Platts: OPEC, N. African oil producers seek out shale

Softening oil prices could soon see OPEC tightening output to prevent another price slide such as the one experienced in 2008/2009.

The Arab states which are likely to shoulder the brunt of any OPEC cuts face a double whammy: Not only will they sell less crude, but they will also pump less associated gas, exacerbating regional gas shortages.

Middle East and North Africa (MENA) oil producers have for years seen a gas crunch coming and for some it has already arrived. However, a number of states in the region—oil exporters and importers alike—have been developing effective programs to find and exploit nonassociated gas deposits.

For some major OPEC producers, including Saudi Arabia, Algeria, and Libya, that has meant investigating the gas potential of hydrocarbon source rocks—mainly shale beds rich in organic matter. These act as geological soup kitchens, cooking and serving up the crude that collects in conventional oil fields. As might be expected, they are plentiful in the region. MORE