Project Final Report-07122-45-Paleozoic shales in Utah have tremendous untapped gas potential. These include the Mississippian/Pennsylvanian Manning Canyon Shale/Doughnut Formation and Pennsylvanian Paradox Formation of central and southeastern Utah, respectively. Shale beds within these formations are widespread, thick, buried deep enough to generate dry gas (or oil in some areas of the Paradox Basin), and sufficiently rich in organic material and fractures to hold significant recoverable gas reserves. This study provides a detailed evaluation of these potential shale-gas reservoirs including (1) identifying and mapping/correlating the major shale intervals, (2) determining the areas having the greatest gas potential (“sweet spots”), (3) characterizing the geologic, petrographic, geochemical, and petrophysical rock properties of those reservoirs, and (4) recommending the best completion practices