GEOSCIENCES
Deepwater data acquisition starts off Philippines
Work was scheduled to begin on 450 km (280 mi) of deepwater seismic data acquisition in SC 55 offshore Philippines. NorAsian Energy Ltd. and partner Trans-Asia Oil & Energy Development Corp. contracted theVeritas Searcher to conduct the survey, which was funded by the Vital Resources Corp.
Target of the seismic run is the Marantao prospect, a carbonate reef believed to be at least five times larger than the Malampaya reef, which is the Philippines’ largest oil and gas field. SC 55 is the first ultra deepwater block awarded by the Philippine Department of Energy. It covers 9,000 sq km (3,500 sq mi) in 1,900 m (6,230 ft) of water.
Brazilian exploration spending
The director general of Brazil’s Agência Nacional do Petróleo, Haroldo Lima, said spending by ANP on geologic and seismic research needs to be $90 million a year for the next five years, according to newspaper reports from the country.
The actual amount the national hydrocarbon regulating agency will get, however, has not been determined, pending finance ministry changes and the presidential elections. ANP has been allocated less than $9 million a year. Lima said that according to law, ANP has the right to 28% of the government’s “special participation” revenues from the oil sector, which would amount to about $900 million.
“ANP would not know what to do with ($900 million), but ($9 million) is too little for the country’s needs,” Lima said.
Celtic Sea seismic survey concluded
A seismic program in the Celtic Sea and St. Georges Channel offshore Ireland was concluded successfully, according to Providence Resources Plc. Using theSea Surveyor, Gardline Surveys Ltd. collected 1,000 km (620 mi) of 2D and 3D data. At Pegasus structure in St. Georges, 286 km (175 mi) of 2D was acquired; over the Ardmore gas find, 369 m (22.9 mi) of 3D was acquired; and, over Hook Head oil and gas discovery, 279 km (173 mi) of 3D was run.
“This successfully concludes Providence’s major acquisition program offshore Ireland in 2006,” said Tony O’Reilly Jr., CEO. “Providence and its partners now have acquired a total of over 3,000 km (1,860 mi) of high-quality seismic data over the four operational areas of Dunquin, Goban Spur, the Celtic Sea, and the St. Georges Channel area. The seismic data is being processed and reviewed. The results will provide us with additional information and allow us to finalize the company’s 2007 operational activities, including drilling.”
Statoil applies new 4D QC system
Statoil and Reservoir Imaging Ltd. are working to improve the quality and consistency of 4D seismic projects. The initial phase of development called for RIL to analyze all 10 of Statoil’s 2006 4D seismic returns plus 19 4D surveys run in 2005. Many different geological and environmental conditions and a variety of seismic acquisition methods are represented in the data. During the 2006 surveys, navigation data from the operating vessels was transmitted from the field to the shore at regular intervals so that RIL could process the data and generate a standard set of 4D attributes.
One major element of the study was RIL’s development of a comprehensive GIS database to isolate contributing elements of a 4D seismic survey in enough detail to allow accurate statistical analysis and comparison of surveys. The report said information on acquisition technology, survey geometry, steering and feathering of towed streamers, etc. can be crucial in planning and execution of 4D surveys to ensure they can be repeated as precisely as possible over time.
CGG’s flagship completes North Sea run
TheGeo Challenger, GCC’s new flagship vessel, completed its first major project since launch off Norway in the North Sea. The contract covered 930 sq km (363 sq mi) following a baseline survey of the area done by another contractor in 1997. The vessel used 12, 5,100-m (16,728-ft) solid streamers with a 50-m (164-ft) separation. The solid streamers had good rough water stability, according to CGG, allowing better control over the complex configuration with the narrow streamer spacing.
Upon completion of this survey, the vessel headed for India to join a CGG deepwater seismic program off the the country’s East Coast for ONGC.
Pakistan 2D survey scheduled
According to the schedule, SCAN Geophysical ASA is in the process of acquiring 3,000 km (1,860 mi) of 2D data offshore Pakistan under an agreement with the government. The National Institute of Oceanography of Pakistan contracted SCAN’sGeo Searcher to conduct the survey. The vessel recently completed an offshore India survey.
Intelligent well optimization modeling under development
Landmark and WellDynamics Inc. are developing an integrated, model-based solutions for closed-loop optimization of intelligent wells.
These solutions will enable users to execute decisions based on real-time well data and advanced models that monitor, forecast, and optimize well behavior and production for individual wells and across entire gathering networks.
Gene Kliewer, Houston