GEOSCIENCES
Ted Moon, Houston
Fugro awarded Canadian acquisition contract
Fugro’s Canadian affiliate, Fugro Jacques GeoSurveys Inc., recently won a $2 million contract to conduct marine data acquisition in support of Canada’s claim under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos). This work is being conducted under the Federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).
The planned survey work extends over the Eastern Canadian continental slope, off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the South Labrador Sea, with water depths ranging from 200 to 5,000 m. Fugro Jacques Geosurveys will use a deepwater multibeam echo sounder system to acquire regularly spaced bathymetric profiles, with a particular emphasis on defining the 2,500-m bathymetric contour, as well as the “foot of the slope,” as required under Unclos Article 76.
Future geophysical surveys are planned to evaluate sediment thickness and crustal boundaries. These surveys will integrate with the upcoming data set to substantiate Canada’s claim before the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS). Bathymetric data will be processed both offshore and in Fugro Jacques’ St. John’s facilities, in consultation with staff from the Canadian Hydrographic Service.
WesternGeco to acquire GoM’s 1st multiclient wide-azimuth survey
WesternGeco announced that Shell Exploration will underwrite a major portion of the first exploration multiclient wide-azimuth (WAZ) towed-streamer survey in the Gulf of Mexico. The project covers a minimum of 200 outer continental shelf blocks in the central GoM, about 125 mi off the coast of Louisiana in water depths of 4,400 ft.
Seismic data acquisition will begin in mid-July 2006 and conclude as early as December 2006, using a design co-developed by WesternGeco and Shell.
To enhance the subsalt image, Western-Geco will employ its Q-Marine technology, with proprietary processing workflows and wave extrapolation migration (WEM). A final WEM product will be available for interpretation in advance of the March 2008 lease sale.
“This project provides WesternGeco with the opportunity to set the standard for wide-azimuth design, acquisition, and processing using Q-Marine technology and breakthroughs in WAZ seismic processing,” says Maurice Nessim, VP, North America, WesternGeco. “The multiclient product will provide value by allowing a greatly improved image of key blocks on offer in the March 2008 and subsequent lease sales, and reducing subsalt drilling risk.”
Shell Exploration and WesternGeco recently collaborated on a proprietary survey in the GoM applying a WAZ survey design to illuminate the geology beneath complex salt.
The success of that project led to this new WAZ multiclient survey, which WesternGeco calls an acquisition step-change required for subsalt illumination in parts of the GoM and other salt provinces around the world.
Arrow Seismic to purchase Laurentian
Arrow Seismic Invest IV Ltd., a 54 % owned subsidiary of Arrow Seismic ASA, has agreed on Head Terms of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with Laurentian Holding and TechMarine International Plc. Under the agreement, Arrow will purchase the seismic research vesselLaurentian from LH and Laurentian’s charter party with seismic major CGG from TMI.
The charter party yields an annual operational cash flow of about $5.5 million and expires in August 2008, at which point CGG has an option to extend the charter party for either two or three years.
Laurentian is a multistreamer seismic vessel built in 1983, and converted to seismic in 1998. The vessel subsequently was upgraded to six streamer capacity in 2005. The purchase price also includes compressors and winches. Effective date of the purchase is July 1, 2006, and total purchase price under the MOA is $17.9 million.
Arrow says the purchase ofLaurentian confirms its position as a leading supplier of multistreamer vessels to the marine seismic industry, and emphasizes its strategy to offer flexible solutions as the market develops.
North Sea 3D survey complete
Ithaca Energy has completed what it calls “an extensive 3D seismic group shoot program,” covering licenses it holds on blocks 13/16b, 13/17, and 13/18 within the Outer Moray Firth area of the North Sea.
PetroCanada operated the 3D seismic program, which covered a total of 1,755 sq km, on behalf of itself, Nexen, and Ithaca. Ithaca’s share of acreage covered 300 sq km for an expenditure of approximately $3 million. The company participated in the program to enhance its understanding of the Triton and Poseidon leads.
Ithaca calls Triton and Poseidon the two largest 2D seismic mapped leads in its exploration portfolio. The leads are of a stratigraphic play type, with large upside potential in the prospective Upper Jurassic Buzzard and Lower Cretaceous fairways. In a report for Ithaca’s recent public offering, independent consulting firm Gaffney Cline and Associates (GCA) ascribed gross unrisked recoverable prospective resources of 50 to 500 MMbbl of oil with a best estimate of 150 MMbbl to Triton, and gross unrisked recoverable prospective resources of 50 to 400 MMbbl of oil with a best estimate of 100 MMbbl to Poseidon. Ithaca holds 90% interest in blocks 13/16b, 13/17, and 13/18 covering the leads.
The large ranges within GCA’s report signify the high level of uncertainty associated with these leads. GCA assessed each lead with a 10% geologic chance of success based on existing 2D data. Ithaca believes this newly-acquired 3D seismic survey will reduce this uncertainty and mitigate the risk associated with these leads.
Seismic data processing is expected to finish by the end of 4Q06, with interpretation, mapping and well locations determined by the end of 1Q07. Subject to the results of the data interpretation and rig availability, Ithaca plans to drill a well to a depth of 2,150 m, or 30 m into the Jurassic, in 2007.
East China Sea Phase 1 survey completed
Geo-COSL has completed more than 300 sq km of 3D seismic data acquisition in East China Sea block 25/34 for Primeline Energy Holdings. This Phase 1 data is being processed in anticipation of another survey by theBinhai 512 scheduled for October.
The survey is to evaluate prospects near the gas discovery Lishui 36-1. Primeline discovered gas in two wells with flow rates of 9.8 and 12 MMc/f of natural gas, respectively. The block encompasses 7,006 sq km.
Primeline owns a 75% interest in block 25/34 in the East China Sea with China National Offshore Oil Corp.