A new joint venture aimed at reviving sleeping giant oilfields is now up and running and ready to distribute what is described as ‘revolutionary’ Plasma Pulse Technology across North America.
Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technology is the backbone of a secondary North American oil boom, and Plasma Pulse Technology (PPT) is one of the favorites poised to make major gains right out of the starting blocks.
Earlier this year, Propell Technologies (OTCQB:PROP), which owns the exclusive license to distribute PPT technology in the United States, created a new joint venture to secure licensing for all of North America.
On 27 October, Propell announced the operational launch of the new JV between its wholly owned subsidiary, Novas Energy USA, and Calgary-based Technovita Technologies USA. The new JV, Novas Energy North America (NENA), has now cornered the entire North American market and is ready to begin sales and delivery, with the first treatments already successfully completed.
The new JV was formed this summer with a $1.2-million investment by PROP, which has a 60% share. Its partner invested $800,000 for a 40% stake, and it also brings even more plasma pulsing expertise to the table.
"We're pleased to have this joint effort to sell and deliver Plasma Pulse across North America up and running with the first treatments already complete," Propell CEO John Huemoeller II said in a statement. "We're confident the Technovita team will provide significant shareholder value to Propell and we look forward to working with them."
PPT uses a series of impulse waves to reopen permeability for up to one year per treatment. Data from an average of 27 oil wells showed a 295% increase in initial production after a single PPT treatment, while the average from 36 injector wells showed a 545% increase of the amount of fluid after a single plasma treatment. In an Oklahoma oil field, the application of PPT led to an amazing 1040% increase in daily well production.
In another recent example, the JV announced the successful treatment of a well for the Kuwait Oil Company. After the well was treated with the plasma pulse technology, production jumped by 85%.
The technology doesn’t open rock like fracking; rather, it comes in afterwards and cleans up well bores to clear the pathway for oil to flow faster and more efficiently to the surface. On an environmental level, it is friendly—making it a sure sell in today’s market, which is not only hindered by a slump in oil prices, but also by increasing environmental activism and a tougher regulatory atmosphere.
The key is getting more oil out of the ground and being able to withstand price volatility while doing it. In today’s market, as soon as a new EOR technology can prove an increase in a well’s productive performance quickly and cost-effectively, operators stand up and take notice. In the case of PPT, the process has proven to increase a well’s productive performance for up to a year with a single treatment that takes only a few hours.
Furthermore, while stringent new anti-fracking regulations and tight restrictions on injector well acid washing in certain states hinder the cost-effectiveness of operations for major players such as Chevron (NYSE:CVX), ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) and Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY), the savings and regulatory ease of using PPT are expected to secure the technology a prime position in the EOR market.
Major strategic investors agree. They’ve been playing the EOR market for some time, and the recent $15-million investment in Propell Technologies Group, Inc. (OTCQB:PROP) caught everyone’s attention at the time, and since then the project has moved forward quickly.
There has been plenty of speculation about the rise of PPT and what this technology could eventually be worth, with some suggesting that in states with tough fracking and acid-wash regulations it could net $1 million a week, while others look at a North America-wide business that could be worth billions.
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On a broader level, the global EOR market is being driven by depleting oil reserves and is projected to be worth $516.7 billion by 2023—up from only $38.1 billion in 2012. In this equation, newer types of EOR, according to the latest market report, “will change the dynamics of the global EOR market.” So far, the revolutionary application of PPT appears to have carved out its place in this market, securing the licensing for the U.S. and Canada and eyeing markets abroad.
By James Burgess of Oilprice.com
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