DOI says American West holds ‘significant undiscovered, technically recoverable’ resources

The US Department of the Interior released a new US Geological Survey assessment identifying undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources in the Mowry Composite Total Petroleum System.

The assessment includes a geologic grouping in southwestern Wyoming and parts of Colorado and Utah containing deposits of a shallow, prehistoric ocean which covered most of the Rocky Mountain region. The study estimates 473 million bbl of oil and 27 tcf of natural gas in the system.

“Public lands in Southwestern Wyoming hold significant potential, and this science-based evaluation provides critical data to help inform responsible resource management," said Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum.   

“USGS energy assessments typically focus on undiscovered resources – areas where science tells us there may be a resource that industry hasn’t discovered yet,” said acting USGS Director Sarah Ryker. “In this case, our assessment found substantial undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources.”  

Since exploration began in the 1950s, the Mowry Composite system, which includes the Dakota Sandstone, the Muddy Sandstone, the Mowry Shale, and the Frontier Formation, has produced about 7.3 tcf of natural gas and 90 million bbl of oil.