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Texas earthquake could even more restrict oil business' saltwater disposal options

A 4.4 magnitude earthquake that shook the largest U.S. shale field on Wednesday could lead to further restrictions on how operators there can deal with saltwater connected with their oil and gas production, experts stated.

The quake was the largest yet in the Stanton Seismic Action Area (SRA), a swath of the Permian basin near Midland, Texas, where regulators were currently keeping track of seismic activity linked to disposal of saltwater, a natural byproduct of oil and gas production.

The Railroad Commission of Texas( RRC), which manages the state's oil and gas market, in 2022 established a. strategy that intended to avoid earthquakes determining over magnitude. 3.5 in that location by mid-May of this year.

Some deep-water disposal wells in the Stanton location were. already shut as part of that strategy.

The only danger is that the event will activate an expansion. of the SRA, stated Kelly Bennett, CEO of water analytics firm B3. Insights, including that production in the location is not likely to be. affected.

The RRC in January of this year prohibited saltwater disposal. injection in a different part of the Permian, called the Northern. Culberson-Reeves Seismic Reaction Location, after a series of 7. earthquakes measuring up to magnitude 5.2 happened in a period of. simply 5 weeks towards completion of in 2015.

That restriction used to 23 disposal wells in the area and. affected manufacturers including Chevron, BP and. Coterra Energy.

It unclear whether the RRC will implement extra. constraints in Stanton after Wednesday's earthquake, said Laura. Capper, president of EnergyMakers Advisory Group, a water. management and danger mitigation consultancy.

But that was a notable magnitude we wish to prevent, she. included.

(source: Reuters)