CHAPTER 9 FORMING A 21ST CENTURY OIL AND GAS PROSPECT

• Jurisdiction: United States

Basic Oil & Gas Geology And Technology For Lawyers And Other Non-Technical Personnel
(2001)
CHAPTER 9
FORMING A 21ST CENTURY OIL AND GAS PROSPECT
Stephen Pickering
WesternGeco
Houston, Texas
Philip Fontana
WesternGeco
Houston, Texas
Martiris F. Smith, Marketing Manager — Global Data Processing
WesternGeco
Houston, Texas
Don McKelvie
Baker Atlas
Houston, Texas

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We shall provide this audience a synthesis of the various technologies and processes explained in the preceding day-and-a-half. We shall explain how these component elements are accessed and evaluated in "Forming a 21st Century Oil and Gas Prospect." We will demonstrate that our industry is an elaborate intertwining of leading edge information technology, geosciences, risk assessment, and the soft are of "interpretation." Without computers and up-to-the-minute training at the cutting edge of technology, we would not be able to deliver the efficiencies that translate into the provision of gas at the pump at less than the unit cost to purchase mineral water at the store.

Although our process of Forming a 21st Century Oil and Gas Prospect is an iterative process, which in larger corporations would involve many specialists often in multidisciplinary teams, we shall for simplicity this afternoon present you a linear and simplified flow. We shall start the cycle with the assessment and access of an opportunity followed by how that opportunity is refined by further data gathering and analysis. There is a continued and iterative build of data to information to knowledge and wisdom. Space-age type "visualization" technologies are being employed, where we can create virtual depiction of many differing forms of data to create better communication and understanding among team members. And all the time there is the continued drive for efficiency, to deliver to market and satiate an ever-growing demand and at cost and profit margins that that can sustain us all.

Assessment and access of opportunity is provided by a variety of sources depending upon location and environment. Some of the tools can range from remote and satellite imagery to as simple as walking the terrain with a hammer for samples. Once an opportunity access has been gained, often the next stage would be to acquire seismic data. This can be performed in a variety of ways and in varying terrains, from mountains to swamps, near-shore beach to ultra-deep marine. The acquisition of data is an exercise in scientific...