Rio Blanco Oil Shale Company

The Rio Blanco Oil Shale Company was an American shale oil extraction technology research and development company. The company was established as a general partnership of Gulf Oil (now part of Chevron Corporation) and Standard Oil of Indiana (now part of BP).[1][2] It was named after the Rio Blanco County, Colorado, the location of the company's oil shale tract.

The Rio Blanco Oil Shale Company was established in 1974. In 1974, it won a bid for Federal Oil Shale Lease C-a in the Rio Blanco County. In 1977, the company started preparations to demonstrate its modified in-situ extraction process. The demonstration program included construction of two in-situ retorts using company-developed techniques for rubbling and ignition of the oil shale deposit, and operation the process through surface drill holes.[1] The mining and blasting (3 simultaneous, underground, nuclear explosions [3]) used in this process created a bed with close to 40% porosity. This enabled to retort the chimney at a substantially faster rate achieving higher oil yields. The first retort ignited in October 1980 and the second one in June 1981. The demonstration achieved an average oil yield of 68% of Fischer Assay. The demonstration program cost $132 million.[1][3]

Later the company acquired the modified in-situ technology developed by Occidental Petroleum. The major difference between the two technologies lay in methods for rubblizing and fractioning of the shale deposit. The company also obtained a license for using the Lurgi-Ruhrgas process.[4]

In 1985, Amoco (former Standard Oil of Indiana) took control over the company acquiring Gulf Oil's take from the Chevron Corporation. In the same year, the company ceased its operations.[5]

See also

References
  1. Berry, Kay L.; Hutson, Roy L.; Sterrett, John S.; Knepper, Jay C. (1982). Modified In-Situ Retorting Results of Two Field Retorts. SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition. New Orleans: Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi:10.2118/10998-MS. 10998-MS. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
  2. Youngquist, Walter (October 1998). "Shale oil — the elusive energy" (PDF). Hubert Center Newsletter. Colorado School of Mines (4). Retrieved 2010-03-07.
  3. CER Geonuclear Corporation & Continental Oil Company (June 1975). "PROJECT RIO BLANCO FINAL REPORT DETONATION RELATED ACTIVITIES" (PDF). Retrieved 2015-05-10.
  4. United States Office of Technology Assessment (June 1980). An Assessment of Oil Shale Technologies (PDF). DIANE Publishing. pp. 133–136, 153. ISBN 978-1-4289-2463-5. NTIS order #PB80-210115. Retrieved 2007-11-03.
  5. Knutson, Carroll F. (1986). "Developments in Oil Shale in 1985". AAPG Bulletin. American Association of Petroleum Geologists. 70. doi:10.1306/94886C86-1704-11D7-8645000102C1865D.
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