Difference between Oil Shale and Shale oil?

Shale oil and shale gas are essentially oil and gas trapped in shale formations. Now shale essentially has very low permeability which does not allow oil or gas to move out from the rock thus the rock has to be fractured to take out the oil or gas trapped inside the rock. The production will be oil or gas depends solely upon the shale formations. Like in US- eagle ford, bakken are heavy oil rich formations while haynesville, barnett are gas rich formation so mainly producing gas.

Shale Oil Extraction Source:Google

Shale Oil Production

Oil shale on the other hand is sedimentary rock containing kerogen. Now this kerogen is petroleum like liquid that the rock releases when it is the rock is heated. So to take out oil from oil shale it requires heating. There are some techniques like in-situ heating that are being tested in US so that we can produce from oil shales. But till now there is no commercial production from oil shale.

Combustion of oil shale
Composition
Primary	Kerogen Quartz Feldspar Clay Carbonate Pyrite
Secondary	Uranium Iron Vanadium Nickel Molybdenum

Combustion of oil shale

• Kerogen
• Quartz
• Feldspar
• 
  Clay
• Carbonate
• Pyrite

• Uranium
• Iron
• Vanadium
• 
  Nickel
• Molybdenum