Integrated application of a high-resolution LIDAR outcrop survey of an unconventional Niobrara Reservoir, Denver Basin, Colorado

The Niobrara Shale is a major reservoir in the Denver Basin. To understand the importance of natural fractures in this reservoir a dataset comprised of fracture plane orientations and fracture intensity variations using a ground-based LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) and photogrammetry was acquired. The purpose was to use an outcrop as an analog to the subsurface reservoir for improved reservoir characterization. Listric faults associated with negative flower structures show increased fracture intensity near the faults. Fracture sets remain consistent throughout the interbedded chalks, marls, and limestones. However, there is an apparent variability of fracture spacing associated with changes in lithology. Mapping the fracture orientation and intensity into the subsurface using the outcrop analog should give rise to better geomechanical and fluid flow modelling.