| Cardium Formation Stratigraphic range: Turonian to Coniacian |
|
|---|---|
| Type | Geological formation |
| Unit of | Alberta Group, Colorado Group, Smoky Group |
| Sub-units | Sturrock Member, Leyland Member, Cardinal Member, Kiska Member, Moosehound Member, Ram Member. |
| Underlies | Wapiabi Formation |
| Overlies | Blackstone Formation, Kaskapau Formation |
| Thickness | 22 metres (70 ft) to 109 metres (360 ft)[1] |
| Lithology | |
| Primary | Sandstone |
| Other | Shale |
| Location | |
| Named for | Cardium shells |
| Named by | James Hector, 1895[2] |
| Region | W Alberta, NE British Columbia |
| Country | Canada |
The Cardium Formation is a stratigraphical unit of Upper Cretaceous age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.
It takes the name from the Cockle (Cardiidae) shells, and was first described along the Bow River banks by James Hector in 1895.[2]
Contents |
The Cardium Formation is primarily represented by marine sandstone, with massive sandstone beds separated by shale. The formation is sub-divided into the following members from top to base: Sturrock Member (sandstone), Leyland Member (shale), Cardinal Member(sandstone), Kiska Member (shale), Moosehound Member (shale) and Ram Member(sandstone). In central Alberta, the formation is divided into the Pembina River Member and Cardium Zone.
Natural gas is produced from the Cardium Formation in the Athabasca River area and the foothills in western Alberta, and oil is produced in central Alberta in the Pembina oil field.[3] The formation has good storage potential and stratigraphical traps are formed by the thick overlying shales of the Wapiabi Formation and Muskiki Formation, while the underlying black shale of the Blackstone Formation and Kaskapau Formation are good source rocks.[4]
The Cardium Formation had an initial established recoverable oil reserve of 305 million m³, with 220.9 million m³ already produced as of 2008.[5] Gas reserves totaled 88.3 million m³, with 30.8 million m³ already produced.[6]
Drilling for oil in the Cardium Formation rebounded in 2009, when horizontal drilling and multi-stage fracturing technology increased the oil recovery factor.[7] Driven by technology, drilling in the four decades old Pembina oil field increased, re-launching the field to the center of Alberta's oil economy.
Throughout 2009, there has been consolidation underway, where land sales, corporate transactions, and consolidation of public companies with Cardium assets have been acquired by those intending to apply newer recovery techniques to improve field economics. Oil and gas companies that are part of this activity include: PetroBakken (TSX: PBN, through its acquisitions of Berens Energy, Result Energy and Rondo Petroleum), Daylight Resources Trust (TSX: DAY, through its acquisition of Highpine Energy and merger with West Energy, TSX: WTL), PennWest (TSX: PWT.UN, with a large land base), Paramount Resources (TSX: POU through its acquisition of Profound Energy), Crescent Point Energy (TSX: CPG, through its acquisition of TriAxon Resources), and the smaller Bellatrix (TSX: BXE), Delphy Energy (TSX: DEE), Peyto Energy Trust (TSX: PEY.UN). Dozens of other companies have land leases in the Cardium fairway, but have not employed horizontal drilling in the Cardium.
The Cardium Formation extends south-north from the Canada-United States border to north-eastern British Columbia near Dawson Creek, and west-east from the Canadian Rockies foothills to the prairie plains of southern and central Alberta. Eastwards, the sandstone grades to shale.[1]
It was deposited during the Turonian and Coniacian stages of the Late Cretaceous along the western edge of the Alberta Foreland Basin.[4]
The Cardium Formation is conformably overlain by the Wapiabi Formation and underlain by the Blackstone Formation. The formation is partly equivalent to the Kaskapau Formation.[1]
Due to its large areal extent and regional marker startus, it is part of different stratigraphical groups (Alberta Group, Colorado Group, Smoky Group).
