Oil shale in Belarus

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Oil shale in Belarus is a large, but undeveloped energy resource. [1] While the reserves have been known for decades, they remain unexplored due to the oil shale's high ash and sulphur content, low heat of combustion and high cost of extraction and processing. However, depletion of conventional petroleum and natural gas reserves, as well as high degree of reliance on imported hydrocarbons (from Russia), have recently renewed interest in oil shale exploration in the country.

Contents

Resource

Belarus is estimated to contain 5–11 billion tonnes of oil shale. [2] [3] [4] Up to 3.6 billion tonnes of recoverable reserves are concentrated within the Pripyat Basin, occupying western Homiel, southern Minsk and eastern Brest voblasts. [5]

Oil shales are found in Podlasie-Brest Depression, Orsha Depression, Belarusian anteclise, Zhlobin Saddle and the Pripyat Basin. [3] The main resource is located in the Pripyat Basin which covers an area of 10,000–20,000 square kilometres (3,900–7,700 sq mi) and contains oil shale of Upper Devonian to Lower Carboniferous age. [2] [3] Within the Pripyat Basin, two potentially exploitable deposits, Lyuban and Turov, have been identified, estimated to contain 0.9 and 2.7 billion tonnes of oil shale in place respectively. [1] [2] However, recoverable reserves of Turov deposit are identified to be 0.33–0.47 billion tonnes. [6] [7] The smaller deposits in the other parts of the country were found to be of negligible economic value. [3]

Belarusian oil shales contain 10–28% of organic matter, their thermal energy of combustion is 4.2–9.5 MJ/kg, while the ash content ranges from 58 to 87%. [8] Due to these properties, Belarusian oil shale cannot be burned directly for power generation; the rock must first undergo the process of pyrolysis, which results in production of shale oil, oil shale gas and other factions that can then be used like the conventionally produced hydrocarbons. Furthermore, a significant depth of seams (64–514 m) excludes the possibility of open-pit mining, adding to the cost of production. For these reasons, fossil fuel extraction in Belarus has been limited to the more easily accessible and cheaply produced conventional oil and gas. Though this was insufficient for the total energy needs of the republic, additional resources were supplied from elsewhere in the Soviet Union.

History

In 1963, oil shale was discovered in the Pripyat Basin, Minsk and Homiel voblasts. [2] The Pripyat Basin has been extensively studied during the 1970s–1980s, while the smaller deposits in the other parts of the country were found to be of negligible economic value. [3] Unlike nearby Estonia with its large reserves, where extensive oil shale industry was constructed, the Belarusian deposits were deemed inexpedient to develop.

After the Soviet collapse, the newly independent Belarus became highly reliant on imported hydrocarbons from Russia, while the production of domestic oil and gas peaked in the 1970s and has been steadily declining ever since. As of 2010, relations with Russia have deteriorated significantly, largely, due to numerous energy disputes. As a part of its energy security, Belarus has renewed interest in oil shale exploration. In December 2010, Belarus companies Belaruskali, BelorusNeft and Belgorkhimprom established a joint venture for the oil shale development. [9] International tender was announced in March 2011. [10]

Development perspectives

One of its main obstacles is the problem of complex utilization of large volumes of waste products. It has been suggested to use the oil shale ash in production of concrete and ceramics, as well as in soil liming. [3] In 2010, the Belarusian government decided on a construction of an oil shale processing plant, though financing of the project remains in question: a Luxembourgian company withdrew from the endeavour, forcing Belarus to start negotiations with the Chinese investors. [6] Belarus also seeks to build cooperation with Estonia, which has one of the most developed oil shale industries in the world. [11]

Related Research Articles

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Oil shale is an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock containing kerogen from which liquid hydrocarbons can be produced. In addition to kerogen, general composition of oil shales constitutes inorganic substance and bitumens. Based on their deposition environment, oil shales are classified as marine, lacustrine and terrestrial oil shales. Oil shales differ from oil-bearing shales, shale deposits that contain petroleum that is sometimes produced from drilled wells. Examples of oil-bearing shales are the Bakken Formation, Pierre Shale, Niobrara Formation, and Eagle Ford Formation. Accordingly, shale oil produced from oil shale should not be confused with tight oil, which is also frequently called shale oil.

Fossil fuel Fuel formed over millions of years from dead plants and animals

A fossil fuel is a hydrocarbon-containing material formed underground from the remains of dead plants and animals that humans extract and burn as fuel. The main fossil fuels are coal, petroleum and natural gas, which humans extract through mining and drilling. Fossil fuels may be burnt to provide heat for use directly, to power engines, or to generate electricity.

Unconventional oil is petroleum produced or extracted using techniques other than the conventional method. Industry and governments across the globe are investing in unconventional oil sources due to the increasing scarcity of conventional oil reserves. Unconventional oil and gas have already made a dent in international energy linkages by reducing US energy import dependency.

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Oil shale geology Branch of geology

Oil shale geology is a branch of geologic sciences which studies the formation and composition of oil shales–fine-grained sedimentary rocks containing significant amounts of kerogen, and belonging to the group of sapropel fuels. Oil shale formation takes place in a number of depositional settings and has considerable compositional variation. Oil shales can be classified by their composition or by their depositional environment. Much of the organic matter in oil shales is of algal origin, but may also include remains of vascular land plants. Three major type of organic matter (macerals) in oil shale are telalginite, lamalginite, and bituminite. Some oil shale deposits also contain metals which include vanadium, zinc, copper, and uranium.

Oil shale reserves refers to oil shale resources that are economically recoverable under current economic conditions and technological abilities. Oil shale deposits range from small presently economically unrecoverable to large potentially recoverable resources. Defining oil shale reserves is difficult, as the chemical composition of different oil shales, as well as their kerogen content and extraction technologies, vary significantly. The economic feasibility of oil shale extraction is highly dependent on the price of conventional oil; if the price of crude oil per barrel is less than the production price per barrel of oil shale, it is uneconomic.

Oil shale industry Resource extraction industry

The oil shale industry is an industry of mining and processing of oil shale—a fine-grained sedimentary rock, containing significant amounts of kerogen, from which liquid hydrocarbons can be manufactured. The industry has developed in Brazil, China, Estonia and to some extent in Germany and Russia. Several other countries are currently conducting research on their oil shale reserves and production methods to improve efficiency and recovery. Estonia accounted for about 70% of the world's oil shale production in a study published in 2005.

Shale oil extraction Process for extracting oil from oil shale

Shale oil extraction is an industrial process for unconventional oil production. This process converts kerogen in oil shale into shale oil by pyrolysis, hydrogenation, or thermal dissolution. The resultant shale oil is used as fuel oil or upgraded to meet refinery feedstock specifications by adding hydrogen and removing sulfur and nitrogen impurities.

Environmental impact of the oil shale industry

Environmental impact of the oil shale industry includes the consideration of issues such as land use, waste management, and water and air pollution caused by the extraction and processing of oil shale. Surface mining of oil shale deposits causes the usual environmental impacts of open-pit mining. In addition, the combustion and thermal processing generate waste material, which must be disposed of, and harmful atmospheric emissions, including carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas. Experimental in-situ conversion processes and carbon capture and storage technologies may reduce some of these concerns in future, but may raise others, such as the pollution of groundwater.

History of the oil shale industry Timeline of the production of oil shale

The history of the oil shale industry started in ancient times. The modern industrial use of oil shale for oil extraction dates to the mid-19th century and started growing just before World War I because of the mass production of automobiles and trucks and the supposed shortage of gasoline for transportation needs. Between the World Wars oil shale projects were begun in several countries.

Kukersite Light-brown marine type oil shale of Ordovician age

Kukersite is a light-brown marine type oil shale of Ordovician age. It is found in the Baltic Oil Shale Basin in Estonia and North-West Russia. It is of the lowest Upper Ordovician formation, formed some 460 million years ago. It was named after the German name of the Kukruse Manor in the north-east of Estonia by the Russian paleobotanist Mikhail Zalessky in 1917. Some minor kukersite resources occur in sedimentary basins of Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Oklahoma in North America and in Amadeus and Canning basins Australia.

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Geography of Belarus Overview of the geography of Belarus

Belarus is a landlocked, generally flat country without natural borders, that occupies an area of 207,600 square kilometers (80,200 sq mi). Its neighbors are Russia to the east and northeast, Latvia to the north, Lithuania to the northwest, Poland to the west, and Ukraine to the south. Its extension from north to south is 560 km (350 mi), from west to east is 650 km (400 mi).

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Oil shale in Jordan Overview of the industry in Jordan

Oil shale in Jordan represents a significant resource. Oil shale deposits in Jordan underlie more than 70% of Jordanian territory. The total resources amounts to 31 billion tonnes of oil shale.

Oil shale in Estonia Overview of the industry in Estonia

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Bazhenov Formation

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References

  1. 1 2 Lishtvan, I. I.; Falyushin, P. L.; Kraiko, V. M.; Anufrieva, E. V.; Smolyachkova, E. A. (2009). "Composition and properties of oil shale from the Turovskoe deposit in Belarus". Solid Fuel Chemistry. 43 (2). doi:10.3103/S0361521909020013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Oil shale resources of the Pripyat Basin in Byelrussia defined" (PDF). Pace Synthetic Fuels Report. The Pace Company Consultants & Engineers. 31 (1): 2-12–2-13. March 1994. Retrieved 2014-09-28.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kudelsky, Anatoly (2007). "Belarussian oil shale as a prospective raw material for fuel, energy and chemical industries — to be or not to be?" (PDF). Oil Shale . 24 (1): 5–7. ISSN   0208-189X . Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  4. ↑ Dyni, John R. (2010). "Oil Shale". In Clarke, Alan W.; Trinnaman, Judy A. (eds.). Survey of energy resources (PDF) (22 ed.). World Energy Council. p. 101. ISBN   978-0-946121-02-1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-04.
  5. ↑ Dobrego, K. V.; Zhdanok, S. A.; Koznacheev, I. A. (2009). "Gasification of Belarusian oil shales in a filtration-combustion wave". Journal of Engineering Physics and Thermophysics. 82 (2). doi:10.1007/s10891-009-0204-y.
  6. 1 2 "Звезды" зажглись и погасли над неосвоенными месторождениями ["Stars" lit and went out over undeveloped deposits]. Ekonomicheskaya Gazeta (in Russian). 12 July 2010. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  7. ↑ Tsalko, Vladimir (2011). "Mineral Resources of Belarus" (PDF). Economy of Belarus (2): 71. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2014-09-28.
  8. ↑ Karopa, G.N. (2003). Физическая география Беларуси[Physical Geography of Belarus] (in Russian). Francysk Skaryna Homiel State University. p. 27.
  9. ↑ "Belaruskali to produce oil?". Charter 97. 2011-01-10. Retrieved 2014-09-28.
  10. ↑ "Belarus to Open Tenders for Oil Shale Projects". Natural gas Europe. 2011-02-07. Retrieved 2014-09-28.
  11. ↑ "Oil shale production is among lucrative cooperation areas for Belarus, Estonia, deputy foreign minister says". naviny.by. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
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