MEOR – Microbial Enhanced Oil Recovery

The MEOR process developed and tested by MicroPro GmbH over a period of 20 years is a highly effective tertiary oil production process on a microbiological basis. This technology by reduction of water-cut leads to a revitalization of oil production in depleting reservoirs. It enables an enhanced production of oil through the injection of molasses and trillions of selected and adapted bacteria. The injected microorganisms grow on molasses, proliferate and synthesize various products (gases, acids, alcohols, surfactants) deep inside the reservoir.

For case-specific treatments at high temperature and salinity MicroPro GmbH provides a comprehensive culture collection of MEOR-bacteria.

The MIOR process includes a number of production-enhancing effects:

• Bacterial gases increase reservoir pressure up to 20 bar and lead to a higher energy potential deep in the oil field
• Organic acids build up new flow channels for oil by dissolving carbonate rock
• Biolipids increase wettability and break up oil/water barriers

Due to the above processes fresh sections of the matrix which are not quite drained will be pulled into the oil extraction and increased pressure and permeability and therefore push significant amounts of trapped normally unrecoverable oil toward the production well. Per ton of molasses injected into the reservoir ~ 50 bbl MEOR-oil can be produced. Hence, on top of a water-flooding treatment an additional production of 10 – 15% of the Original Oil in Place (OOIP) has been recorded.

MEOR results are:

• Reduction of water-cut by 15 – 30 %
• Increasing production rate of stimulated producers by up to 50 %
• Enhanced oil production by up to 150 %

The costs for treatment amount, according to case-specific complexity, to a few USD per bbl additional oil.