A new US Geological Survey (USGS) report estimates that the Mowry Composite Total Petroleum System, located in southwest Wyoming and northeast Colorado, contains 473 million bbl of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and 27 Tcf of natural gas. This geologic system includes formations such as the Dakota Sandstone, Muddy Sandstone, Mowry Shale, and Frontier Formation.
Since exploration began in the 1950s, the system has produced about 90 million bbl of oil—equivalent to 4 days of US supply—and 7.3 Tcf of natural gas—roughly a 3-month national supply.
The assessment focuses on potential resources not yet discovered by industry. It does not include production from other prolific nearby formations, such as the Lance Formation, Lewis Shale, or Mesa Verde Group.
The last USGS assessment of this region was conducted in 2005.