First Break April 2024 - Underground Storage and Passive Seismic

Underground Storage and Passive Seismic

EAGE NEWS Sneak preview of Annual’s Technical Programme

TECHNICAL ARTICLE Photosphere-based atlas of a high Arctic geo-landscape

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FIRST BREAK ® An EAGE Publication

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• Hamidreza Hamdi, University of Calgary (hhamdi@ucalgary.ca) Clément Kostov, Freelance Geophysicist (cvkostov@icloud.com)

Martin Riviere, Retired Geophysicist (martinriviere@btinternet.com)

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ISSN 0263-5046 (print) / ISSN 1365-2397 (online)

Deferring flood damage in coastal lowlands: assessing surface uplift by geo-engineered CO2-sequestration with easy-to-use land-uplift model

35 VRSvalbard – a photosphere-based atlas of a high Arctic geo-landscape

Rafael Kenji Horota, Kim Senger, Aleksandra Smyrak-Sikora, Mark Furze, Mike Retelle, Marie Annette Vander Kloet and Marius O. Jonassen.

43 The impact of marine-streamer acquisition technology on broadband time-lapse (4D) seismic data

Patrick Smith, Paul Glenister, Daniel Fischer, Hanna M. Blekastad and Ingrid Selle Østgård.

Special Topic: Underground Storage and Passive Seismic

49 How large should microseismic monitoring networks be for CO2 injection? Case study review

Zuzana Jechumtálová, Leo Eisner and Thomas Finkbeiner

55 Impact of injection rate for CO2 storage within sedimentary basins, a multidisciplinary analysis of focused fluid flow

James R Johnson, Reinier van Noort, Jamil Rahman, Lawrence HongLiang Wang and Viktoriya Yarushina

63 Deferring flood damage in coastal lowlands: assessing surface uplift by geo-engineered CO2-sequestration with easy-to-use land-uplift model

Ruud Weijermars

71 Unveiling the depths by deploying Low-Frequency Seismic (LFS) in the Paradise Field area, Australia, to assess the hydrocarbon potential. Roy P Bitrus, Vasilii Ryzhov, Adel Milin, Dmitrii Ryzhov, Ilshat Sharapov, Sergey Feofilov, Evgeny Smirnov, Ivan Starostin, Marion Croft, Frank Glass, Helen Debenham and Simon Molyneux

79 Comprehensive measurement, monitoring, verification planning enables safe CO2 storage, risk reduction, and operating cost optimisation

Valeria Di Filippo, Colleen Barton and Pramit Basu

86 Calendar

cover: Digital earthquake wave with circle vibration.

European Association of Geoscientists & Engineers

Board 2023-2024

Near Surface Geoscience Circle

Esther Bloem Chair

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Musa Manzi Liaison Africa

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Catherine Truffert Industry Liaison

Mark Vardy Editor in Chief Near Surface Geophysics

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Oil & Gas Geoscience Circle

Yohaney Gomez Galarza Chair

Johannes Wendebourg Vice-Chair

Lucy Slater Immediate Past Chair

Wiebke Athmer Member

Tijmen Jan Moser Editor-in-Chief Geophysical Prospecting

Adeline Parent WGE & DET SIC liaison

Matteo Ravasi YP Liaison

Jonathan Redfern Editor-in-Chief Petroleum Geoscience

Robert Tugume Member

Anke Wendt Member

Aart-Jan van Wijngaarden Technical Programme Officer

Sustainable Energy Circle

Carla Martín-Clavé Chair

Giovanni Sosio Vice-Chair

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Pascal Breton Secretary-Treasurer

EAGE Annual 2024 Technical Programme to feature more energy transition topics

As the 85th EAGE Annual Conference in Oslo approaches, delegates can look forward to an exceptional Technical Programme showcasing the latest advances in geoscience and engineering. This year saw a significant increase in the abstract submissions with close to 1800 papers being submitted for the event (up from the 1200 abstracts submitted in 2023).

Following the selection processes, the committee has finalised the main Technical Programme, with over 845 oral presentations and close to 250 poster presentations covering a diverse array of topics.

Reflecting on this year’s Technical Programme, Aart-Jan van Wijngaarden, Technical Programme Officer for EAGE, anticipates a large attendance in Oslo. ‘It is clear that people want to share and discuss new technologies and applications in a physical conference. The effectiveness of face-to-face discussions and networking is being recognised, after two years with many virtual meetings. We see an increase both in case studies describing applications of technology and in new technologies being developed in research. Another trend is the integration of AI and ML into the established subsurface disciplines. Therefore we did not make a separate AI and ML theme but integrated this in the existing session themes. Due to high number of submissions, we had to select approximately 60% best papers based on technical quality and impact for the conference attendees. Some people will be disappointed that their

paper is not selected, but it will ensure a high-value technical programme, with 17 parallel sessions to choose from.

The Technical Programme offers a broad diversity, from detailed seismic processing, advanced geological modelling or dynamic reservoir modelling to regulations for CO2 storage and geohazard monitoring. Sharing and learning across established technical communities is one of the great benefits of such a broad geoscience conference.’

In addition to the submitted abstracts, the Local Advisory Committee and EAGE technical communities have put together a list of over 15 dedicated sessions featuring emerging themes in geoscience, including natural hydrogen, critical minerals, and CCS. Engineering topics are also emphasised, with dedicated sessions focusing on reservoir and petroleum engineering.

Norway has emerged as one of the world’s leading energy hubs and a key area for the development and pioneering of new technologies and low-carbon solutions. With a significant growth in Norwegian-based presenters, our international community will benefit from the strong

showcase of Norway’s innovation and technology leadership. Presentations from leading operators in Norway including Equinor, AkerBP, Vår Energi, Wintershall Dea, OMV and TotalEnergies, will further underscore the nation’s influential role in the industry.

For more details on the Technical Programme and how to participate in the EAGE Annual 2024, please visit eageannual.org.

Oslo will feature 250 posters.

Check out the Community Programme at the EAGE Annual

Here are three reasons to participate in the Community Programme at the EAGE Annual in Oslo this June.

First, you’ll connect with high-profile speakers that may broaden your perspectives on technology, energy, and sustainability.

The Women in Geoscience and Engineering Community will host the session ‘Future-Proofing Energy: Empowering Diverse Talent in a Tech-Driven World’, underscoring the indispensable role of diversity in the evolving landscape of geosciences and engineering. Dr Anna Lim, chair of the WGE Community, explains: ‘This one-hour moderated panel discussion will incorporate live polling to foster interactive dialogue. It reflects our commitment to fostering an ecosystem where

diversity enriches our strategies and solutions, recognising the critical need to address biases and cultivate an inclusive culture for ground-breaking ideas and sustainable outcomes.’

Similarly, the Young Professionals Community will host the session ‘Attracting and Retaining Talent’ which will set the spotlight on the career opportunities available in new technologies and game-changing applications in the energy industry. Dr Brij Singh, chair of the YP Community, says: ‘New unconventional domains have emerged, creating a lot of uncertainty among young talent. The session will focus on educating them about the challenges and opportunities these domains provide to inspire them to join the industry’.

Both sessions will be featured in the Strategic Programme on Thursday, 13 June.

Second, with our Artificial Intelligence Technical Community you can get up to speed with the latest trends in machine learning for the energy transition and generative AI. Nicole Grobys, AI Committee member, emphasises: ‘The application of AI for finding solutions to geoscience and engineering challenges including the most important – the energy transition – is a key topic for us.’

On Sunday 9 and Monday 10 June, you can challenge yourself by signing up for the Hackathon on ‘Coding to Net-Zero: AI for Energy-Efficient Future’. Sign up as a team or as an individual (and form a team at the event) at eageannual.org. Great prizes and the chance to showcase solutions to a broader audience await the winning teams.

You are also invited to pass by the Digital Transformation Area on Wednesday 12 June, to participate in ‘Tips and Tricks with ChatGPT, for Geoscientists and Engineers’, an informal presentation (including demos) on how to effectively use applications of large language models, such as ChatGPT, for geoscience and engineering challenges.

Third, Local Chapters Oslo and Stavanger will have the pleasure of introducing you to some of the hidden gems of Norway, followed by some excellent networking time. The session ‘Geosecrets of Norway’ at the EAGE Community Hub on Tuesday 11 June is where you will find the answers to questions such as: What secrets lie beneath the waves off Norway’s coast, where the earth split apart millions of years ago? What very rare mineral treasures lie beneath Norway’s rugged landscape? Why is Norway a prime location for understanding the Earth’s climate past and future?

There is even a bonus! Our Career Advice Centre returns with activities dedicated to helping you stand out from the crowd, e.g., create a strong CV by receiving advice from HR experts and get a professional portrait photo; discuss career development at our Speed Mentoring, and learn how to transfer your knowledge and skills to energy transition-related roles at the ‘Interactive Session: Skills for the Energy Transition’.

Mark the AGMM in your agenda

The Annual General Meeting for Members (AGMM) in Oslo is the time in the year that you can meet the EAGE Board that you elected to oversee the running of the Association. We therefore encourage members to make a note of the meeting on Wednesday 12 June (13:30 to 14:30).

In addition to the Board presenting reports on the previous year’s activities, the meeting is a valuable opportunity for members to express their views and ideas for the future direction of the Association. For the Board and the Business Office, the meeting is also invaluable as a chance to meet members direct and hear your views. Visit www.eage.org/about_eage/agmm for more information.

Broaden your perspectives around the dynamic nexus between technology, energy, and sustainability at the EAGE Annual Community Programme.

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Help build our professional skills map for energy transition

Every member’s career journey is unique, yet seldom travelled alone. Collaboration and support in finding the right skills, transferring or repurposing them, are intrinsic to the process, just like for knowledge-sharing within the scientific community. This is especially true during periods of transition. For these reasons the EAGE Decarbonization and Energy Transition Community, in collaboration with the Education Committee, are working on creating a tool aimed at delineating the requisite skills for successfully navigating a career in the evolving energy landscape. We are hoping that members will help refine the concept by taking part in a brief survey.

Dr Maximilian Haas, DET Committee member, explains: ‘The tool has the potential to revolutionise our members’ career development. It is not just a tool; it is a catalyst for transformative career development. By addressing the challenges of today

and anticipating the needs of tomorrow, it is poised to become an invaluable asset for our members, ensuring they are wellequipped to thrive in the ever-evolving energy sector.’

The objective of the initiative is to offer a comprehensive learning path, encompassing both technical and non-technical proficiencies, thereby aiding our members in navigating their personal energy transition journeys. DET Committee member, Dr Adeline Parent, notes that ‘as the tool revolves around individuals’ technical skills, and considering that every person has a unique career trajectory, we want to understand what defines you and the competences required for your current role. Together, as a talented and competent workforce, we can successfully tackle the ambitious goal of achieving Net Zero by 2050’.

Maren Kleemeyer, EAGE Education Officer and Education Committee chair, adds: ‘This tool not only identifies skill gaps for a new role but also offers practical guidance on how to address those gaps by connecting relevant skills to the short courses and educational resources provided by EAGE.’

In order to ensure that the insights provided by this tool align closely with the needs of our members, we would like to invite you to participate in a short survey: replies are anonymous and will help us improve the skills mapping as well as identify additional areas where geoscientists and engineers can play a role for the energy transition.

Fill in the survey

The tool is aimed at delineating the requisite skills for successfully navigating a career in the evolving energy landscape.

Why land seismic data often needs to be cleaned up

For its February technical lecture, Local Chapter London together with Local Chapter Houston had the pleasure to host Christof Stork and learn about the wide benefits of producing realistic yet synthetic data which mimics land noise and how it can improve both seismic acquisition and processing of reflection data.

Stork started his presentation with an explanation of the differences between land and marine seismic data, specifical-

ly the challenges of noise contamination and its origins in the presence of near surface heterogeneities associated with land data. He then showed some real data examples depicting distorted refraction multiples (refraction reverberations) before demonstrating his simulations of synthetic data. This focused on scattering and refraction multiples and its impact on signal quality in acoustic and elastic medium. Various approaches of processing were discussed coupled with several

acquisition geometries varying from an ultra-high trace density to digitally created arrays and their effects in the final image.

According to Stork, there are numerous benefits of data modelling, e.g., understanding the physics of the noise, testing the existing processing capabilities and developing new methods, optimising acquisition patterns to name a few.

The presentation was followed by a Q&A session with many interesting questions and discussion from the global audience spanning two continents: those who missed it will be able to find a recording in the EAGE YouTube channel.

EAGE LC London acknowledges Christof Stork for sharing his expertise with the audience; Celina Giersz of Stryde, Lisl Lewis of SLB, Artem Kashubin of Saudi Aramco for hosting and moderating the event. Special thanks to Allan Willis from the EAGE LC Houston for co-hosting and the whole community for joining in!

Secret of teaching a good course is our latest ‘How-to’ video

EAGE continues to be at the forefront of empowering its members with essential skills through its innovative initiatives. One such initiative is the latest addition to its repertoire: the How-to video series, with its latest focus on How to Teach a Good Course, featuring advice from the EAGE Education Committee members: Maren Kleemeyer (chair), Henry Debens, Claudio Bagaini, Ivanka Bekkevold, and Sergey Fomel.

Designed to equip geoscience professionals with the expertise needed to develop impactful courses, this series covers the intricacies of creating compelling content that resonates with learners. It

is the natural follow up to our previous series How to Submit a good abstract, How to get published, and How to present to a live audience, all of which serve as invaluable resources for acquiring useful skills.

Accessible to all EAGE members through the Learning Geoscience platform, the videos provide a wealth of knowledge at no cost, underscoring EAGE’s dedication to accessible education. Along with other free e-learning content such as E-lectures and the Distinguished Lecturer Programme (DLP) webinars, members have access to a comprehensive suite of resources curated to enrich their under-

standing of geosciences and foster professional connections.

Explore the new How to teach a good course series

EAGE offers a wide range of free-learning material to boost your skills.

LC Paris reviews role of minerals in energy transition

We are indeed living in a fascinating era of rapid technological evolution and shifting energy paradigms. Our generation is witnessing the transition from a fuel-based energy system to a mineral-based energy system. With the dramatic change in the demand for critical minerals, supply is becoming a potential source of vulnerabilities for our modern societies as we head towards these cleaner energy systems. Price volatility due to geopolitics changes may complicate and even compromise the industrial development of these crucial technologies.

To get a grasp of the current projects being implemented worldwide, the EAGE Local Chapter Paris arranged a dedicated event ‘Minerals for the Energy Transition’. The event took place at the auditorium at Société Géologique de France, Paris (and was also transmitted online worldwide). Speakers from different companies and institutions were invited to give an overview of their current activities. The event was organised in collaboration with SPE France, a collaboration that continues to bring great value to our community and shows the importance of chapters unifying their effort to provide the best debates for its members.

The first speaker Emmanuelle Robins (Pole Avenia) discussed the aLINA territorial programme, a European initiative that explores the supply chain of

critical raw materials for the industries of the future, through responsible mining but also the recycling of mineral resources such as lithium. Romain Millot (Lithium de France) also spoke about this mineral’s uses, demand and impacts. He presented a case study on geothermal brines and lithium extraction in the French Region of Alsace (Upper Rhine Graben). Lithium

the ambient seismic signals to monitor underground changes once they occur. This could play a crucial role with a minimal disturbance in the ground and make mining operations safer and more environmentally responsible.

Later, Christian Polak shared Orano’s experience with uranium mining cycle operations. A quick overview of Orano’s mining activities in Kazakhstan, Niger and Canada was presented. Polak also went through Orano’s innovative technics in mining uranium such as freezing, jet boring, box hole boring, in-situ recovery, and the SABRE mining system. Finally, uranium forecasts for the next ten years were also shown, highlighting the role of nuclear energy as (at least) a transitional energy to a cleaner future.

Lastly, Lipsa Nag as representation of the French climate tech venture studio Marble explained the goals of the company in the energy transition.

de France is working on the ecology, economics and sovereignty challenges and issues that come with the development of a geothermal lithium industry ecosystem in France.

One solution to the many issues that we tend to encounter in the mining sector was proposed by Jean Charles Ferran, co-founder and president of Geolinks. He showed how innovative passive seismic (monitoring) can mitigate risk in mining exploitation. The technique uses

Marble’s process consists of three steps: finding the best idea, turning the idea into a new company, and finally taking the startup in to the world. The founders-in-residence intend to work on ‘hard climate problems’ later with the Marble teams in order to build ventures with massive impact potential. For more details on each presentation, join the EAGE YouTube channel where the entire technical presentation has been uploaded there.

EAGE and SPE organisers with the speakers.

Emmanuelle Robins (Pole Avenia) presented the EU-funded aLINA programme.

Virtual and physical field trips offered in Oman naturally fractured rocks

Pascal Richard (PRgeology), Juliette Lamarche (Aix Marseille University & CEREGE), Thomas Finkbeiner (KAUST), and François Civet (VR2Planets) extend an invitation for a one-day excursion on 5 October 2024 in the Oman mountains, offering exceptional outcropping conditions. This expedition is part of the Fifth EAGE Workshop on Naturally Fractured Rocks (6-8 October 2024), with registration fees covering all field trip expenses.

The focal point of our visit will be Jebel Madar, a salt core anticline formed during the Tertiary era due to the collision of the Arabian and Eurasian plates, influencing the current geometry of the Oman Mountains. Notably, we will explore carbonate formations like Natih and Shuaiba, which are important reservoirs for Oman.

Our excursion has two-fold objectives. Firstly, we will observe fault and fracture

corridors within carbonates, with a strong focus on geometry, development timing, and mechanical stratigraphy impact. Discussions will integrate field observations with known regional deformation phases. Secondly, participants will experience collaborative virtual geology from the same outcrop utilising state of the art 3D visualisation tools. This provides an opportunity to trial the added value of virtual field trips after having seen the real fractured rocks in the field.

In the field, we will study fault patterns, e.g., normal faults, transtensional faults, grabens; and natural fractures, e.g., layer bound fractures and fracture corridors that deformed the carbonates. During the day, we will switch from large-scale faults down to small fractures. In combination with the virtual field, we will understand their 3D geometry and imbrication, the relationship to the mechanical stratigraphy and the timing of deformation. This synthesis of field and virtual geology aids in up-scaling for reservoir-size geological models.

The virtual field trip, facilitated by VR-Explorer software from VR2Planets, allows participants to explore Jebel Madar from their locations, providing immersive pre-field trip sessions in September. Beyond introducing the field trip, the software offers access to other remarkable locations on the Djebel, otherwise inaccessible in a single-day physical trip. Participants can revisit these outcrops at their convenience before and during the workshop, maximizing learning opportunities.

Real-time, passive seismic phased array network

Self contained, autonomous 3C for sustained monitoring

9 April | 11:00 am

Meeting the Challenge of Downhole Sensing through Application of True Fibre Optic Point Sensors

Jebel Madar South West corner overview from drone survey (picture courtesy of KAUST).

Small scale fracture corridor on pavement.

Pavement and section observations (picture from drone survey, courtesy of KAUST).

How four concurrent conferences will combine to frame the global energy transition technology challenge

Since its inception, the EAGE Global Energy Transition (GET) Conference & Exhibition has mirrored the role of geoscience and engineering in the energy transition. At GET 2024 in Rotterdam from 4-7 November 2024, we will continue the process by proving an unprecedented platform to share the latest developments.

We will be staging specialised sub-conferences on Offshore Wind Energy, Carbon Capture and Storage, Geothermal Energy, and Hydrogen and Energy Storage, highlighting the multi-disciplinary approach needed to tackle energy transition challenges. The four-day meeting will be packed with a range of activities including a conference, an expansive exhibition, workshops, short courses, field trips, as well as community and student initiatives.

We are currently inviting abstract submissions across all four sub-conferences with a deadline for submissions of 30 June 2024.

Visit eageget.org to learn more.

This is what the GET2024 event will be

Carbon Capture and Storage Conference

Rotterdam’s emergence as one of the world’s inaugural operational Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) hubs, marked by numerous projects approaching or achieving Final Investment Decision (FID), makes it an ideal location for discussions on the future of CCS. The conference will deliver an extensive programme with the intention of going beyond mere technical discussions by incorporating strategic sessions that tackle the prevailing challenges in expanding the CCS business case. As we move forward, the integration of various stakeholders, including policymakers, industry repre-

sentatives, researchers, NGOs, civil society, and investors, becomes increasingly crucial to bring CCS projects to fruition.

‘The next five years are crucial for the nascent CCUS business in the world and particularly in Europe, with the deployment and operation of the first real CO2 storage projects at scale,’ say conference chairs Ben Dewever (senior geoscientist, carbon capture and storage capability team, Shell) and Mike Branston (new energy domain lead, SLB). ‘The conference will focus on technological progress in areas such as reservoir characterisation, risk assessment, geophysical monitoring of CO2 plumes, and the seamless integration of technical

featuring

planning with commercial operations for CCUS ventures, alongside sharing insights from ongoing CO2 injection projects.’

The conference dedicated sessions will bring together high-level speakers from industry, academia, regulatory bodies and other CCUS stakeholders to offer in-depth analyses on specific topics. The technical programme will cover nine main topics and over 25 subtopics, offering a wide range of subjects for exploration and discussion. We invite professionals, researchers, and enthusiasts from the CCUS domain to contribute to this pivotal gathering by submitting your abstracts and joining the technical lineup.

Geothermal Energy Conference

GET 2024 proudly announces the first stand-alone Geothermal Energy Conference, set to become Europe’s largest technical congress dedicated to geothermal energy highlighting current progress and the innovative approaches necessary for the upscaling of geothermal energy production.

Our co-chairs, Gehrig Schultz (COO, Geoscience, EPI Group) and Saba Keynejad (environmental data scientist, energy transition and environment, CGG), state: ‘This is an excellent opportunity to be part of a movement that is shaping the geothermal landscape, driving progress, and influencing the path forward. The conference provides the optimal platform to evaluate new technologies, cost-reduction strategies, modelling advancements, and more. Equally important will be the panel discussions led by international experts on policies, incentives, and cross-border collaborations critical to accelerate geothermal deployment internationally.’

The event will feature panels for in-depth discussions on geothermal advancements and practical experiences on pertinent geothermal topics. So, we encourage specialists and researchers to share their findings and perspectives on geothermal energy’s diverse applications, highlighting industry developments, best practices, and existing challenges. The technical programme will cover three main topics, with over 10 subtopics to choose from, ensuring a comprehensive exploration of the geothermal energy field. Participation is particularly encouraged from professionals in the geothermal sector, geoscientists aiming to pivot their expertise to geothermal energy, and community leaders and public officials interested in sustainable energy solutions.

Hydrogen and Energy Storage Conference

Conference chairs Karin de Borst (hydrogen storage lead, Shell) and Marcin Glegola (energy storage specialist, Shell) want to highlight the significance of the geosciences in this evolving landscape – ‘The increasing shift from fossil-based energy sources to intermittent renewable energy sources creates an enormous demand for energy storage solutions. The geosciences will be critical to develop and deploy these solutions. Only the subsurface offers capacities in the GWh to TWh range which will be critical for buffering of weekly to seasonal fluctuations; and it holds the rare minerals that battery storage depends on.’

We are uniting a diverse range of specialists - geoscientists, geologists, engineers, and other relevant professionals – to share knowledge and expertise on projects and research involving hydrogen and energy storage. Attendees will have the opportunity to understand the latest trends, research, and commercial projects in these domains.

Offshore Wind Energy Conference

Conference chairs Gwenaëlle Salaün (senior lead geophysicist, Ørsted) and

Sanket Bhattacharya (seismic business development manager, Fugro), emphasise the critical role of geoscience in the offshore wind sector. They point out that the IEA and IRENA’s projections for achieving 1.5°C global temperature control and net zero by 2050 requires a substantial increase in offshore wind capacity, with the expectation of reaching nearly 500 GW by 2030. This growth necessitates advances in cost-efficiency, time-saving, and supply capabilities. The conference aims to address these challenges by discussing innovative seabed and subsurface analysis methods, geophysical acquisition, seismic imaging, and AI applications, and by fostering a multi-disciplinary dialogue to navigate the industry’s regulatory and environmental considerations.

We aim to bring together a diverse group of professionals, including geophysicists, geologists, hydrographers, geotechnical engineers, and environmental and numerical specialists from both the industry and academia. We encourage you to explore the range of topics, which include six main topics and over 20 subtopics offering a comprehensive overview of the field. Learn more and take an active role by submitting your abstracts.

OUR JOURNALS THIS MONTH

Near Surface Geophysics (NSG) is an international journal for the publication of research and developments in geophysics applied to the near surface. The emphasis lies on shallow land and marine geophysical investigations addressing challenges in various geoscientific fields. A new edition (Volume 22, Issue 2) will be published in April, featuring 11 articles. This is a Special Issue on ‘Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) numerical modelling research and practice’.

Editor’s Choice article:

• Realistic simulation of GPR for landmine and IED detection including antenna models, soil dispersion and heterogeneity — S. Stadler et al.

Basin Research (BR) is an international journal which aims to publish original, high impact research papers on sedimentary basin systems. A new edition (Volume 36, Issue 2) will be published in April.

CHECK OUT THE

EAGE and SBGf joint conference in Rio to discuss roadmap to low carbon emissions in Brazil

In an era marked by the pressing need to search for more sustainable and clean energies, the upcoming First EAGE/SBGf Conference on the Roadmap to Low Carbon Emissions in Brazil stands as a significant event. Scheduled to take place from 26-28 November in Rio de Janeiro, the conference represents a milestone for stakeholders within Brazil’s energy landscape. Organised jointly by EAGE and the Sociedade Brasileira de Geofísica (SBGf), this collaboration underscores a shared commitment to addressing one of the most critical challenges of our time.

Central to the success of the conference is the ground-breaking partnership between EAGE and SBGf. The collaboration marks the beginning of a new era in the Brazilian geoscience community, leveraging collective expertise and resources to drive knowledge exchange, technical advancement, and professional growth. The cooperation agreement between the two associations aims to empower the next generation of geoscientists, providing them with the tools and opportunities needed to excel in their careers and make a tangible impact in the field. Through the partnership, students and professionals

The conference aims to facilitate inter-disciplinary dialogue and collaboration to develop a comprehensive roadmap for achieving substantial reductions in carbon emissions within Brazil. The threeday event will feature a rich programme comprising keynote presentations, technical sessions, panel discussions, and workshops. Respected specialists and thought leaders from academia, industry, and government will lead discussions on research, innovative technologies, and best practices.

alike will have access to opportunities for networking, mentorship, and skill development.

As we embark on this journey of learning, innovation, and collaboration, we invite stakeholders from across the geoscience community to join us at this special occasion. Together, we can shape the future of geoscience and pave the way for a more sustainable and resilient tomorrow.

Classic view of Rio.

Unveiling the passion behind a chapter in India

Students at the Indian Institute of Petroleum and Energy (IIPE) in Visakhapatnam tell how they lean towards geoscience.

Embarking on the geoscience journey at the Indian Institute of Petroleum and Energy (IIPE) in Visakhapatnam, our Chapter finds itself fuelled by an unbridled passion for exploration and innovation. The chapter’s formation represents more than just a formality - it symbolises a shared commitment to learning more about the fascinating field of petroleum engineering.

Beyond the academic realm, the initiative is seen as an opportunity to contribute meaningfully to the evolving field of geoscience. The possibility of being featured and promoted in EAGE publications offers an opportunity to establish connections with the international geoscience community. The question of focus looms large – the dilemma is not

just theoretical musing; it’s about aligning academic pursuits with the pressing challenges faced by the industry.

In the pursuit of sustainability, environmental geophysics emerges as a compelling avenue. As petroleum engineering enthusiasts, the Chapter recognises the importance of responsible resource extraction and minimising environmental impact. The aim is to adopt practices that can shape a greener, more sustainable future for the industry, including initiatives like green hydrogen production, promoting net zero emission strategies in India, exploring CO2 storage solutions, and adopting other green technologies.

The digital wave sweeping through geoscience also captures the attention of engineering students. Drawn to the possibilities that data analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning bring to the table, the prospect of redefining

traditional practices and ushering in a new era of efficiency and precision in exploration and production is undeniablyexciting.

Finally, the Chapter at IIPE, Visakhapatnam, serves as a proclamation of dedication to improving the state of petroleum engineering. The objective is clear: to set out on an exciting journey of exploration and discovery and invite other engineering enthusiasts to join in influencing the future of geoscience, regardless of whether the inclination is toward environmental geophysics or digital applications.

Members of the EAGE Student Chapter at IIPE. First row (L-R): Priyanshu Kumar Singh, Sthitadhi Maitra, Abhinav Bhosale. Second row (L-R): Kumar Saurav, Pranjal L. Pachbiye, Shivam Nath.

Chapter members attended the Energy Environment Summit held in July 2023.

Chapter members attended the HERO (Hydrogen Energy Resources and Opportunities) Summit 2023.

EAGE invites the student community to compete in the Online GeoQuiz 2024

We extend a warm invitation to all EAGE Student Chapters that have successfully renewed their membership for the year 2024 to join our EAGE Online GeoQuiz. As part of our commitment to fostering knowledge exchange and academic excellence, we are excited to announce the Online Geo Quiz, a virtual event scheduled for 10 April 2024.

This is an opportunity to engage and challenge students in the field of geoscience, providing a platform for intellectual growth and friendly competition. We encourage all eligible EAGE Student Chapters to participate in this exciting event, which promises to be both educational and entertaining. The event will take place in an online format on 10 April 2024 with a deadline for registration of 8 April 2024.

The Online GeoQuiz tests participants’ knowledge across various aspects of geoscience, offering a chance to showcase their expertise in a virtual environment. We believe this event will not only be a source of academic stimulation but also an avenue for networking and collaboration among student communities.

will each be awarded three complimentary registrations to attend our Annual Conference and Exhibition, taking place in Oslo, Norway, from 10 to 13 June 2024.

How to participate? Interested student chapters can register for the Online Geo Quiz until 8 April 2024. Scan the QR code to register and find more details about the event. For any additional information or queries, feel free to reach out to us at students@eage.org.

We look forward to your active participation in the Online GeoQuiz 2024. Let’s come together virtually to celebrate knowledge, camaraderie, and the spirit of exploration in geoscience!

The EAGE Student Fund supports student activities that help students bridge the gap between university and professional environments. This is only possible with the support from the EAGE community. If you want to support the next generation of geoscientists and engineers, go to donate.eagestudentfund.org or simply scan the QR code. Many thanks for your donation in advance!

A geoscientist in transition Personal Record Interview

A serial entrepreneur, Sebastien Lacaze last July launched an energy transition consultancy called LookUp, a logical progression from Eliis, an innovative seismic interpretation company he co-founded 15 years ago. Influenced by family, fascination with geoscience began early in life. He worked first as a seismologist in Nepal, before landing an oil industry job with Techsia in his home town of Montpellier, where he has been based ever since.

Early life in Montpellier

My parents, a psychiatrist and psychologist, shaped my vision of teamwork and openness. They also took my sister and I along the limestone paths dotted with holm oaks in the Mediterranean hinterland. We were fascinated by the traces of the earth’s history, we observed the strata, the outcrops with curiosity, we already loved the beauty of the ground. The little flame started to light and never went out!

‘Damascus’ moment

My uncle Alain Gavignet, a physicist whom I idolised, played a decisive role in my life. When I was just nine years old, he took me to the Schlumberger Research Centre in Cambridge where he worked and showed me how they were engineering logging tools. I ‘discovered’ his profession, how it pushed forward the limits.

Student studies

My interest, indeed, my passion for geosciences grew steadily over the years. I studied geophysics at the University of Montpellier, then Brest and finally Paris. I met some fantastic teachers like Pierre Andrieux in Paris, an associate professor also working for CGG. He introduced me to applied geophysics in the industry. I was also lucky enough to go to New Caledonia to prepare a Masters thesis using marine geophysical data to better understand plate tectonics in the Fiji region of SE Asia.

Formative experience in Nepal

My first professional assignment was in Nepal, on an international cooperation

project for the Department of Mines and Geology focused on developing seismic signal processing tools applied to seismology and geodesy. It was a real shock! The culture, the customs, the environment... everything changed. I was seduced. I learned the language, immersed myself in the values of the country and discovered a fascinating world. I was also learning the basics of the job with the geophysics laboratory of the French Atomic Energy Commission to which I used to report.

Early years in O&G

In 2004, I was hired by Techsia, a Montpellier-based company specializing in software development for well log analysis, later acquired by Schlumberger. The work did not really suit my skill set. I found that the subsurface analysis offered to customers, based on a few geological maps, still lacked accuracy. A much more detailed model was needed. The idea seemed obvious and inspired my first company.

The Eliis story

With the experience of Techsia behind me, I teamed up with my colleague, Fabien Pauget, the best expert in image processing I know, to start a company called Eliis (Elite Image Software). We first began in the medical sector, working in neuroradiology analysing brain aneurysms from 3D scan and MRI.

But our shared passion soon caught up with us. We decided to concentrate our efforts on our preferred field, geoscience, and more specifically applications in oil and gas exploration. The seismic interpre-

tation software PaleoScan we developed did well and the company now employs around 70 people.

Energy transition start-up

I was convinced that geoscience is an essential discipline for the energy transition and revolution. The subsurface conceals sources of renewable energy that are still poorly understood or insufficiently exploited, such as geothermal energy and natural hydrogen. We need to be innovative to face all the environmental challenges.

I decided to create LookUp, a new company to bring together open-minded people so that by working together and sharing information we can harness the power of geoscience to accelerate the transition.

Advice for start-up beginners?

The most important thing: do not be guided by your fears, pursue your idea, and believe in yourself!

Beach volleyball diversion

I’ve been playing volleyball since the age of 14 and I live by the sea: two good reasons to become president of Montpellier Beach Volley club, the biggest in France! The sport combines values that are essential to my life as an entrepreneur: the importance of teamwork, respecting and listening to one’s teammates, a sense of effort and the joy of succeeding. This discipline has two final assets that are quite rare in the sporting world: it features almost perfect gender equality and low CO2 emissions. All you need is a ball and a net!

Sebastien Lacaze

EAGE Workshop on Naturally Fractured Rocks (NFR) Deadline: 25 April

EAGE Workshop on Advanced Petroleum Systems Assessments Deadline: 12 May

3rd EAGE Conference on Seismic Inversion Deadline: 15 May

3rd EAGE Workshop on EOR Deadline: 15 May

1st EAGE Workshop on The Role of AI in FWI Deadline: 22 May

8th EAGE High Performance Computing Workshop Deadline: 22 May

1st EAGE Conference on Energy Opportunities in the Caribbean Deadline: 30 May

MORE TO EXPLORE

CROSSTALK

BY ANDREW M c

BARNET

BUSINESS

What drives a supermajor

If one was to hazard a guess, ExxonMobil probably earns top spot among the anti-oil industry lobby as the arch villain, accused among other things, of making obscene profits at the expense of the environment, harbouring a well-documented history of denial and misinformation about climate change and making only miserly investments in energy transition technology.

None of the supermajors are immune from some of the same or similar accusations, but rarely do we get a full-on response. Step up Darren Woods, CEO of ExxonMobil. In a recent 45-minute video interview with Fortune magazine editors, Woods expanded on views previously aired since he took over leadership of the company in 2017. He delivered as plausible a rationale as you are likely to hear of how his particular company with its history regard its role and responsibility in the energy mix, adding some home truths. There were of course some notable omissions in the narrative (no mention of size of profits or amount returned to shareholders) nevertheless the message is salutary particularly his insistence that the time has come to base energy transition on more than aspiration.

Woods maintained the company had moved on from its past history with climate change, recognised the challenge of decarbonisation and was set on leveraging some core competencies ‘to solve what we can’. However, he insisted that communities around the world are not prepared to pay the true price of energy transition. ‘The dirty secret nobody talks about is how much all this is going to cost and who’s willing to pay for it,’ he said. ‘The people who are generating those emissions need to be aware of and pay the price for generating those emissions. That is ultimately how you solve the problem.’

he supported carbon tax and has been encouraged by the Biden Administration’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act which included subsidies in the US for developing climate change mitigation and energy innovation. But he referred to government intervention as only a bridge to the future, arguing that in the end market forces will have to take over. Building a business on government subsidy was not a long-term sustainable strategy.

As a company he said ExxonMobil was focused on investing in the development of new solutions, such as CCS and hydrogen, so how much it has spent on energies such as wind and solar compared, for example, with European peers, was false. The company did not bring any special competencies to that space ‘other than a cheque book’ and would not be able to deliver ‘above average returns to our investors’. ExxonMobil’s strategy leaned towards starting businesses from scratch, and those opportunities took time to develop.

‘World not prepared to pay true price of energy transition.’

If Woods had hoped that the response to his remarks would help his stated mission to promote better understanding of the company’s perspective, he was probably disappointed. Reporting the interview, The Guardian newspaper, something of an eco warrior in the UK press, tacked on quotes to its report on the interview from among others Gernot Wagner, a climate economist at Columbia Business School. ‘It’s like a drug lord blaming everyone but himself for drug problems. I hate to tell you, but you’re the chief executive of the largest publicly traded oil company, you have influence, you make decisions that matter. Exxon are at the mercy of markets but they are also shaping them, they are shaping policy. So no, you can’t blame the public for the failure to fix climate change.’

He also warned that we are not on the path to net zero by 2050, ‘objective analysis will tell you that’ and that existing technology will not get us there. In his view the cost of transition to a lower carbon economy has to be made explicit, and governments know that their constituents have a problem with that. Woods said

Ironically ExxonMobil is currently flexing its musles in its core oil and gas business, for which Woods makes no apology. Last October it launched a $59.5 billion takeover of Pioneer Natural Resources creating what it described as the industry’s leading high-quality undeveloped US unconventional inventory

position. Together, the companies will have an estimated 16 billion barrels of oil equivalent resource in the Permian. At close, ExxonMobil’s Permian production volume would more than double to 1.3 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (moebd), based on 2023 volumes, and is expected to increase to approximately 2 moebd in 2027. The company has stated that it plans to accelerate Pioneer’s net zero Permian ambition from 2050 to 2035. The acquisition, the biggest since Shell acquired BG in 2016, comes at a time when US crude oil production in 2023 headed global oil production for a sixth straight year, with a record breaking average production of 12.9 million b/d, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA),

Now ExxonMobil is locked in a commercial battle with rival US supermajor Chevron headed by CEO Mike Wirth, who has also repeatedly been clear about the continuing need to focus on producing more hydrocarbons for the world in the energy transition era. ExxonMobil has put a spanner in the works of Chevron’s $53 billion recent bid for Hess oil corporation. A big attraction of the proposed takeover for Chevron is the 30% stake in the Guyana consortium held by Hess. This massive prospect has already yielded more than 11 billion barrels of discovered oil in the Stabroek offshore block, with estimated recoverable reserves of more than of 20 billion barrels. ExxonMobil has an existing 45% stake in the consortium and argues that it has right of first refusal regarding any sale of partner assets. At this stage it is unclear whether there can be a negotiated settlement or the whole deal will be nixed. An obvious takeaway is that competition in the industry is intense as ever and no inch is being given in the drive for recoverable reserves in favourable environments.

against Hamas in the Gaza strip and oil supplies from the Gulf states are being put in jeopardy by attacks on cargo shipments.

It is just as well that these days the old connection between oil price and oil company investment sentiment is generally thought to have been severed. Otherwise the signals from the market would be considered confusing in the extreme. In January Saudi Arabia ordered Aramco to cap its maximum sustainable capacity to 12 million b/d instead of a planned 13 million b/d. Such action would imply some disenchantment with future oil demand worldwide.

‘Supermajors are heading back into deep water exploration.’

Meanwhile in March Reuters reported that according to its research OPEC and the International Energy Agency (IEA) are further apart than they have been for at least 16 years in their views on oil demand in 2024.

IEA believes that demand will rise by 1.22 million b/d this year, while OPEC suggests 2.25 million b/d, a difference of about 1% of world demand. According to Reuters this is about differing perspectives on the market for oil in 2024, but also on the speed of the world’s transition to cleaner fuels where OPEC clearly takes a more sceptical view. There have been mutterings elsewhere that peak oil demand would max out later than 2030, a previously popular projection.

The mega mergers themselves do not come as a particular surprise because Big Oil has been recording huge profits for its stakeholders, generating plenty of cash in recent years. In 2022 ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron,TotalEnergies and BP reported some $200 billion in profits of which ExxonMobil’s share alone was $59 billion. Also the argument for adding reserves through acquisition rather than through the drillbit has always been persuasive if the price is right.

Consolidation has implications. It potentially affects the total spend on exploration and development that service companies can expect as a result of a more concentrated customer base and possible re-evaluation of reserves replacement strategy. As it happens the industry as reflected by the supermajors continues to be based on the analysts’ favourite term, capital discipline, to which you can add risk aversion in a period of geopolitical turmoil. The market has had to adjust to a market profoundly shaken by the Covid epidemic followed by Russia’s incursion into Ukraine and threat to Europe’s natural gas supplies. Now the Middle East region is on a knife edge as Israel continues its military action

Oil companies have sustained themselves in the last ten years by confining much of their reserves investment to infrastructure-led exploration, thereby producing more oil in a low risk environment during major economic uncertaintly worldwide. For geoscience-related companies serving the industry, this made for a troubled decade decimating the global marine seismic vessel fleet dependent upon oil company exploration budgets. The only upside has been the development of a credible seabed seismic capacity to meet oil company 4D and other reservoir characterisation requirements at an acceptable cost.

We are now witnessing change in that the supermajors are heading back into deepwater exploration, hence the scrap between ExxonMobil and Chevron over the Guyana oil riches. The reordering of budget priorities is seemingly based on the calculation that the current minimal risk E&P strategy will not deliver sufficient reserves to meet demand in the years to come.

In a review of trends for 2024 S&P Global noted the search led by global IOCs is on for ‘sizeable prospects where the potential return is large enough to ensure profitability in lower oil-price environments (particularly for frontier areas without existing infrastructure). These companies are betting big on offshore areas in the Eastern Mediterranean, Southern Africa (Namibia and South Africa), as well as Angola, Brazil, Guyana and Suriname because of favourable resource characteristics and investment conditions.

How this all affects future seismic business is a moot question, but the omens are surely favourable.

Views expressed in Crosstalk are solely those of the author, who can be contacted at andrew@andrewmcbarnet.com.

Cost

Revolution in Mineral Exploration

Ambient noise surface wave tomography allows us to resolve the deep (800-1000 m) cover contact, as well as peek beneath.

These sort of wide area, low resolution images can be obtained relatively cheaply : a recent survey over 5,000 km² cost <US $60/km²

less than aero grav about 1/3 the price of MT

1% cost of reflection seismics

Thanks to SISPROBE for providing the data.

INDUSTRY NEWS

UK launches consultation on seismic data for carbon storage

The UK North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has launched a consultation to determine what data relating to CO2 storage should be made public and when.

Information gained from geophysical surveys, well data, and injection tests will be among the wealth of information that could be obtained and used in planning and future decision-making.

‘Once in place the easy access to data will encourage new entrants into the industry and help to cement the UK’s position as an international leader in the sector which is vital in the drive to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions,’ said the NSTA.

The UK National Data Repository already houses more than one petabyte of freely-available information gleaned from more than 60 years of activity.

‘Originally set up to support the oil and gas industry, it is increasingly used by companies, academics and individuals working in carbon storage, offshore wind and hydrogen, and it is expected that this new information will make a significant addition to that resource,’ said the NSTA.

There are currently 27 carbon storage licences in place in UK offshore waters. Twenty-one were awarded last year in the UK’s first-ever carbon storage licensing round. Early progress is being made on them, said the NSTA. The UK government has included some of these in the four Track 1 and Track 2 clusters, selected to speed up

the growth of the industry and encourage first injection as soon as possible.

The four CCUS clusters are expected to contribute to the target of capturing and storing 20-30 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of CO2 by 2030.

The UK published its ‘Carbon Capture Usage and Storage Vision’ in December 2023, pledging up to £20 billion investment in the sector to create a competitive market in carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) by 2035.

scheme has received more than £1 billion from the UK government. It has allocated a record £800 million for offshore wind, four times more than was made available to offshore wind in the previous round, helping to deliver the UK’s ambition of up to 50GW of offshore wind by 2030, including up to 5GW of floating offshore wind. The CfD scheme gives renewable energy projects a guaranteed price for the electricity they generate.

Nic Granger, NSTA director of corporate, said: ‘Access to this data will enable users to identify potential carbon storage locations and assist decision making in this growing sector.’

Meanwhile, Britain’s flagship Contracts for Difference (CfD) renewables

Some £120 million was allocated for established technologies such as onshore wind and solar and £105 million for emerging technologies such as floating offshore wind and geothermal.

Companies can bid for contracts in the sixth CfD auction.

Seismic shows gas find

shoots survey

Archive / Illustration / Courtesy of North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA).

CGG publishes carbon capture study for Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam

CGG has released the Southeast Asia Carbon Storage Study to support and accelerate the screening process for all players in the region’s fast-growing CCUS market.

The study ranks and prioritises opportunities across 58 basins in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, covering a total

surface area of more than 6 million km2, to help streamline the process for identifying the best basins and plays for potential carbon storage. The study and its associated data are available to licence now.

The Southeast Asia Carbon Storage Study is a new addition to CGG’s GeoVerse Carbon Storage portfolio which already includes studies for the North Sea and US Gulf of Mexico. Developed by experts from CGG’s Carbon Storage, Geology and Data Hub teams, the studies provide an assessment of storage potential based on a proprietary quantitative and qualitative criteria-based screening methodology which assesses deep subsurface features and the above-ground context.

Dechun Lin, EVP Earth Data, CGG, said: ‘The release of this carbon storage screening study comes at a time of accelerated growth in the Southeast Asia CCUS market and will provide operators with accurate and critical subsurface information for rapid insight and decision-making. With this strategic addition to our growing portfolio of carbon storage screening studies, CGG is expanding its footprint and experience in all active CCUS hubs around the globe.’

EMGS wins multi-client survey in the North Sea

EMGS has won a contract from Equinor for a fully prefunded multi-client survey in the North Sea. The survey is expected to have a contract value of approximately $2 million. The fully prefunded survey was expected to start in early March 2024.

Meanwhile, the company has reported fourth quarter 2023 revenues of $1.1 million, down from $15.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 and down from $1.6 million in the third quarter of 2023.

Adjusted EBITDA (including capitalised

multi-client expenses and vessel and office lease expenses) was a loss of 1.7 million, down from a profit of $8.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Free cash decreased to $10.3 million at quarter end.

Overview of basins covered by the Southeast Asia Carbon Storage Study and snapshot of storage play segmentation (image courtesy of CGG Earth Data).

PGS makes Southern North Sea data available

PGS has made data available from the SNS Vision project targeting exploration potential in the mature Southern North Sea gas province.

The final data supports exploration both for post-salt CO2 storage potential in the Triassic Bunter sand formation and nearfield exploration targets.

SNS Vision covers open exploration acreage, as well as eight recently awarded CCS licences. It provides reliable and consistent depth-migrated regional data for screening and evaluation of the carbon storage site.

Twenty-six datasets included in the project have benefited from imaging reprocessing, including a 2 millisecond broadband processing, modern deghosting, complex demultiple flow that is optimised for shallow water, and depth migration based on full waveform inversion (FWI).

This resulted in a seamless seismic data volume with improved resolution over approximately 12,000 km2 that is suitable for both conventional exploration and CCS projects from shallow to deep.

Imaging of complex geology and salt tectonics has been effectively addressed through depth velocity model building (VMB), tomography, FWI updates, and Kirchhoff prestack depth migration (KPSDM). FWI has successfully resolved shallow features, and revealed shallow salt and cap rock details.

An accurate depth velocity model, with well control coming from 31 wells spread over the entire project area, was crucial for achieving high-quality seismic imaging of the Southern North Sea gas province.

After the SNS Vision seismic reprocessing effort, PGS performed an automatic regional horizon interpretation to rapidly interpret the volume and particularly the CO2 storage horizons, namely the Bunter Sand Formation interval.

Using an Eliis PaleoScan relative geological time (RGT) model, PGS rapidly generated detailed horizon stacks. It then

derived inversion data, seismic facies volumes, spectral decomposition and visualised these at a chronostratigraphic level (an example is shown on the data library tile below). In less than one month, this method allowed it to interpret a significant area of around 12,000 km2 without much a-priori seismic interpretation.

Quantitative interpretation (QI) characterisation of this dataset has included petrophysics and rock physics analysis, well-toseismic calibration, seismic stack(s) optimisation or conditioning prior to seismic inversion for elastic property estimation, transform to reservoir properties (porosity), and integration of the above with the detailed high-resolution seismic interpretation. These results are also available.

To establish a proper reservoir understanding, first developed a rock physics understanding by creating a rockAVO product. To this end, it screened 25 of the two thousand wells in the area. The wells used were selected based on log data availability, length, and quality. Porosity estimation was then performed for the BSF interval at regional scale, with use of the 25 rockAVO wells for the calibration and establishment of the transform between the elastic properties and the target property (porosity).

Meanwhile, Norway’s Halten and Dønna Terrace is revealed in unprecedented multi-azimuth detail by PGS’ final GeoStreamer X Norwegian Sea data.

Full stack depth imaging is now available for the first 7000 km2 tranche of GeoStreamer X Norwegian Sea, over of the Halten/Donna Terrace.

The final subsurface images provided by GeoStreamer X Norwegian Sea reveal structure and stratigraphy in unprecedented detail in both shallow and deep settings.

‘The detail on our final GeoStreamer X data is so sharp, it makes our interpreters’ fingers itch. It’s a new level of understanding the traps and plays, allowing your team to reassess new and missed exploration opportunities and volumetrics on the Halten-Dønna Terrace,’ said Sónia Pereira, VP of Data Sales Europe at PGS.

Shearwater wins UK CCS data contract

Shearwater GeoServices has won a contract from Spirit Energy for advancing carbon capture and storage (CCS) capabilities in the UK. The six-week project in the Morecambe Bay in the northwest of the UK is scheduled for the summer of 2024 and will be Shearwater’s fifth CCS survey in the last two years.

It relates to Spirit Energy’s recent carbon storage licence award by the UK’s North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA).

The licence is a key step forward in transforming the North and South Morecambe gas fields into permanent, safe, and secure carbon storage, supporting the UK’s Net Zero ambition to capture and

store over 50 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2035.

Tanya Herwanger, SVP strategy and new markets at Shearwater, said: ‘By applying our innovative data collection and imaging technology to help operators gain a better understanding of their storage sites we support deployment of CCS at scale.’

Meanwhile, Shearwater has won a contract from India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) for a survey in the Cauvery Basin, off the east coast of India.

Set to begin in the early months of 2024, the project will cover a 4600 km² area in the Bay of Bengal, utilising the vessel SW Empress Vessel SW Empress.

Seismic interpretation indicates large gas find in Tanzania

Tanzania-based oil company Aminex has completed seismic interpretation of the recently acquired 338 km2 3D seismic dataset over the Ruvuma PSA, which indicates potentially the largest onshore gas discovery in East Africa.

The data indicates improved in-place volumetrics for the Ntorya gas discovery onshore Tanzania and revealed a significantly higher resource potential in the wider licence area than previously identified on the existing sparse 2D database.

The interpretation of the 3D seismic has been completed by the Ruvuma PSA operator, ARA Petroleum Tanzania (APT). Seismic inversion geomodelling, undertaken in collaboration with Ikon Science, has defined a high confidence area with a revised in-place volumetric estimate for the Ntorya gas discovery. A most-likely (approximating to P50) estimate of 3.45 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of Gas Initially In Place (GIIP) is now believed to be potentially connected to the reservoir sandstones encountered in the Ntorya-1 (NT-1) and Ntorya-2 (NT-2) discovery wells. This revised Ntorya volume represents a substantial increase to the published P50 GIIP of 1.64 Tcf estimated by RPS Energy (RPS) in February 2018.

Furthermore, the new 3D seismic data images a possibly even larger area of gas charged reservoir sandstones, beyond the high confidence area established by the new seismic inversion modelling. This provides for potential additional prospective

gas volumes associated with the Cretaceous age sand units tested in NT-1 and NT-2 (Units 1 and 2) and for the possible existence of an as yet undrilled shallower sand unit (Unit 3), to be tested by the forthcoming Chikumbi-1 (CH-1) appraisal well later in the year. An upside aggregated GIIP volume for the Ntorya accumulation based on a success case in multiple stacked sands at CH-1, is estimated by APT to be up to 7.95 Tcf (approximated to a mean unrisked P10 GIIP).

RPS has been engaged to undertake a revision of its 2018 study to support the initial Field Development Plan. The study is likely to focus on a much narrower area of the reservoir, surrounding the two existing wells and CH-1 location that will be targeted for initial production, with the aim of defining preliminary 1P and 2P reserve estimates. These reserve estimates are expected to increase substantially as phased development and project maturation progresses in light of the results of the newly reported APT interpretation studies.

The 3D dataset has also revealed, for the first time, considerable undrilled exploration potential within the broader licence area. Multiple undrilled structural and stratigraphic plays spanning a range of geological intervals are estimated by APT to contain a total Pmean unrisked GIIP potential of 8.43 Tcf (excluding Ntorya). These new plays and prospectivity currently identified to date contain a risked Pmean GIIP exploration potential

of ca 2.2 Tcf. Continuing work, including advanced seismic imaging and reinterpretation of existing wells, is being undertaken to reduce geological uncertainty and mature the new exploration portfolio. The new volumetric studies result in a total updated unrisked GIIP volume for the Mtwara Licence of 16.38 Tcf.

Charles Santos, executive chairman of Aminex said: ‘The quality of the new 3D seismic dataset was excellent giving the JV partners the ability to map in detail the Ntorya gas discovery, refine volumetric estimates and provide the basis to locate future appraisal and development drilling targets. We are particularly excited by the significant potential gas volumes now identified in other untested structures within the licence area. To place these volumes in context, the Ntorya accumulation is potentially the largest onshore gas discovery in East Africa and, with the sizeable new exploration targets, should be much less expensive to exploit than offshore resources.’

TGS adds new US carbon storage datasets

TGS has expanded the coverage of its CO2 storage assessment datasets by adding eight additional US onshore basins. Gulf Coast Onshore, Permian, Illinois, Michigan, Appalachia, North Dakota, Sacramento-San Joaquin and DJ, include interpretation on more than 43,000 wells across 378 million acres.

‘Our CO2 storage assessment offers a comprehensive geologic assessment of saline aquifer storage potential by leveraging our vast subsurface library of seismic, well, and geologic data,’ said TGS in a statement.

The subsurface assessment for carbon storage in saline aquifers considers the geologic structure, reservoir characteristics, fluid dynamics and caprock integrity to provide insights when identifying the most promising subsurface formations for carbon sequestration.

TGS added that the expansion of its CO2 storage assessment is supported by industry funding and the individual basin assessments will be released as they are completed throughout 2024 and 2025.

ENERGY TRANSITION BRIEFS

Chevron is developing a 5-megawatt hydrogen production project in California’s Central Valley. The project aims to create lower carbon energy by utilising solar power, land, and non-potable produced water from Chevron’s existing assets at the Lost Hills Oil Field in Kern County. The facility will produce two tons of LCI hydrogen per day, with the goal of supporting an expanding hydrogen refuelling network.

New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has announced Equinor’s Empire Wind 1 project, one of the conditional winners in its fourth offshore wind solicitation round. The project will deliver 810MW of renewable energy to New York.

CO280 Solutions and a leading pulp and paper company have awarded a carbon capture test campaign to Aker Carbon Capture for an undisclosed site on the Gulf Coast in the US. It will enable the full-scale implementation of multiple Just Catch 400 modular capture facilities with permanent storage, and the creation of carbon removal credits.

The UK has announced more than £21 million of funding for hydrogen production plants. Suffolk Hydrogen, run by Hydrab Power, will make green hydrogen for low carbon service vehicles at the Sizewell C nuclear site. Tees Valley Hydrogen, run by Exolum, will build a new hydrogen refuelling station to help supply the local transport sector.

Norway has invited applications on two areas in the North Sea for CO2 injection and storage on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Several commercial companies have made inquiries to the Ministry of Energy regarding one or more storage areas. These inquiries form the basis for the areas now being announced.

Ørsted has agreed with Incheon Metropolitan City, Korea, to cooperate on developing an offshore wind power industry in the region driven by Ørsted’s 1.6 GW offshore wind project off the coast of Incheon.

TGS launches well data app

TGS has launched the FMB Cloud app, marking a fundamental enhancement to its Facies Map Browser (FMB) platform, which provides geoscientists with a standardised and interpreted well dataset.

FMB Cloud provides comprehensive access to well-based stratigraphic interpretation and sequence-constrained facies maps. It enables the user to perform a range of visualisation, manipulation and data analysis techniques, resulting in increased levels of geologic knowledge and accelerated regional hydrocarbon and carbon storage assessments.

TGS said in a statement: ‘The well data suite utilises digital wireline logs, scanned image files, drilling reports, lithology and biostratigraphic information to provide high-quality log data coupled with expert geological interpretation. The result is a standardised, workstation-ready and geologically consistent dataset that reduces risks and accelerates exploration.’

Meanwhile, TGS has also announced a strategic partnership with Entertel to deliver an integrated solution to empower operators with seamless access to TGS licensed well data through Enertel’s QuantumCast software platform.

The partnership will grant Enertel direct access to a customer’s entitled TGS well data, including the utilisation of TGS Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) embedded directly within QuantumCast, facilitating enhanced operational efficiency and decision making.

The well data provided by TGS within Enertel’s analytical platforms encompasses a range of information, including well headers, formation tops, logs, as well as production and completion data.

Fred Enochs, co-founder and CEO of Enertel said, ‘Through the partnership with TGS Well Data, we are able to provide a comprehensive analytics platform for rapid forecasting, asset evaluation, and basin analytics.

CGG reports fourth quarter operating loss of $11 million

CGG has reported an operating loss of $11 million and a group net loss of $15 million on fourth quarter revenues of $265 million compared with an operating profit of $84 million and a group net loss of $49 million in Q4 2002.

Full-year operating profit was $119 million with a group profit of $16 million on revenues of $1.075 billion compared to operating profit of $182 million and group profit of $48 million on revenues of £927 million in 2022.

Fourth quarter Data, Digital and Energy Transition revenue was $201 million, down from $205 million in Q4 2022. Geoscience revenue was $98 million, up 41% year-onyear driven by delivery of large processing projects. ‘Activity remains solid worldwide with Elastic TLFWI technology continuing to prove its value and receiving recognition from clients,’ said CGG. However, Earth Data after-sales were $41 million, down 47% year-on-year mainly due to delayed licensing rounds in Brazil and in the GoM.

Sensing and Monitoring Revenue of $119 million was up from 104 million in Q4 2022.

Looking ahead for the next two years CGG anticipates market demand for its core businesses to continue to grow at yearly mid-single digit through 2026 sustained by offshore international activity and the Middle East, and selected exploration in key basins. In new businesses it is more optimistic. ‘CGG is strongly positioned to address the critical needs of new markets in low carbon (CCUS and minerals and mining), high performance computing (HPC) and structural health monitoring (SHM). These three businesses are expected to develop rapidly at above 30% during the period 2024-2026.

Sophie Zurquiyah, CGG CEO, said: ‘In 2023, CGG significantly strengthened its financial performance, and I am pleased to see that we returned to positive organic cash flow generation, while continuing to invest in our new businesses.’

PGS reports fourth quarter operating profit of $83 million

PGS has reported a fourth quarter operating profit of $83 million and net income of $60 million on revenues of $265 million compared to an operating profit of $46 million and a net loss of $5 million on revenues of $217 million in Q4 2022.

Rune Olav Pedersen, president and chief executive officer, said: ‘It was reassuring to experience a doubling of Q4 multi-client late sales, compared to the average of the three first quarters of 2023. In Q4 most of our late sales came from Europe and West Africa. We worked on highly pre-funded multi-client projects in Brazil and Malaysia in the quarter, and in addition we recorded significant sales from surveys in the processing phase contributing to a strong pre-funding level of 148% of the capitalised multi-client cash investment. Profitability of our contract projects in Q4 were level with the summer season. We are experiencing lower acquisition activity over the winter season. At the same time the value of contract leads continues to grow. In addition, we see increasing opportunities for new multi-client programs and anticipate a more robust summer season market.

‘For the full year 2023 we benefited from an improving data acquisition market with a high pre-funding level on our multi-client projects and increasing profitability

for contract work. Despite this, revenues declined compared to 2022 owing to unexpected scheduling and operational challenges, and lower than expected multi-client late sales.’

In its outlook, PGS said: ‘Offshore energy investments are expected to continue to increase in 2024. The seismic acquisition market benefits from the higher spending level and a limited supply of seismic vessels. PGS New Energy is expected to benefit from an increasing tendering activity for offshore wind site characterization projects.’

Capital expenditures for 2024 is expected to be approximately $125 million, including capex to expand the offshore wind activities and some 2023 streamer capex delayed into 2024.

The order book amounted to $366 million on December 31, 2023. On September 30, 2023, and December 31, 2022, the order book was $437 million and $416 million, respectively.

Meanwhile, PGS is supporting Papau New Guinea’s Department of Petroleum and Energy to digitalise it’s access to data.

PGS is supporting the digitalization of DPE archives by providing a wide-format scanner and essential archive supplies.

In 2022, the DPE relocated to newly built offices in Waigani (central Port Mores-

by), which highlighted the need for modernisation of its document archives. The DPE currently stores hundreds of archive boxes containing paper reports and logs, along with other data on various physical media such as CDs and exabyte tapes. Digitalisation will make access to valuable data easier for companies exploring and developing new energy projects. The new scanner provided by PGS can do image-totext conversion for paper reports and can also scan long paper logs.

There is renewed interest in PNG’s energy sector as the government continues to stabilise its investment and development policies, said PGS. Access to reliable data supports this trend, it added.

The highly prospective Gulf of Papua is covered by two large multi-client 3D surveys, mapped by PGS. The 2011 Solwara MC3D and the 2020 Painimaut MC3D datasets benefit from modern demultiple techniques, full-waveform inversion (FWI), and pre-stack depth migration (PSDM). These surveys reveal numerous prospects in multiple play types over open acreage, and farm-in opportunities are available over the Solwara MC3D survey area. PGS has exclusive marketing rights for the Solwara and Painimaut MC3D surveys until 2029.

CGG ramps up offshore geothermal technology

CGG has released has published a paper outlining the potential of offshore geothermal energy as a green energy resource of global significance and setting out a framework for its responsible development.

Research by CGG scientists strongly indicates the existence of vast, untapped geothermal resources along the magmatically active ocean floor spreading centres and adjacent flooded rift systems occurring in all the world’s major oceans. These offshore areas could be optimal locations to harvest geothermal resources for power in conjunction with the co-production of freshwater, Green Hydrogen, and ammonia, collectively creating an alternative set of

rapidly scalable green energy solutions. CGG has been granted a patent for a novel combination of geological, geophysical, and engineering technologies to support research into and the exploration, development and monitoring of offshore geothermal resources.

Peter Whiting, EVP Geoscience, CGG, said: ‘The opportunity offshore geothermal resources presents could be a game-changer in supporting the United Nations Development Programme’s 2023 Sustainable Development Goals including clean energy, climate action, and partnerships for sustainable development. While the award of the patent recognises the exceptional work of our geothermal

experts, our motivation for seeking it is to ensure that there can be rapid, responsible, and equitable development of these resource of this important global resource.’

Schematic showing offshore geothermal resource exploration and development adjacent to sea floor spreading centres. (image © CGG).

Shell reaches 60% of its 2030 emissions reduction target

Royal Dutch Shell has reached 60% of its target to halve emissions from its operations (Scope 1 and 2) by 2030, compared to 2016.

Publishing its first energy transition update since the launch of its Powering Progress strategy in 2021, the company also reduced the net carbon intensity of the energy products it sells by 6.3% compared with 2016, the third consecutive year it hit its target. In 2023 it achieved 0.05% methane emissions intensity, significantly below our target of 0.2%

Meanwhile, the company has set a new target to reduce customer emissions from the use of its oil products by

15-20% by 2030 compared with 2021 (Scope 3, Category 11) as a contribution to the decarbonisation of the transport sector.

Shell has also confirmed that it will invest $10-15 billion between 2023 and

the end of 2025 in low-carbon energy solutions. It will focus on renewable power projects in Australia, Europe, India and the USA, Shell said.

‘Our target to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 across all our operations and energy products is transforming our business. We believe this target supports the more ambitious goal of the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Shell’s strategy supports a balanced and orderly transition away from fossil fuels to low-carbon energy solutions to maintain secure and affordable energy supplies.’

TGS reports fourth quarter operating profit of $47 million

TGS has reported an operating profit of $47 million and a net loss of $9 million on POC revenues of $206 million compared with an operating profit of $74 million and a net income of $43 million on

POC revenues of $227 million in Q4 2022.

Full-year operating profit was $179 million with a net income of $22 million on POC revenues of $968 million.

Early Q4 sales of $59 million were nearly double those of $31 million in Q4 2022. However, late sales of £59 million compared with $137 million in Q4 2022.

TGS said it expects multi-client investments of $300-350 million and a POC early sales rate of more than 85%.

Kristian Johansen, TGS CEO, said: ‘While we are pleased to deliver proforma annual revenue growth of 14% in 2023, we are disappointed with late

Oil majors results round-up

Equinor has announced adjusted earnings fourth quarter of $8.68 billion and $1.88 billion after tax in the fourth quarter of 2023. Net operating income was $8.75 billion and net income was $2.61 billion.

ExxonMobil has reported 2023 fourth quarter earnings of $7.63 billion, a 40% drop from £12.75 billion reported in Q4 2022.

TotalEnergies reported adjusted fourth quarter net income of $5.2 bil-

lion and cash flow of $8.5 billion. The company reported full-year adjusted net income of $23.2 billion and cash flow of $36 billion.

Shell reported adjusted fourth quarter earnings of $3.5 billion as a result of strong gas trading. Focus on disciplined spending led to 2023 cash capex of $24.4 billion; 2024 cash capex outlook is $22-25 billion.

bp has announced better than expected fourth quarter 2023 underlying replace-

sales in Q4. We did not see the normal seasonal late sales uptick, as customers’ year-end funds were limited by high cost inflation, increased spending on drilling and new seismic data acquisition and delayed licensing rounds. On a positive note, we saw good order inflow and positive momentum in our Acquisition business and strong development in the Digital Energy Solutions business. I’m increasingly optimistic for 2024, based on positive signals from our customers. Our POC contract backlog going into 2024 is 21% higher than a year earlier and the pipeline of further business opportunities looks promising.’

ment cost profit of $3 billion, compared with $3.3 billion for the previous quarter. Reported profit for the quarter was $0.4 billion, compared with $4.9 billion for the third quarter of 2023. Operating cash flow was $32 billion and net debt was reduced to £20.9 billion.

Chevron has reported fourth quarter earnings of $2.3 billion, compared with $6.4 billion in Q4 2022 and $6.5 billion in Q3 2023.

Kristian Johansen, TGS CEO.

BRIEFS

Petronas has signed production sharing contracts for two Discovered Resource Opportunities (DRO) clusters, situated off the coast of Peninsular Malaysia.   The BIGST Cluster was awarded to PETRONAS Carigali, and JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration (BIGST), with 50% cent participating interest each. Meanwhile, Tembakau Cluster was awarded to IPC Malaysia and IPC SEA Holding, with 90% and 10% participating interest, respectively.

Seabird Exploration has reported fourth quarter revenues of $8.5 million and EBITDA of £1.7 million. Net interest-bearing debt was $13.9 million. Utilisation was 76%.

Partners in Israel’s Tamar natural gas field have agreed to expand production at the offshore site, which is a major energy source for Israel and also supplies Egypt and Jordan. Field operator Chevron said the move will increase Tamar’s production capacity to up to 1.6 billion cubic feet per day, from a current 1 billion cubic feet, according to a Reuters report.

The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has completed its environmental review of the proposed New England Wind project offshore Massachusetts. BOEM estimates that the proposed project would generate up to 2600 megawatts (MW) of electricity.

Five applicants have been approved for the auction round for Sørlige Nordsjø II offshore wind projects on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. They are, Aker Offshore Wind, BP og Statkraft; Equinor og RWE; Norseman Wind (Energie Baden-Württemberg AG); Shell, Lyse og Eviny; Ventyr (Parkwind og Ingka).

The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has announced the two final Wind Energy Areas (WEAs) offshore Oregon. The Coos Bay WEA is 61,204 acres and is located 32 miles from shore. The Brookings WEA is 133,808 acres and is about 18 miles from shore.

Bangladesh launches licensing round

The Bangladeshi government has issued an invitation to international oil and gas companies offering 15 deepwater blocks and nine shallow-sea blocks for exploration in its first bid round since 2012.

The deep-sea licenses available for bidding are DS-08, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22. The shallow-water ones are SS-01, 02, 03, 05, 06, 07, 08, 10 and 11.

TGS, in partnership with SLB and the national oil company Petrobangla, has acquired a 2D multi-client seismic data survey encompassing over 75,000 km across all 24 blocks on offer. Acquisition of the 12,636 km 2D seismic survey was completed in April 2023. Final PSTM-processed products are available now, and final PSDM products will be available in May 2024.

David Hajovsky, executive vice-president of multi-client at TGS, said: ‘The Bengal Fan is one of the world’s largest deep-water fans with significant evidence of working petroleum systems. It is widely considered one of the most extensively underexplored frontier regions. With limited existing offshore Bangladesh data, this new high-quality seismic, combined with the revised Production Sharing Contract 2023 (PSC), is a critical component for companies to evaluate and submit competitive bids.’

The country is offering several tax exemptions with contractor’s corporate income tax liability borne by the Petrobangia. Machinery imported for petroleum operations will not be taxed, it added. Contractors will also be allowed to repatriate 100% of their profit.

To qualify for bidding, a company must have an offshore daily production of

at least 15,000 barrels of oil or 150 million cubic feet of gas in operated assets. Companies have until September 9 to submit bids to Petrobangla.

‘Bidders must have global experience (other than their home country) in oil and gas exploration and production,’ the notice added.

The initial contract period lasts six years, which can be extended by three, according to the offshore production sharing contract (PSC) model that Petrobangla announced last year.

Contractors must provide a bank guarantee of $3 million for the initial exploration period of six years. After four years it must commit to drilling an exploration well backed by a further bank guarantee of $20 million for the remaining two years. If it wishes to avail of the threeyear extension, it must provide another bank guarantee of $20 million.

‘At the end of the initial exploration period, the contractor will have an option to relinquish the entire area after completion of the minimum work program or to proceed to the subsequent exploration period, relinquishing 50% of the contract area in a single portion,’ stated the offshore PSC framework. ‘The contractor shall relinquish all of the contract area if it does not commit to drill an exploration well after completion of the geological and geophysical survey during the four years of the initial exploration period’.

In the event of no discovery the contractor shall bear all losses without liability to the state.

If a contractor secures a commercial discovery it is assured of a 20-year production contract for an oil field and a 25-year contract for a gas field.

Fifteen deepwater and shallow water blocks are available to bid on. Bangladesh has launched a new production sharing contract. Credit: Arvind Vallabh on Unsplash.

Oil and gas round-up

BlueNord has made a final investment decision on the Harald East Middle Jurassic well in the Danish sector of the North Sea, operated by the Danish Underground Consortium (DUC), a JV between TotalEnergies (43,2%), BlueNord (36,8%) and Nordsøfonden (20%) The HEMJ well will be drilled close to the Norwegian border and if successful deliver production by end of 2024. The expected gain from the well is up to 8 mmboe net to BlueNord of which ca 80% is gas. This well is drilled into the Jurassic with good reservoir properties.

Shell has taken a final investment decision (FID) on the Victory gas field in the UK North Sea, approx. 47 km north-west of the Shetland Islands. Once onstream, the field will help to maintain domestically produced gas for Britain’s homes, businesses and power generation. The development will feature a single subsea well which will be tied back to existing infrastructure of the Greater Laggan Area system, using a new 16 km pipeline.

Afrentra has been selected for two blocks in Angola’s 2023 onshore bid round. As part of the 2023 Public Tender process launched by ANPG, Afentra submitted bids for Blocks KON15 (1000 km2) and KON19 (900 km2) in the Kwanza onshore Basin as a non-operating partner. The onshore Kwanza basin, covering

25,000 km2 is an under-exploited proven hydrocarbon basin and has numerous oil fields and discoveries dating back to 1955. Both KON15 and KON19 blocks were high-graded by Afentra as they have good signs of a working petroleum system and contain wells that were drilled on salt structures with light oil recovered to surface in one and oil shows in others from post and pre-salt reservoirs. There is limited 2D seismic data.

Serinus Energy has been selected as a preferred bidder on the KON-13 block in the onshore Kwanza basin in the Republic of Angola. The Kwanza basin is a large proven hydrocarbon basin extending over 25,000 km2. The basin has existing oil discoveries dating back over 70 years. The KON-13 block has an aerial extent of 1011 km2 with one exploration well drilled in 1969 and 136 km of legacy 2D seismic. The Kwanza basin is located both on and offshore Angola. It extends from Luanda, located in the north, to Cape Santa Maria farther south. The company sees this basin as an under-explored and under-exploited basin.

Aker BP and Equinor have discovered oil in well 30/12-3 S in the North Sea. The wells were drilled about 40 km south of Osberg. The licence is part of the Munin field. Between 0.15 and 0.55 million Sm3 of recoverable oil equivalent

(o.e.) was proven in well 30/12-3 S. Well 30/12-3 S encountered a 3.5-m oil column in the Tarbert Formation, in a sandstone reservoir with moderate reservoir quality. The Tarbert Formation was 195 m thick, 97 m of which was sandstone rocks with moderate-good reservoir quality. The oil/ water contact was encountered 3110 m below sea level. The Ness Formation was about 163 m thick, 19 m of which was a sandstone reservoir with moderate reservoir quality. Well 30/12-3 A encountered the Tarbert Formation with a thickness of about 216 m, 19 m of which was sandstone rocks with poor reservoir quality. The Ness Formation was 50 m thick, 11 m of which was a sandstone reservoir with moderate reservoir quality. Data acquisition was undertaken.

BlueNord's targets in the Danish North Sea.

Special Topic

UNDERGROUND STORAGE AND PASSIVE SEISMIC

Submit an article

Large-scale exploration of shale oil and gas, in America in particular, has driven innovation in the passive seismic characterisation of unconventional reservoirs over the years. Such techniques are proving to be extremely useful in assessing the suitability of former oil and gas reservoirs for underground storage of carbon dioxide. A range of techniques for characterising CO2 storage reservoirs are now under development, including geomechanical modelling and analogue and numerical modelling in combination with seismic analysis. Important work is also being done on injection rates in preparation for largescale adaption of carbon storage to help meet the planet’s carbon reduction goals.

Zuzana Jechumtálová et al show that long-term CO2 sequestration leads to induced seismicity at distances exceeding kilometres from the injection well.

James R. Johnson et al utilise analogue and numerical modelling in combination with seismic analysis to identify potential areas of further research on injection rates for CO2 storage.

Ruud Weijermars highlights how a novel geomechanical model can help to identify suitable CO2-storage capacity in the subsurface of coastal regions by computing what pressure buildup in the reservoir will result in geo-engineered surface uplift that nullifies the adverse effects of relative sea level rise for the region under flood threat.

Roy P. Bitrus et al present a survey that has mapped the hydrocarbon presence probability to identify and derisk the presence of hydrocarbons in the survey area.

Valeria Di Filippo et al demonstrate proper planning facilitates for safe, durable injection of CO2 in a nearshore depleted reservoir for long-term storage.

First Break Special Topics are covered by a mix of original articles dealing with case studies and the latest technology. Contributions to a Special Topic in First Break can be sent directly to the editorial office (firstbreak@eage.org). Submissions will be considered for publication by the editor.

It is also possible to submit a Technical Article to First Break. Technical Articles are subject to a peer review process and should be submitted via EAGE’s ScholarOne website: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/fb

You can find the First Break author guidelines online at www.firstbreak.org/guidelines.

Special Topic overview

January Land Seismic

February Digitalization / Machine Learning

March Reservoir Monitoring

April Underground Storage and Passive Seismic

May Global Exploration

June Technology and Talent for a Secure and Sustainable Energy Future

July Modelling / Interpretation

August Near Surface Geo & Mining

September Reservoir Engineering & Geoscience

October Energy Transition

November Marine Acquisition

December Data Management and Processing

More Special Topics may be added during the course of the year.

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

6th Asia Pacific Meeting on Near Surface Geoscience and Engineering

July 2024

30-31 Jul EAGE Workshop on Advanced Petroleum Systems AssessmentsIn Pursuit of Differentiated Barrels www.eage.org

August 2024

12-13 Aug 3 rd EAGE Conference on Carbon Capture & Storage Potential www.eage.org

14-15 Aug 4th EAGE Workshop on Fiber Optic Sensing for Energy Applications www.eage.org

14-15 Aug 1st EAGE/SUT Workshop on Integrated Site Characterization for Offshore Wind in Asia Pacific www.eage.org

18-23 Aug Goldschmidt 2024 conf.goldschmidt.info/goldschmidt/2024/meetingapp.cgi

2024

2-4 Sep Fourth EAGE Marine Acquisition Workshop www.eage.org

2-5 Sep ECMOR 2024 - European Conference on the Mathematics of Geological Reservoirs www.ecmor.org

3-5 Sep SGI - SIMP Congress www.geoscienze.org/bari2024

8-12 Sep Near Surface Geoscience Conference and Exhibition 2024 www.eagensg.org

12-13 Sep First EAGE Workshop on The Role of AI in FWI www.eage.org

16-18 Sep Eighth EAGE High Performance Computing Workshop www.eage.org

17-19 Sep Fourth EAGE Conference on Pre-Salt Reservoir www.eage.org

October 2024

1-4 Oct 18 th SAGA Biennial Conference & Exhibition www.sagaconference.co.za

Windhoek Namibia

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

November 2024

4-7 Nov Fifth EAGE Global Energy Transition Conference and Exhibition www.eageget.org Rotterdam The Netherlands

EAGE Carbon Capture and Storage Conference Part of GET 2024 (Fifth EAGE Global Energy Transition Conference and Exhibition)

EAGE Geothermal Energy Conference

Part of GET 2024 (Fifth EAGE Global Energy Transition Conference and Exhibition)

EAGE Hydrogen and Energy Storage Conference

Part of GET 2024 (Fifth EAGE Global Energy Transition Conference and Exhibition)

EAGE Offshore Wind Energy Conference Part of GET 2024 (Fifth EAGE Global Energy Transition Conference and Exhibition)

6-8 Nov First EAGE Conference on Energy Opportunities in the Caribbean www.eage.org Port of Spain Trinidad & Tobago

12-13 Nov 2 nd EAGE Workshop on Integrated Subsurface Characterization and Modeling www.eage.org

20-21 Nov Asia Petroleum Geoscience Conference and Exhibition (APGCE) icep.com.my/apgce

December 2024

3-5 Dec First EAGE Symposium on Geosciences for New Energies in America www.eage.org