PERMIAN BASIN- The energy industry's buzz over Cline shale is getting louder. The formation has the potential to make a huge impact on the Permian Basin. It span from Midland to Big Spring and from Lubbock down to Big Lake.
Midland Geologist Gary Dawson has studied the Cline shale for years. "It's kind of the perfect shale. It's got all the ingredients that you need to have," he tells us. Dawson says the shale is jet black and brittle. It creates and retains vast quantities of oil and natural gas.
Cline shale was virtually insignificant until recent developments emerged in horizontal drilling and fracking, allowing for the shale to be tapped.
Midland Energy Industry Expert Morris Burns tells us, "This is a huge shale formation and only in the last 15 to 20 years have we been able to get oil and gas out of it. The Wolfberry shale has increased the permian basin's production by about 25 to 30 percent in the last few years. The Cline shale has the potential to increase it by another 50 to 60 percent."
