges, each of which are then processed
further if required. The process of shale oil distillation is done by gasification of oil at high
temperatures (LI, 2015).
Pyrolysis is a process where rich organic matter is decomposed at high temperatures in the
absence of oxygen (LI, 2015).
Filtering is a common technique for separation of solids from fluids (liquids or gases). This is
done by subjecting the mixture through a medium which allows only passage of fluids of
certain density (LI, 2015).
Virtually all fraction constituents are chemically treated before undergoing for final packaging
for end use. The technique of treatment varies with the type of fractionate and the intended
use of the finished product (LI, 2015).
Reheating is executed by recirculating hot air gas into feed stock or input shale gas one of the
refining technique of shale oil where either hot air gas is re-circulated into the feed stock, or
input shale oil is shifted to the compartment for subsequent extraction of design product (LI,
2015).

2.2 Fracking Technique and Conventional oil Drilling

Technique
Vertical well drilling operations differ from horizontal well drilling operations in
diverse ways. The former is associated with conventional technique of drilling while
the latter and former are linked to fracking method (MarcellusShale, 2012).
Larger volume of fixed capital is required in fracking processes than in conventional
method. This is evident in the large water pad footprint (3-6 acres) that is required to
setup and operate a fracking process in comparison to the 1-3 acres needed in the
conventional technique (MarcellusShale, 2012).
Wide disparity exists between the volume of water that is required in hydraulic
fracturing (averagely 4million gallons) and conventional drilling which requires an
average of 50000 gallons (MarcellusShale, 2012).
According to investopedia, it costs $30-40 per barrel to produce gas in conventional
method while the price is tripled ( $80-90 per barrel) in hydraulic fracturing (Andrew,
2015). The depth of the well is directly proportional to the cost of drilling. While a

conventional well might cost $1 million to install, a well placed into one of the shale
plays utilizing hydraulic fracturing may cost several millions of dollars (Terrence,
2012). (Liu etal., 2013) reported that on extreme, it costs between $1.5-2.5 million to
dig a well via hydraulic fracturing and the median cost is $600,000 per well

2.2 Environmental Impacts of Fracking

The global-warming gases from combustion of fuel in vehicles, factory plants are a
source of concern. However other production activities also release hazardous gases
into the atmosphere. For instance, for shale gas, the primary concern is leakage and
venting of methane throughout the supply chain which is a potent greenhouse gas.
One key activity that can cause the release of large volume of methane is shale gas
completion process (Clark etal., 2013).
Hydraulic fracturing activities pose a number of threats to the environment which
includes pervasive air pollution that could affect air quality. In addition to green house
gas, emissions of natural gas can release volatile organic compounds and unhealthy
air pollutants, such as benzene (Clark etal., 2013). More attention and concerns are
channeled towards water quality. Intoxication of ground water could happen through a
number of possible ways which include subsurface leakage and incidental leakage of
fracking fluids to surface water bodies. (Clark etal., 2013).
The current analysis of the human-induced factors triggering earthquakes and the
means to decrease their associated risk is in the front burner. Notable examples
include inoculation of wastewater into deep formations and emerging technologies
related to oil and gas recovery, including hydraulic fracturing. In addition to directly
causing increased local seismic activity, activities such as deep fluid injection may
have other dimensions related to earthquake occurrence (Ellsworth, 2013).
Mass sensitization of the public is crucial in curbing immediate and long-term impacts
of gas production operations. Every locale is unique in social and ecological settings
as such one solution does not fit all, several practices can be used to stem peculiar
challenges. A growing trend is the drilling of multiple wells from a single well pad to
reduce the footprint of shale gas operations. The use of sound barriers can reduce
typical noise pollution of approximately 85 decibels to background levels of 65
decibels at distances of a few hundred feet (Behrens etal., 2006).

3.0 Financial Perspective

3.1 Production Cost of Fracking and Conventional Drilling
More often than not companies begin drilling conventional oil only, but then
afterwards dabble into unconventional drilling which includes fracking. While
fracking involves huge capital investment, hydraulic oil plays have the opportunity to
be repeated many times. For instance if five wells are drilled on a spread across
100,000 acres, and the five wells are repeatable, another 1,000 more wells could be
drilled (Mark, 2015).
Investopedia says it costs $30-40 per barrel to produce gas in conventional method
while the price is tripled ($80-90 per barrel) in hydraulic fracturing (Andrew, 2015).

The depth of the well is directly proportional to the cost of drilling. While a
conventional well might cost $1 million to install, a well placed into one of the shale
plays utilizing hydraulic fracturing may cost several millions of dollars (Terrence,
2012). (Liu etal., 2013) reported that on extreme, it costs between $1.5-2.5 million to
dig a well via hydraulic fracturing and the median cost is $600,000 per well.

3.2 Return on Investment

The surge in use of unconventional, hydraulic fracturing technology has allowed the
global production base to remain the same, however, its use has had effect on global
energy production. Fracking is said to have lower Energy Return on Investment
(EROI) in comparison with the conventional oil drilling technique, as the extraction
process is more complicated and thus much more costlier. Basically, more energy is
necessary to extract the oil than in turn will generate energy. However, despite the
lower EROI, oil producers are employing unconventional sources more and more, to
try to keep up with the increasing oil demand (Clara, 2013).
From Monte Carlo simulation method, energy balance in terms of the Energy Return
on Investment (EROI) indicator, evaluates energy resources from a qualitative
standpoint, and calculated the Energy Return on Investment (EROI) of shale gas
development and conventional oil development. EROI of between 13 and 23 with a
mean value of approximately 17 was recorded in fracking business engagement,
which was slightly lower than the EROI value of between 14 and 25 with a mean
value of approximately 18 found for conventional drilling by the same approach. The
determined difference is largely attributable to energy invested in the use of fracking
water and chemicals in shale gas development (Hiroaki and Jun, 2014).
In addition, when all the costs needed to bring shale gas off fracking to the the
consumer doorstep were accounted for, the mean value of EROI drops from about 17
at the start of the pipeline to 12 when delivered to the consumer (Hiroaki and Jun,
2014).

3.3 Prospects of Fracking

A research think tank released a new market trend on futuristic growth trajectory of
hydraulic fracturing market space in the global energy industry. Global hydraulic
fracturing market stood at 21.34 MHHP in 2013 and is predicted to rise to 33.97
MHHP by 2022 at a CAGR of 5.30% from 2014 to 2022. In terms of revenue, the
global hydraulic fracturing market was valued at US$38,320 million and is estimated
to reach US$66,059.42 million at a CAGR of 6.12% from 2014 to 2022 (TMR, 2014).
Inspite of global criticism, fracking has remained a popular source of investment for a
number of nations globally. Canada, South Africa, Germany, United Kingdom,
Russia, and China all use fracturing techniques to increase and improve their natural
gas production. However, The choice to continuously conduct hydraulic fracturing is
currently under criticism and debate in the United Kingdom, U.S and Australia due to
public concerns of its potential environmental impacts (Jiangang, 2014).
The newly improved technological innovations and inventions including fracking may
have high cost implications and require sustainable multidisciplinary research
commitments, consequently demanding huge amount of mixed capital and expertise

thus limiting the number of long-term investors that can participate in these
investment opportunities. Nonetheless, investors that are able to invest in the future of
U.S. energy can likely benefit from the potential for a higher interests than before
considering the increased technological efficiencies (Morgan, 2013).

3.3.1 Short-Term Impact of Falling Oil Price

3.3.1.1 Economic impacts
The analytical evidence from Irans economy uncovers that the effect of oil shocks on
macro-economic variables such as inflation is of huge importance. Comprehending
qualitative and quantitative dynamics between oil prices and inflation rate is crucially
important for economic policy makers striving to minimize inflation and control oil
shocks. A number of scholarly researches have also confirmed the impacts of oil
quakes on a good number of economic variables such as economic growth, trade
balance, etc. Consequently, a change in the price of these inputs will directly or
indirectly influence the price of other products (Abbas, Rafik and Ashkan, 2014).
The continuous global fall in crude oil prices in the international market has
compelled Nigeria, one of the worlds largest exporter of crude oil to immediately
review its budgetary bench mark down ward from $65 to $45. This development
would directly cut government expenditure and consequently affect the provisions of
incentives, subsidies, trade in goods and services in the fiscal year of 2015. However,
considering that a soaring oil price in the last sixteen years made no commiserate
impact on the economy, some economists think that a fall in the price of crude oil
could be a blessing in disguise to Nigeria. Nigerian government may have no option
but to critically examine its machinery of governance and be more judicious in
spending. As Nigeria runs a bubble economy, which can hardly withstand dynamics of
economic pressures. In addition, an Economist magazine reported that monoeconomies whose budgets largely depend on high oil prices are in for a shock in their
national lives. Russias prospects darkened and plummeted further. Nigeria has been
forced to raise interest rates and devalue its currency-naira. Venezuela appears closer
than farther to defaulting on its debt. The spectre of defaults and the momentum of the
price plunge have unnerved financial markets (Abubakar, 2015).
As it holds today, a wide variety of other commodity prices have fallen off drastically
since mid-year. It is not limited to just oil. Mineral commodities like copper and
aluminum, as well as agricultural products like corn and cotton, are trading at or near
the bottom of their 52-week price ranges. Not all of the drop in oil prices can be
explained by falling demand, but it's clearly part of the story (Andrew, 2014).
Meanwhile, shorter-term windows of opportunities are opened to traders that are
capable to adapt to the shifting U.S. energy markets, thereby impacting investors
seeking more liquid investments. As the U.S. energy revolution further progresses,
investors should be able to benefit from new and differentiated investment
opportunities (Morgan, 2013).
Presumably, if the oil price fall is short term, some impulses are likely to be felted by
all oil exporters globally. The oil rich nations of the Gulf, and some of the Caspian
countries, can easily absorb the shock triggered off by the temporary fall in prices
they have stacked up robust base of fund reserves, however some face more
worrisome long-term fiscal prospects. Even though Russia is in a better position to
8

manage the oil fall than the Soviet Union was, but it is likely to suffer from the
unavoidable cuts in imports and spending, and the sanctions will aggravate its
economic situation more. Irans economy is in worse shape because it had a less
prudent economic policy and the sanctions on export had added insult to injuryworsened its fate which could be linked to the current crisis engulfing its territory.
Nigeria, inspite of an improved macro-economic policy in comparison with the past
oil booms, is going to be drastically affected due to its near complete dependence on
oil sales as its mainstay of the economy. This could result to a decrease in standards of
living and worsened the socio-political instability currently eating deep into its fabric
(Francisco, 2015).
3.3.1.2 Social impacts
The short-term impact of falling oil prices has been worrisome. Prior to the current
trying moments of oil price fall, oil exploration has been a major source of lucrative
employment opportunities. Approximately 500,000 jobs were created in the energy
sector since the wind fall ended. Expenditure on oil exploration hardware, rigs,
pipelines and other paraphernalia has also been strong. However, with plunging oil
prices, such spending is drastically gone down in U.S (Barry, 2014).
Social welfare programmes are getting their fair share of the oil fall shock. A number
of western countries have re-adjusted their state funded welfarist programmes in
respond to the oil fall. This would have direct effects on the downtrodden
beneficiaries of this programs who struggle from hand to mouth (Barry, 2014).
Low prices may consequently catalyze energy-security tension and become a source
of worries. The low oil prices are milking US shale and other top end dealers. A
number of investors have been coerced to to significantly cut down their investment
budgets to sort of create safety net for emerging new reality. Expenditure on
exploration and production has fallen one-fifth in 2015. The tendency of further cuts
is likely (Ivana, 2015).
3.3.1.3 Political Impacts
Fallen oil prices could arm-twist Saudi Arabia, on one hand and Iran
on the other and together with oil-producing its allies to the
bargaining table on vested interest: oil. A consensus and
compromise between these interests and U.S could go a long way to
ameliorate the heightened level of geopolitical instability and
sectarian upheaval in the Middle East as a whole. The frequency and
protracted severity of the Syrian imbroglio and the insurgency that
it has driven the Gulf into and its environs can not be
overemphasized. However, the possibility exists that all these
interests in the regional tussle for power and control will be seeking
for panacea to doused the escalated embers of socio-political
violence that has held the troubled state of for example Syria to
random (Gregory, 2015). Iran, an oil reliant state where oil makes up
for as much as 75 percent of its GDP, the government would need
an oil price of $127 a barrel to stabilize its machinery of governance
(JD, 2014). Presently, Iran more than ever needs a bilateral ties with
global powers that be to advance its nuclear program that would lift
sanctions limiting its oil sales.
9

U.S and its European allies had schemed to gradually again place sanctions on Russia
if Putin refuses to act diplomatically to douse and ease unrests in Crimea. That way
sanctions could be gradually lifted if Russia takes prudent steps (Steven, 2014).
ItisestimatedthatthenationofSaudiArabiahasprobablycommittedapproximately
$100billionofitsreservesinitswarcampaignagainstAmericasascendancyinthe
oilmarketpyramid.Theoilkingdomsdecisiononeyearagonottocutproductionto
supportoilpriceshasdriventhepriceofbothBrentcrudeandWestTexas
Intermediatedownbelow$50abarrel,butSaudiArabiawillhavetospendalotmore
towinthebattle(Nathan,2015).

3.3.2 LONG-TERM IMPACTS

3.3.2.2 Economic Impacts
According to the sources consulted, one of the consequences of the surge in
unconventional oil and gas production in the US is that throughout the period between
2011 and 2035, this country could become self-sufficient and turn into a net gas
exporter, while at the same time reducing its dependency on oil imports to 20% of its
net consumption. This trend contrasts sharply with all other countries and regions,
with the exception of Brazil, which will also experience a net positive development
based on the exploitation of its conventional hydrocarbon resources (Jiangang etal.,
2014).
While the U.S. energy boom can potentially have a substantial impact on long-term
U.S. economic growth, change the nations energy policy direction, and allow for selfdependency on local energy resources, the landscape for investments in energy may
also undergo a paradigm shift. Considering recent and drastic technological
improvements in energy extraction, a great deal of infrastructure development needs
to be completed in order for supplies to catch up to domestic and global energy
demand (Morgan, 2013).
3.3.2.3 Political Impacts
Estimation of resources and production costs approximately 27.7% are located in the
Asia-Pacific, 19.2% in the USA and Canada, 16% in Latin America, 13.4% in Eastern
Europe-Eurasia, 14.2% in Africa, 5.5% in European countries integrated into the
OECD, and only 3.8 % in the Middle East. This geographical distribution helps to
balance the skewed reserve of conventional oil and resources in Eastern Europe, Euroasia and in the Middle East (Mariano, 2014).
Both regions respectively recorded about 30.6% and 26.5% of the reserves and the
technically recoverable10 resources of the conventional natural gas in the world.
However, it is possible that, in the future, the Middle East and other regions, such as
countries bordering the Caspian, which so far have received little attention due to their
large conventional resources, will see a substantial increase in their estimates of
unconventional resources (Mariano, 2014).
Lower oil prices may cool the steam of self-determination from Baghdad within the
Kurdish Kurdish Regional Government in northern Iraq since its own oil reserves
10

would likely not cover the monetary need of its expenses, and its dependence on its
share of the central governments revenues becomes more critical to its own fiscal
well being (Nathan, 2015).

4.0 Conclusion
Hydraulicfracturingisanunconventionaldrillingtechniqueofoilandnaturalgas
extraction which requires the pumping of mixture of water, sand, and useful
chemicalsathighpressuresintoawelldrilledvertically,andthenhorizontallyintothe
rocks.Fracking has no doubt revolutionized the oil and gas industry and thus creating
emerging potential petrol-states from none OPEC countries like U.S, Canada and
China.
Environmental impacts of fracking ranges from surface water contamination,
earthquake and seismic activitiy, emission of greenhouse gases, release of air
pollutant, disruption of human activities to intoxication of underground wwater.
Hydraullic fracking has a lower Energy Return on Investment (EROI) in comparison
with the conventional oil drilling technique, as the extraction processes are more
complicated and thus involve huge financial commitment.
More energy is required to extract the oil than in turn will generate energy. While
fracking involves huge capital investment, however, hydraulic oil plays have the
opportunity to be repeated many times. For instance if five wells are drilled on a
spread across 100,000 acres, and the five wells are repeatable, another 1,000 more
wells could be drilled.
Fracking innovation may boost economies and local demands for natural gas in U.S,
Australia, Canada and China, However, oil-exporting and totally dependent
economies may be in for the shock of their economic lives. A number of countries are
highly vulnerable to a potential trade quake as a result of change in US oil imports
including Angola, Congo, and Nigeria. Short term and long-term impacts of oil price
fall include inflation, budgetary adjustment in totally oil-dependent exporting
countries, geo-political intrigues, reduction in international trade volumes due to drop
in GDP, fall in standard of living for countries whose citizens live on the edge,
reduction in local national expenditure which is evidenced in Nigeria and Venezuela,
rise in rate of employment. The insignificant concentration of unconventional oil in
the Middle East and higher concentration of non-conventional oil in once oil
importing states may strike a balance in global oil trade.

11

5.0 REFERENCES
1. Abbas, A.A., Rafik, N., and Ashkan, A., 2014, Oil Price Pass-Through into
Domestic Inflation: The Case of Iran, International Journal of Energy Economics and
Policy Vol. 8, No. 67.
2. Abubakar, A., 2015, The Impact of Global Fall in Oil Prices on the Nigerian Crude
Oil Revenue and Its Prices, Proceedings of the Second Middle East Conference on
Global Business, Economics, Finance and Banking (ME15Dubai Conference), Paper
ID: D508.
3. Andrew, B., 2014, Falling oil prices impact economic trends, Triangle Business
Journal, I.D 4, No.330.
4. Andrew, B., 2015, Cost of Shale Oil versus Conventional Oil, available online at<
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/active-trading/051215/cost-shale-oil-versusconventional-oil.asp (Accessed on 26/11/2015).
5. Barry, R., 2015, What do Falling Oil Prices mean for U.S in the Short term and
Long
term,
Washington
Post,
available
online
at<
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2014/12/16/plunging-oil-prices-aredoing-obamas-foreign-policy-for-him/ accessed on (04/12/2015).
6. Behrens and Associates, 2006, Gas Well Drilling Noise Impact and Mitigation
Study, Prepared for the Gas Drilling Task Force, Fort Worth, TX, available online
at<http://pstrust.org/docs/GasWellDrillingNoiseImpactandMitigationStudy.pdf
(Accessed on 26/11/2015).
7. Beckwith, R., 2010, Hydraulic Fracturing: The Fuss, the facts, the Future. Society
of Petroleum Engineers Report.
8. Bennett, L., Calvez, J.L., Sarver, D.R., Tanner, K., Birk, W.S., Waters, G., Drew, J.,
Michaud, G., Primiero, P., Eisner, L., Jones, R., Leslie, D., Williams, M.J.,
Govenlock, J., Klem, R.C. and Tezuka K., 2005. The Source for Hydraulic Fracture
Characterization. Oilfield Review 17:42-57.
9. Clara, P., 2013, Oil Production from Unconventional Sources: Fuel of the Future,
available
online
at<
http://www.decodedscience.org/oil-production-fromunconventional-sources-fuel-of-the-future/33192 (Accessed on 25/11/2015).
10. Clark, C., Burnham, C.H., Harto, C., and Horner., 2013, Hydraulic Fracturing
and Shale Gas Production: Technology, Impacts and Regulations, available online
at<http://www.afdc.energy.gov/uploads/publication/anl_hydraulic_fracturing.pdf
(Accessed on 20/11/2015).

12

11. Common Wealth Of Australia, 2015, Hydraulic Fracturing (fracking)

Techniques, Including Reporting Requirements and Governance Arrangements,
available online at< www.iesc.environment.gov.au (Accessed on 25/11/2015)
12. Council on Foreign Relations, 2013, The Shale Gas and Tight Oil Boom: U.S.
States
Economic
Gains
and
Vulnerabilities,
available
online
at<http://www.cfr.org/united-states/shale-gas-tight-oil-boom-us-states-economicgains-vulnerabilities/p31568 (Accessed on 21/11/2015).
13. Department of Environment and Heritage Protection, 2013, Regulating Fraccing.
Available online at<http://www.ehp.qld.gov.au/management/non-mining/regulatingfraccing.html (Accessed on 18/11/2015).
14. Denney, D., 2011, Evaluating Hydraulic Fracture Effectiveness in a Coal-SeamGas Reservoir From Surface Tiltmeter and Micro-seismic Mapping. Journal of
Petroleum Technology, March 2011:59-61.
15. Economides, M.J. and Martin, T., 2007, Modern Fracturing: Enhancing Natural
Gas Production. ET Publishing, Houston, Texas.
16. Ellsworth, W. L., 2013, Injection-Induced Earthquakes, Science Journal, volume.
341, no.6142.
17. Franciso, M., 2015, Heres what happens when oil prices crash and its not
pretty
for
producers,
available
online
at<
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jan/12/what-happens-oil-pricescollapse-cheaper-fuel-us-europe ( Accessed on 27/11/2015).
18. Gregory, G. F., 2015, Sultans of Swing? The Geopolitics of Falling Oil Prices,
Issue 3, Brookings Doha Centre, Qatar.
19. Hiroaki, Y. and Jun, M., 2014, Analysis of the Energy Balance of Shale Gas
Development, Open Access Energy Research Engineering and Policy Journal,
Volume.43, 2207-2227: doi:10.3390/en7042207.
20. Ivana, K., 2015, Low oil prices could lead to energy shortages, CNNmoneynews,
available online at <http://money.cnn.com/2015/11/10/investing/energy-shortage-lowoil/ (Accessed on 02/12/2015).
21. Jiangang, C., Mohammed, H.A., Rebekah, C.M., and Paul, T., 2014,
Hydraulic Fracturing: Paving the Way for a Sustainable Future? Journal of
Environmental and Public Health, Volume 201, No. 656824.
22. John, M. G and Hannah, J. W., 2015, The Fracking Revolution: Shale Gas as a
Case Study in Innovation Policy Emory Law Journal, Volume 64, Issue 4, Pp. 957.
23.Lexinnova,2015,ShaleOilandGas:Astudyonrefining,TechnologyLandscape,
available

only

at

<
http://www.wipo.int/export/sites/www/patentscope/en/programs/patent_landscapes/do
cuments/lexinnova_shale_oil_and_gas.pdf(Accessedon02/12/2015).
13

24. MarcellusShale, 2012, A Discussion of the Technologies Associated with

Unconventional Natural Gas Drilling and How it Compares to More Familiar
Conventional Drilling Techniques, Issue Number 6.
25. Mark, P., 2015, Conventional vs. Unconventional Oil, available online at<
http://www.oilandgasinvestor.com/blog/conventional-vs-unconventional-oil780801#p=full (Accessed on 24/11/2015).
26. Mariano, M., 2014, Geopolitical Impact of Unconventional Hydrocarbon,
Strategies Sectors available online at< http://www.iemed.org/observatori/areesdanalisi/arxius-adjunts/anuari/med.2015/IEMed%20Yearbook
%202015_Panorama_GeopoliticalImpactHydrocarbons_MarianoMarzo.pdf
(Accessed on 27/11/2015).
27. Morgan, S., 2013, The U.S Energy Revolution, available
http://www.morganstanleyfa.com/public/projectfiles/f0dc43ea-29be-4e9a-b9084f7ae2be6fb7.pdf (Accessed on 26/11/2015).

at<

28. Nathan, V, 2015, Saudi Arabia Preparing to Fuel it $100 million War with Debt,
available online at <http://www.forbes.com/sites/nathanvardi/2015/11/10/saudiarabia-preparing-to-fuel-its-100-billion-oil-war-with-debt/ (Accessed on 01/12/2015).
29. Rogers, R., Ramurthy, M., Rodvelt, G. and Mullen, M., 2007, Coal bed methane:
principles and practices, 3rd edition, report by Halliburton.
30. Stephenson, C.J., Crabb, T.M., Orrego, G.V. and Khaan, M.B., 2003, Effective
Prop-pant Flowback Control Following Hydraulic Fracturing Treatments in Shallow
Reservoirs. SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, 5-8 October, 2003,TX.
31. Steven, H., 2014, Plunging Oil Prices are Doing Obamas Foreign Policy For
him,
Washington
Post,
available
online
at<
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2014/12/16/plunging-oilprices-are-doing-obamas-foreign-policy-for-him/ (accessed on 01/12/2015)
32. Taleghani, A.D., 2009, Analysis of Hydraulic Fracture Propagation in Fractured
Reservoirs: an Improved Model for the Interaction Between Induced and Natural
Fractures, PhD Thesis, University of Texas at Austin.
33. Transparency Market Research, 2015, Hydraulic Fracturing Market Projected To
Continue,
Oil
and
Gas
Finance
Journal,
online
article,
available
at<http://www.ogfj.com/articles/2015/06/global-hydraulic-fracturing-market-projected-tocontinue-growth.html (Accessed on 27/11/2015).

34. Terrence, M. F., 2012, Fracking: Economic and Environmental Considerations,

available online at <http://www.oilgasmonitor.com/fracking-economic-environmentalconsiderations/2536/ (Accessed on 25/11/2015).

14

35. Zhenbo etal., 2014, The Development Implications of the Fracking Revolution,
Odi,
available
online
at
<http://www.odi.org/sites/odi.org.uk/files/odiassets/publications-opinion-files/8886.pdf (Accessed on 21/11/2015).

15