Microbial enhanced oil recovery (MEOR)

Two-thirds of the oil ever found is still in the ground even after primary and secondary production. Microbial enhanced oil recovery (MEOR) is one of the tertiary methods purported to increase oil recovery. Since 1946 more than 400 patents on MEOR have been issued, but none has gained acceptance by the oil industry. Most of the literature on MEOR is from laboratory experiments or from field trials of insufficient duration or that lack convincing proof of the process. Several authors have made recommendations required to establish MEOR as a viable method to enhance oil recovery, and until these tests are performed, MEOR will remain an unproven concept rather than a highly desirable reality.