Ted Moon, Houston
Saudi Aramco says technology boosts drilling accuracy
Saudi Aramco says a new patent-pending technology it developed will both increase drilling accuracy and cut drilling costs for E&P companies around the world.
The GeoMorph technology, developed jointly by Saudi Aramco’s Roger Sung of the Exploration Application Services Dept. and Ken Lewis of the Reservoir Characterization Dept. (RCD), reportedly improves collaboration between geoscientists and engineers using data that is gathered even while a well is being drilled.
“This real-time earth modeling technology has been proven to dramatically shorten the drilling process cycle time by enabling geological models to be updated in minutes,” said Dr. Ahmed A. Metwalli, manager of the Exploration Application Services Department.
“The GeoMorph journey exemplifies Saudi Aramco’s continuous quest for improving the quality of our decision-making process, to better characterize and develop our fields,” said Amin H. Nasser, vice president of Petroleum Engineering and Development.
GeoMorph is an earth model, which is akin to an architectural model of a skyscraper, which shows the shape of the building (3D structure of the reservoir), number of stories (size of the reservoir), windows and doors (porous space in rock that potentially holds hydrocarbons) and color and content of the building (oil, gas, water, or others).
With a model such as this, geoscientists and engineers can digitally rotate and slice the digital earth model to gain a better understanding of subsurface structures. Saudi Aramco professionals design, monitor and drill extended horizontal wells, often reaching tens of thousands of feet, to hit oil- and gas-bearing reservoir rock.
The difference that Saudi Aramco is focusing on versus other earth model technologies is that GeoMorph provides the ability to update an earth model while drilling a well. The technology uses 3D geological modeling-while-drilling tools developed by RCD to incorporate real time logging-while-drilling data with geological, geophysical and engineering data. The process enables experts to analyze unexpected results encountered during drilling and update the 3D geological model in minutes.
Such an improvement in the efficiency of model updating, compared to conventional methods, provides what the company calls an “on-the-spot” road map to place wells in the desired reservoir zone, maximizing reservoir contact.
The technology will be commercialized for sale and use outside of Saudi Aramco, and in fact the company has reached an agreement with Earth Decision Sciences to sell the technology to other companies.
Primeline begins East China Sea 3D Survey
Primeline Energy has begun a 3D seismic survey in Block 25/34 in the East China Sea.
Following the signing of the geophysical service contract in May, the vesselBinhai 512 arrived on location, after mitigating the delays caused by the recent tropical storm Pearl in the offshore China region.
The survey is designed to better evaluate prospects near to the existing gas discovery Lishui 36-1, and is considered by Primeline to be a crucial step in the selection of the next well location. The survey is planned to take two months, with processing and interpretation planned for the second half of 2006. The company then plans to embark on a drilling program for the end of 2006/early 2007, subject to rig availability.
Primeline is the operator of, and owns a 75% interest in, Block 25/34 in the East China Sea, partnered with China National Offshore Oil Corp. The company made the gas discovery, Lishui 36-1, in the block through two wells which had flow rates of 9.8 and 12 MMcf/d of natural gas, respectively. The block encompasses 7,006 sq km and contains the Lishui Gas play and many other potential prospects.
Rockhopper upbeat about Falklands survey
Rockhopper Exploration Plc., an oil and gas exploration company focused on the North Falkland basin, has completed its Falklands 2D seismic survey and will begin a 3D survey, the company says.
“A 2D program has been completed on licenses PL023 and PL024 and a 3D vessel is now secured for licenses PL032 and PL033. CGG, one of the world’s leading marine seismic contractors, will undertake the survey,” said Executive Chairman Dr. Pierre Jungels.
“We have also completed two controlled source electromagnetic (CSEM) surveys in order to give ourselves greater confidence in the prospects over which they were acquired. These are the first such surveys ever completed in the Falkland Islands, the results of which will be fully integrated with all our other technical studies once they are available.”
He said the company remains positive about the prospectivity of the basin as a whole and its acreage specifically.
Rockhopper Exploration is currently the largest license holder in the North Falkland basin, with a 100% interest in four offshore production licenses covering approximately 5,800 sq km.
The company is confident that the results of the two CSEM surveys will greatly extend its knowledge of the southern, undrilled part of the North Falkland basin.
In addition, the processing of the new 920-km 2D seismic survey data is nearing completion. Once completed, it will be integrated into Rockhopper’s existing data set of the area.
The 3D seismic survey in licenses PL032 and PL033 will extend into 2007, and encompasses acquisition, processing and interpretation work.
“We have achieved a great deal in this first year against a background of increasingly difficult markets for services in the oil sector. We look forward to being able to present the full results of our new 2D and CSEM programs later this year and the results of our significant 3D program during 2007. At that point, we will need to consider our funding options should we confirm the presence of drillable targets in our acreage,” Jungels said.
