Many fractured reservoirs are believed to be in a state of incipient shear failure. Our experience shows that the most important flow paths are the subset of "critically oriented" fractures in the rock mass. This means that you will be able to design wells that preferentially intersect the most productive features. More details can be found on our Stress Criticality of Fractures page.

Fractures are also sensitive to the effective normal stress. Knowledge of fracture properties such as spacing, roughness and hydraulic aperture allows us to calculate compressibility and determine the importance of fracture closure as the reservoir depletes. We have extensive experience in fractured basements (see our Downloads page) and can help you understand these unusual reservoirs.

We are expert in the geomechanics of fractured reservoirs and have over 10 years experience of oil-field rock mechanics (see our Oil and Gas Clients page). All our rock-mechanics services are based on understanding the stress field in the reservoir by integrating data from drilling, logging, testing and production. We can help you understand critically stressed environments, anisotropic water breakthrough, fracture closure during depletion and determination of fractured reservoir compressibility.