The United States Geological Survey has announced the discovery of new oil and gas resources in northwest Colorado and southwest Wyoming, with an estimated 3 million barrels of oil and 666 billion cubic feet of natural gas that are recoverable. The discovery was made through a recent assessment of the Phosphoria Total Petroleum System.

Historical Production and System Overview

The Phosphoria Total Petroleum System has been producing oil and gas since approximately 1920. Over the past century of production, approximately 500 million barrels of oil and 2.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas have been recovered from the system. The system spans across the northwest Colorado and southwest Wyoming region.

Current Assessment Findings

Despite the new resource discovery, the USGS believes that the Phosphoria Total Petroleum System may be nearing depletion. Sarah Ryker, acting director of the USGS, explained the nature of the assessment, stating that "USGS energy assessments typically focus on undiscovered resources – areas where science tells us there may be a resource that industry hasn't discovered yet.

In this case, after 100 years of production, we estimate the Phosphoria Total Petroleum System has relatively little remaining oil and more than 600 billion cubic feet of gas." The assessment specifically identified millions of barrels of oil and billions of cubic feet of natural gas resources in the region. The recoverable amounts from this new discovery include the estimated 3 million barrels of oil and 666 billion cubic feet of gas.

Other Regional Formations

While the Phosphoria Total Petroleum System may be approaching depletion, other formations across the province continue to show productive capacity. According to the USGS, the Lance Formation, Lewis Shale and the Mesaverde Group continue to produce abundant oil and gas in the region.

The discovery represents the latest assessment of energy resources in an area that has been a significant contributor to domestic oil and gas production for over a century, with the geological survey providing updated estimates of remaining recoverable resources in the established petroleum system.