TEHRAN - A research project was developed in Iran for the first time in cooperation with the Exploration Department of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) to extract shale oil from reservoirs by using toxic coke technology at the laboratory and semi-industrial scales.
The initiative was led by Ali Shekarifard, an associate professor at the Technical Faculties Campus of the University of Tehran, in cooperation with Estonia’s Tallinn University of Technology, aimed at carrying out specialized studies for the exploration and evaluation of the exploitability of oil shales in Qalikouh, in the western province of Lorestan.
“In this project, over 3,500 different analyzes have been performed on selected samples. Based on the results of the first work package, the best and highest quality oil can be extracted from the Qalikouh oil shale by using semicoke technology,” Shekarifard said.
Shale oil is a form of unconventional oil that is extracted directly from shale rock formations. Shale oil is made possible thanks to advances in horizontal drilling and fracking. Tight oil differs from shale oil because tight oil can be extracted from not just shale formations but also sandstone and carbonates.