A method of propagating a fracture farther from a well-bore into an oil and/or gas-bearing zone of a target formation while inhibiting growth of the fracture into an adjacent water-bearing zone under or over the oil and/or gas-bearing zone, comprises creating a zone of increased in-situ stress a vertical distance adjacent a target interval and then creating a main fracture in the target interval by, for example, fracturing the target interval with enough fracture fluid and pressure to propagate the main fracture, inter alia, vertically to the zone of increased in-situ stress. When vertical growth of the main fracture reaches the limit set by the zone of increased stress, additional fracture fluid pumped into the target interval tends not to propagate the main fracture vertically beyond that limit and, instead, tends to propagate the main fracture more laterally and farther from the well. Such zone(s) of increased in-situ stress can be created above, below, or both above and below the target interval.
RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS
This patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/432,784, filed on Dec. 12, 2002, which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention is directed to a method for producing gas from a subterranean formation containing a coal seam. The method includes the steps of drilling a substantially vertical well bore into the subterranean formation, which intersects the coal seam and fracturing the coal seam using a hydrajetting tool to produce at least one pair of opposed bi-wing fractures substantially along a plane of maximum stress. One or more horizontal well bores may also be drilled into the coal seam along which the coal seam can be further fractured.
