Eastern Gas Shales Project

The U.S. Department of Energy initiated the Eastern Gas Shales Project (EGSP) in the late 1970s to evaluate the gas potential of, and to enhance gas production from, the extensive Devonian and Mississippian organic-rich black shales within the Appalachian, Illinois, and Michigan basins in the eastern U.S. The purpose of the EGSP program was twofold: (1) determine the extent, thickness, structural complexity, and stratigraphic equivalence of all Devonian organic-rich shales throughout the three basins; and (2) develop and implement new drilling, stimulation, and recovery technologies to increase production potential. EGSP products included numerous deliverables, such as cross sections, maps, and technical reports showing structure, total formation thicknesses, net feet of black shale, and net feet of sandstone throughout the entire Middle and Upper Devonian sequence in western and north-central Pennsylvania. Those deliverables for which BTGS geologists were largely responsible are provided via the hyperlinks below.