First Break March 2020

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SPECIAL TOPIC

Modelling / Interpretation TECHNICAL ARTICLES  Reconstructing salt geometry using 3D CSEM data EAGE NEWS  Conference report on latest use of drones in Geoscience CROSSTALK  Can the industry really go net zero?


CORNERSTONE OBN A step-change in CNS imaging Developed in conjunction with Magseis Fairfield, the multi-phase multi-client Cornerstone OBN program will deliver subsurface images of unprecedented quality in the most challenging areas of the UK Central North Sea (CNS). Phase I, beginning March 2020, will provide approximately 2,500 sq. km of full-azimuth data for HP-HT areas where salt diapirism creates challenges for seismic imaging using existing long-offset streamer data. First results are expected in Q1 2021.

The right data, in the right place, at the right time Cameron Grant +44 (0)1293 683340 cameron.grant@cgg.com

cgg.com/cnsnodes


FIRST BREAK® An EAGE Publication

CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD Peter Rowbotham (Peter.Rowbotham@apachecorp.com) EDITOR Damian Arnold (editorfb@eage.org) MEMBERS, EDITORIAL BOARD •  Paul Binns, consultant (pebinns@btinternet.com) •  Patrick Corbett, Heriot-Watt University (patrick_corbett@pet.hw.ac.uk) •  Tom Davis, Colorado School of Mines (tdavis@mines.edu) •  Anthony Day, PGS (anthony.day@pgs.com) •  Peter Dromgoole, Equinor UK (pdrum@equinor.com) •  Rutger Gras, Oranje-Nassau Energy (gras@onebv.com) •  Hamidreza Hamdi, University of Calgary (hhamdi@ucalgary.ca) •  Ed Kragh, Schlumberger Cambridge Research (edkragh@slb.com) •  John Reynolds, Reynolds International (jmr@reynolds-international.co.uk) •  James Rickett, Schlumberger (jrickett@slb.com) •  Dave Stewart, Dave Stewart Geoconsulting Ltd (djstewart.dave@gmail.com) •  Femke Vossepoel, Delft University of Technology (f.c.vossepoel@tudelft.nl) MEDIA PRODUCTION MANAGER Thomas Beentje (tbe@eage.org) ACCOUNT MANAGER ADVERTISING Keziah Starrenburg (ksg@eage.org) PRODUCTION Saskia Nota (layout@eage.org) Ivana Geurts (layout@eage.org) EAGE EUROPE OFFICE PO Box 59 3990 DB Houten The Netherlands •  +31 88 995 5055 • eage@eage.org • www.eage.org EAGE RUSSIA & CIS OFFICE EAGE Russia & CIS Office EAGE Geomodel LLC 19 Leninsky Prospekt 119071, Moscow, Russia •  +7 495 640 2008 • moscow@eage.org • www.eage.ru

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Systematic workflow for reservoir characterization in northwestern Colombia using multi-attribute classification

Editorial Contents 3

EAGE News

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Crosstalk

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Industry News

Technical Articles

35 An offshore reservoir monitoring system based on fibre-optic distributed sensing of seabed strains Eyal Levenberg and Ivanka Orozova-Bekkevold 43

Reconstructing salt geometry using 3D CSEM data Luis Alberto Sanchez Perez, Martin Panzner and Humberto Salazar Soto

Special Topic: Modelling / Interpretation

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Geology-guided pore space quantification for carbonate rocks Mohammad Reza Saberi

57 Computation of grey level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) attributes in single and multiple directions Christoph Georg Eichkitz, Johannes Amtmann and Marcellus Gregor Schreilechner

EAGE MIDDLE EAST OFFICE EAGE Middle East FZ-LLC Dubai Knowledge Village Block 13 Office F-25 PO Box 501711 Dubai, United Arab Emirates •  +971 4 369 3897 • middle_east@eage.org • www.eage.org

63 Interpretational applications of artificial intelligence-based seismic fault delineation Chris Han and Abdulqadir Cader

EAGE ASIA PACIFIC OFFICE UOA Centre Office Suite 19-15-3A No. 19, Jalan Pinang 50450 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia •  +60 3 272 201 40 • asiapacific@eage.org • www.eage.org

77 Systematic workflow for reservoir characterization in northwestern Colombia using multi-attribute classification Deborah Sacrey and Camilo Sierra

EAGE LATIN AMERICA OFFICE Carrera 14 No 97-63 Piso 5 Bogotá, Colombia •  +57 1 4232948 • americas@eage.org • www.eage.org

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73 Assisting geological interpretation using seismic simulation Dan Kosloff, Allon Bartana, Jaqueline O’Connor, Jeff Codd and David Kessler

83 Improved presalt imaging using innovative model-driven imaging technology Sriram Arasanipalai, Alejandro Valenciano Mavilio and Hermann Lebit Calendar of Events

EAGE MEMBERS CHANGE OF ADDRESS NOTIFICATION Send to: EAGE Membership Dept at EAGE Office (address above) FIRST BREAK ON THE WEB www.firstbreak.org ISSN 0263-5046 (print) / ISSN 1365-2397 (online)

cover: Satellite image of the Meta River, marking part of the boundary between Colombia and Venezuela. Sacrey et al describe a workflow for reservoir characterization in northwestern Colombia on p. 77 (copyright courtesy of USGS).

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European Association of Geoscientists & Engineers

Board 2019-2020

Michael Pöppelreiter President

Dirk Orlowsky Vi c e-President Elect

Everhard Muijzert Secretary-Treasurer

Near Surface Geoscience Division George Apostolopoulos Chair Alireza Malehmir Vice-Chair Micki Allen Contact Officer EEGS/North America Riyadh Al-Saad Oil & Gas Liaison Esther Bloem Technical Programme Officer Hongzhu Cai Liaison China Albert Casas Membership Officer Eric Cauquil Liaison Shallow Marine Geophysics Ranajit Ghose Editor in Chief Near Surface Geophysics Hamdan Ali Hamdan Liaison Middle East Andreas Kathage Liaison Officer First Break Musa Manzi Liaison Africa Myrto Papadopoulou Young Professional Liaison Koya Suto Liaison Asia Pacific Catherine Truffert Industry Liaison

Oil & Gas Geoscience Division

Caroline Le Turdu Membership and Cooperation Officer

Ingrid Magnus Publications Officer

Colin MacBeth Education Officer

Michael Peter Suess Chair; TPC Lucy Slater Vice-Chair Caroline Jane Lowrey Immediate Past Chair; TPC Erica Angerer Member Wiebke Athmer Member Xavier Garcia NSGD Liaison Juliane Heiland TPC Tijmen-Jan Moser Editor-in-chief Geophysical Prospecting Ann Muggeridge IOR Committee Liasion Francesco Perrone YP Liaison Philip Ringrose Editor-in-chief Petroleum Geoscience Conor Ryan REvC Liaison Martin Widmaier TPC Aart-Jan van Wijngaarden Technical Programme Officer Michael Zhdanov NSGD Liaison

SUBSCRIPTIONS First Break is published monthly. It is free to EAGE members. The membership fee of EAGE is € 50.00 a year (including First Break, EarthDoc (EAGE’s geoscience database), Learning Geoscience (EAGE’s Education website) and online access to a scientific journal. Companies can subscribe to First Break via an institutional subscription. Every subscription includes a monthly hard copy and online access to the full First Break archive for the requested number of online users. Aart-Jan van Wijngaarden Technical Programme Officer

George Apostolopoulos Chair Near Surface Geoscience Division

Michael Peter Suess Chair Oil & Gas Geoscience Division

Orders for current subscriptions and back issues should be sent to EAGE Publications BV, Journal Subscriptions, PO Box 59, 3990 DB, Houten, The Netherlands. Tel: +31 (0)88 9955055, E-mail: subscriptions@eage.org, www.firstbreak.org. First Break is published by EAGE Publications BV, The Netherlands. However, responsibility for the opinions given and the statements made rests with the authors. COPYRIGHT & PHOTOCOPYING © 2020 EAGE All rights reserved. First Break or any part thereof may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transcribed in any form or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying and recording, ­without the prior written permission of the Publisher. PAPER The Publisher’s policy is to use acid-free permanent paper (TCF), to the draft standard ISO/DIS/9706, made from sustainable ­forests using chlorine-free pulp (Nordic-Swan standard).

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HIGHLIGHTS

EAGE MEMBERS

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ECMOR goes to Edinburgh

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Why drone development has a lot to offer oil and gas exploration

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What we do for students and what they can do for themselves

Improve your pitching in 2020

Belgrade’s NSG2020 will host Rapid Fire Talks.

If you want to sell an idea whether to your line manager, Board of Directors or investors, you’ve got to be able to master the art of the pitch. That’s to say come across with a succinct, persuasive argument. Take too long and the opportunity is lost. It’s not that easy which is why our EU Affairs department is introducing its ‘Rapid Fire Talks’ initiative in the context of encouraging professional presentation skills when pitching near surface geoscience ideas that might attract EU funding. We invite all academics, researchers and entrepreneurs to pitch their ideas and new technologies during a networking event at the EAGE Horizon 2020 booth during the Near Surface Geoscience 2020 (NSG2020) event in Belgrade. Through

this pilot attempt, the EAGE EU Affairs Department together with the team from the Horizon 2020-funded Smart Exploration project will organize up to 10 selected rapid-fire presentations to be given using a pre-made template of nine slides, each timed at 20 seconds. We want the presenters to cover a wide range of expertise and fields. We look for new research, innovative development ideas, and products or solutions that can have an added value to our discipline covering the main topics of the conference. The objective is to bridge between research and ideas to realization and commercialization allowing audiences to network and discuss more effectively bringing their ideas to a much more technology readiness level (TRL). FIRST

Engineering disciplines and in particular civil-architecture engineers and biomedical sciences have made a great step towards these so-called pitching talks or ‘the art of concise presentations’. Popularity of these talks has led to the establishment of organizations promoting these types of presentations such as Pecha Kucha (www.pechakucha.com). If you are interested, provide an up to 200-word abstract stating the challenge or issue, what you have done (or want to do) and what you are looking for (selling point). The three judged to be best pitching presentations will be awarded an innovation award sponsored by Smart Exploration plus a three-minute video of the talk distributed through EAGE social media channels. Submit your abstracts by Sunday, 3 May 2020 to on nsg2020.org.

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EAGE NEWS

Sign up now for ECMOR in Edinburgh

ECMOR XVI in Barcelona.

Mark your diaries for the upcoming 17th European Conference on the Mathematics of Oil Recovery (ECMOR XVII) to be held in Edinburgh, Scotland on 14-17 September 2020. Early registration is now open. ECMOR is an excellent platform to communicate recent developments in reservoir simulation and engineering. Over the last 30 years, ECMOR conferences attracted researchers and engineers from industry and academia to discuss evolving research topics related to modeling the subsurface.

Expected hot topics at the ECMOR XVII include: multi-scale and data-driven methods for fast and reliable subsurface flow predictions; cloud computing for fast and representative reservoir simulation; advances in pore-scale modeling; efficient techniques for flow modelling in fractured porous media; multi-physics problems including coupled flow and geomechanics problems; advances in linear and non-linear solvers; and application of machine learning techniques for data fusion, model calibration and flow control. We also expect contributions about all geoscience applications including, but not limited to geo-energy production, renewable energy cyclic storage, and greenhouse gas storage. For a successful conference, the technical committee will be selecting top contributions for oral presentations and the four-day conference will also include a keynote lecture and poster presentations. Please join us at the upcoming ECMOR XVII and register online at www.ecmor.org.

Competition hots up for Best Local Chapters 2020 Great work is carried out by EAGE local chapters worldwide and in the past two years the network of local chapters has expanded to new locations and communities. EAGE will once be presenting Best Local Chapter awards to acknowledge these achievements. As in previous years, EAGE will be reviewing the quality of activities and the level of members’ engagement, in order to identify the most active chapters and then honouring them with prizes in two categories. All chapters established for more than two years are eligible for the Best Local Chapter award. In the “Newcomer” Best category only those with two years of history or less are considered. For both, the awards consist of a cash prize equivalent to €1000 to be used for further local chapter activities. In 2020, we welcome eight Chapters participating in the Newcomer category and a total of 21 for the title of Best Local Chapter 2020. May the best ones win!

Make your Exhibition visit a voyage of discovery We look forward to welcoming you to the EAGE Annual 2020 Exhibition in Amsterdam this June. It’s the best opportunity of the year to discover the latest technologies, update your knowledge of available products and services, and expand your industry network. Walk around our exhibition floor to experience a truly international stage showcasing the newest equipment and services across multiple disciplines. There are many opportunities to spark up an interesting conversation, learn and discuss business.

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Zig-zag your way through over 300 booths, and visit the different special interest areas located around the exhibition floor. For example, the Digital Transformation Area is back after a successful representation last year in London. It provides a full programme of dedicated presentations focused around the growing importance of digitalization in oil and gas. Don’t forget to check out the Start-Up Area for innovations across a range of disciplines that might surprise you. The International Prospecting Centre

2020

is the place to be to get informed on the latest licensing rounds, and the University Area is ideal for networking with students and learning more about the current top research programmes. Reserve time to network with industry professionals and peers in one of the exhibition coffee plazas, or take a break at one of the many catering points to enjoy some lunch whilst discussing the latest presentations. And of course you can stick around for a more sociable beverage at the end of the day!


THIS IS THE NEW GREEN. You’re looking at the greenest data centre on the planet. Its green technology is cooling the massive supercomputer that is DUG McCloud. Using DUG’s own cooling technology,* all DUG McCloud nodes are completely submerged in a special dielectric-fluid cooling solution. Compare the DUG McCloud data centre to a typical HPC rack-filled data centre and the results are truly startling. DUG McCloud uses an incredible 46% less power than a typical data centre, with 81% less refrigerant use and an 81% reduction in embodied carbon dioxide. That’s up to 58,500 tonnes less C02 emissions per annum. Making you green with envy? Visit www.dug.com for more info. (*Patent Publication WA 2017/091862 AI)

Discover more at www.dug.com/ dug-mccloud/


EAGE NEWS 

Apply now for Mentoring Programme 2020 Applications for the EAGE Mentoring Programme 2020 are currently open. This joint initiative of the special interest communities of EAGE Young Professionals and Women in Geoscience & Engineering (with a fully renewed coordinating committee) is back with a more ambitious agenda this year. About 80 people were matched last year and most of them were actively engaged in a six-month exchange process, each focusing on specific career development goals. For 2020 the programme has been extended to

up to one year (although matched participants can decide independently on the frequency, system and duration of the exchange). The aim of the two groups working jointly on this initiative is to connect members with matching interests as closely as possible based on the applications received. Different matching options are available. These include indicating a geographic preference to allow for face-to-face meetings if agreed; remote exchanges only; general mentoring or advice focused on specific areas; and connections with

a member operating in the same field or a completely different one, etc. The range of options is kept broad on purpose, reflecting the diversity of applications received in previous years. The committee will endeavour to find a fitting match, but there is always something to learn for all mentors and mentees. So whether you are an experienced EAGE member, a young professionals or a student, we invite you to join the programme and enrich your career development path this coming year with a meaningful mentoring experience.

Aachen students prepare for the 9 th International Student Geosciences Conference

Leaders of the IGSC 2020 Organization committee.

Students at RWTH Aachen University are currently busy with the 9th International Student Geosciences Conference (IGSC 2020) scheduled for 5-10 July in Aachen organized and led by students, supported by the EAGE Student Fund. The event will also host a regional qualifier for the EAGE Geo-Quiz in 2021 during the EAGE Annual Meeting in Madrid, Spain. The theme of the IGSC 2020 revolves around major topics such as applied geosciences in a modern society and acting responsibly for a sustainable energy future. Since its conception in 2010 in Bucharest, IGSC has been organized in various countries by students of different nationalities. Following Berlin in 2013, the honour 6

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comes back to Germany and the city of Aachen. Last year Uppsala, Sweden was host. This year’s organizers say their aim is to provide a platform for students at all levels to present their current research and thesis work to other students from around the world, scientists from different universities, research institutes, industry representatives, and sponsors. By giving the students this opportunity through oral and poster presentations, it is hoped they will have an impact on the geoscience community, exchange ideas with peers, enhance their knowledge, and expand their professional network. Keynote speeches around the themes of IGSC 2020 will also provide a broader

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insight and teach a critical judgement of current developments in science. Technical and soft skills workshops by leaders from the industry and academia will complement the programme and provide students with the opportunity of gaining practical skills and hands-on experience in current trending geoscience topics. Students will strengthen and expand their speaking and presenting skills regarded as essential in today´s world. An extensive social programme including field trips, an icebreaker party, a farewell party, evening activities, and a post-conference programme will complement the conference. The organizers look forward to receiving abstracts for posters and oral presentations related to the above-mentioned topics and others that may be proposed. More information on abstract submission, deadlines, and registration can be found at https://igsc2020.rwthaachen.de/abstracts/ and https://igsc2020. rwth-aachen.de/registration/. More information about the event, in general, is at https://igsc2020.rwthaachen.de/. Also, be sure to follow Facebook and Instagram at @IGSConference.


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GAIA Digital Subsurface Platform

DELFI and GAIA are marks of Schlumberger. Copyright © 2020 Schlumberger. All rights reserved. 20-SE-700961


EAGE NEWS

Why drone development has a lot to offer oil and gas exploration An expectant crowd gathered on 2-4 December 2019 in Toulouse, centre of European aerospace and home of the Concorde, for a first EAGE workshop dedicated to the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for applications in geoscience and earth observation studies. This is the report. The workshop was well attended with participants from Russia, Europe, North America and the Middle East including experts in aeronautics, geology, geophysics, and mechanical engineering. Bruno Pagliccia, senior innovative acquisitions geophysicist, Total, said: ‘Artificial Intelligence and robotics are introducing a paradigm shift in the oil and gas industry. I’m glad EAGE has organized this first workshop on UAV technologies and applications as these will change our way of working for safer and more efficient operations. Enthusiasm and innovative

efficiencies in cost and HSE while engaging local communities to improve social acceptance and support job creation. A second pilot in Abu Dhabi is scheduled for 2020 in partnership with ADNOC. In addition to the better known METIS project, participants also learnt of Total’s engagement in a series of successful piloted and automated drone operations featuring applications such as inspection of installations, corrosion detection, gas plume detection, search and rescue and crisis management. Pagliccia also pointed to the critical HSE considerations

Happy crowd at the event

spirits were cornerstones of this workshop and will encourage the community to gather again for the next edition, so stay tuned, more is coming…’ In his keynote presentation exploring Total’s extensive use of drones over the last decade, Pagliccia spoke about the METIS (Multiphysics Exploration Technology Integrated System) project, a revolutionary system for acquiring onshore seismic using a swarm of highly autonomous UAVs and wireless seismic receiver darts. The ambitious pilot project in Papua New Guinea was demonstrated to to have improved 8

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in qualifying drones for operation when faced with varying levels of operational complexity and diverse regulations. The issue of safety in drone operations was further emphasized by subsequent talks including a presentation on the COMP4DRONES project, a European consortium to standardize drone components for professional use. The project is aimed at developing a set of pre-approved technological components to enable secure and autonomous drones for a broad range of complex civilian applications.

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In contrast, the remaining sessions of the first day demonstrated the nature in which low-cost electronics have removed barriers to entry for airborne geological and geophysical investigations. Many of the UAVs utilized were developed in-house by relatively small organizations utilizing open-source components for carrying LiDAR, multispectral and magnetic sensors. Applications ranged from resource exploration (groundwater, hydrocarbons, copper, gold ore, silver and uranium), environmental monitoring, archaeology, locating abandoned O&G assets and unexploded ordnance. Many of the day’s presentations pointed to the innovation coming out of the European Commission’s Horizon2020 with many successful projects such as COMP4DRONES, NEXT, INFACT and Smart Exploration all developing advanced drone solutions. The second day began with a focus on improving subsurface reservoir characterization methods using digital surface analogues derived from UAV acquired images. Studies in the Hikurangi Margin and Barents Sea demonstrated how relatively low-cost aerial acquisition techniques have the potential to reduce exploration risks in complex geological environments. While the photogrammetric modelling of outcrops is very well understood, increasing digitalization allows for new opportunities in automated and quantitative analysis for structural and stratigraphic interpretation and optimized integration of surface analogues into reservoir characterization studies. Many of the discussions centered on the ability to bring the field to the geologist and value of digital outcrops for increasing knowledge amongst geology students and multi-disciplinary teams. The afternoon session focused on novel applications and began with a presentation from Oscar Gallego from Baker Hughes on the use of the Lumen Sky drones plat-


EAGE NEWS

form for monitoring fugitive methane gas emissions. Other HSE focused applications included a tethered drone solution for obstacle detection during marine towed-streamer seismic acquisition and a thermal drone solution for search and rescue. A unique method for acquiring offshore ultra-long offset seismic surveys was also proposed. The very lengthy and engaging discussions reflected the excitement around the potential applications of UAV technology and increasing understanding of the value offered.

‘UAVs are adding a new dimension to several exploration and production activities: data acquisition for geology and geophysics, surveillance and safety for drilling and production. However, new challenges must be addressed with the potential volume of data that UAVs (equipped with appropriate sensors) can collect. Practically, several issues must be cleared to stream the deployment of UAV: legislation, safety, etc.’, Mokhles Mezghani, co-chair of the event, said.

Apart from the technical programme participants also enjoyed a networking reception and closing dinner. Perhaps the highlight of the workshop was the immersive technical tour which was hosted by Scalian and Altran at the Unmanned Systems Centre of Excellence at Scalian. Participants had a rare opportunity to test UAV equipment, enjoy simulations of UAV swarm flights and take part in detailed discussions with the robotics and software developers.

Women’s group in the Netherlands gets year’s activities off to an early start

The first event of the Women in Geoscience & Engineering group in the Netherlands in 2020 proved a valuable way of bringing like-minded members in the local community together for an informative debate and exchange of ideas. Several factors went into the success of the event in Delft on 31 January 2020. In the first place, a renewed committee coordinating EAGE’s largest community (over 1400 subscribers) is looking after future WGE activities with an international perspective. In addition, a team

got together in the Netherlands and joined forces with GAIA, the Network for Women in Earth Sciences, another strong presence for career development and gender balance in the country. This combined team intends to work together on an annual programme: keep an eye (and join!) the WGE group on LinkedIn to learn about upcoming meetings. The year’s activities kicked off with a get-together co-organized by Local Chapter Netherlands, supported by Delft Inversion, GAIA and EAGE, featuring an inspiring talk by Dr Aletta Filippidou

on the ‘Four stages in a woman’s career’. This was followed by a second meeting on 20 February with guest speaker and author Vréneli Stadelmaier who discussed what Albert Einstein, Meryl Streep and Michelle Obama all have in common, and how we can help women (and men too) around us to become more confident in their professional life. You can connect and support the momentum by joining the WGE group via LinkedIn where we will keep you informed on all future initiatives.

EAGE Education Calendar 6 APR

EAGE EDUCATION TOUR 13 BY DR IAN JONES

MOSCOW, RUSSIA

10 APR

EAGE EDUCATION TOUR 13 BY DR IAN JONES

SAINT PETERSBURG, RUSSIA

21 APR

EAGE EDUCATION TOUR 13, BY IAN JONES (DATE TBC)

CAIRO, EGYPT

7 JUN

SHORT COURSE, BY JEAN JACQUES BITEAU

AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS

8 JUN

SHORT COURSE, BY MARTIN LANDRØ,

AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS

12 JUN

SHORT COURSE, BY EHSAN NAEINI

AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION PLEASE VISIT WWW.EAGE.ORG AND WWW.LEARNINGGEOSCIENCE.ORG.

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EAGE NEWS

LC Aberdeen starts New Year with full house

Audiences in three locations appreciated the presentation.

EAGE Local Chapter Aberdeen began their 2020 progamme of events with a full house for a talk by Leon Barens (Total) on Elgin Franklin Overburden Studies on behalf of the Elgin/Franklin JV. Several students from Aberdeen University’s recently reformed EAGE Student Chapter attended the evening.

We were even able on this occasion to remotely share with Oslo SEG and Edinburgh’s Heriot Watt University, where Leon completed his doctorate nearly 20 years ago. The evening was sponsored by Total. Having been awarded the Gert de Jonge best talk award from 2019 DEVEX,

Leon’s presentation lived up to expectations and detailed the many non-reservoir studies performed to understand the behaviour of the over/side/underburden during production of these HPHT fields. We saw nanoDarcies on a K/phi crossplot, geomechanics illustrated with sponge cake, microseismic events highlighting sub-seismic lineations, salt in the underburden affecting overburden 4D – something for everyone and plenty of questions to end the evening. Future events in Aberdeen include Pat Connolly visiting the university to deliver an EAGE Student Lecture on Probabilistic Seismic Inversion in February, and a return on 26 May to give an evening talk to the LC. On 17 March we address the Energy Transition again following our CCS talk in October, with a joint talk with PESGB from Vanessa Starcher on the Geoenergy Observatory in Glasgow ,a new research facility for mine water geothermal energy. With Seismic2020 at the end of April, and May seeing DEVEX, the GeolSoc’s Petroleum Group Atlantic Margin Conference and Dave Monk’s SEG DISC on Seismic Acquisition, Aberdeen has a busy few months ahead! Stay informed about the Chapter’s activities through the LinkedIn page and become a member by sending an email to EAGELCAberdeen@gmail.com.

EAGE Student Calendar 20 FEB 20 MAR

MINUS CO2 CHALLENGE 2020 APPLICATION|

ONLINE

12 MAR

EAGE ONLINE GEO-QUIZ (STUDENT CHAPTERS ONLY)

ONLINE

16-19 MAR

GEO 2020 - STUDENT CONFERENCE

BAHRAIN, THE KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN

30 MAR

SAGEEP STUDENT EVENT

DENVER, USA

06-09 APR

9TH INTERNATIONALGEOLOGICAL AND GEOSCIENCE CONFERENCE (STUDENT ACTIVITIES)

SAINT PETERSBURG,RUSSIA

20-22 APR

NEAR SURFACE GEOSCIENCE & ENGINEERING CONFERENCE (REGIONAL GEO QUIZ)

CHANG MAI,THAILAND

7-JUN

LAURIE DAKE CHALLENGE FINAL

AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS

8-JUN

LAURIE DAKE CHALLENGE ANNOUNCEMENT

AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS

8-11 JUN

EAGE ANNUAL CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION 2020 / STUDENT ACTIVITIES

AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION PLEASE CHECK THE STUDENT SECTION AT WWW.EAGE.ORG

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EAGE NEWS

Uncharted territory for EAGE’s first seismic inversion conference Øyvind Kjøsnes (Aker BP) and Mark Morford (FracGeo), co-chairs of the technical committee, issue this invitation to the First EAGE Conference on Seismic Inversion being held from 26-28 October 2020 in Porto, Portugal.

Seismic inversion is a key technology in obtaining a sufficient data driven subsurface understanding to make right decisions throughout the whole life cycle of a field, from prospect evaluation to optimization of drainage strategies. It provides a high-resolution look at rock properties that are key to successful asset evaluation, drilling decisions and field development strategies.

The First EAGE Seismic Inversion Conference provides a long overdue opportunity for a broad range of geoscientists to focus on discussing current best practice in the industry, evolving techniques and where the science is leading in the future. In our view, seismic inversion is still under constant development and improvements. So we’re looking forward to see the directions and some good discussions.

As a first meeting, we are to some extent entering uncharted territory as far as the range of relevant topics is concerned. We expect to address typical challenges in seismic inversion including data quality and conditioning, layer properties prediction (both elastic, rock and fluid properties), azimuthal anisotropy, thin layer property prediction, detuning, broad band challenges, hydrocarbon saturation, DHI risk modification of prospects, and drainage strategies. The impact of machine learning, neural networks, artificial intelligence and cloud computing will certainly be on the agenda. This broad agenda intends to set the bar for serious discussion on existing applications including case studies with lessons learned, but also on how we can expect the various options in seismic inversion to be further developed to meet the needs of the industry. We cordially invite you to submit an abstract by 3 May 2020. For more details and a list of topics, visit the event website at www.seismicinversion.org.

IPTC 2020 notches up record attendance The 12th International Petroleum Technology Conference held for the first time in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia exceeded all expectations with a record attendance of over 18,000 participants from some 1080 companies representing over more than 75 countries. This was the first international multi-disciplinary, inter-society oil and gas conference and exhibition to be held in Saudi Arabia under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Defense, Kingdom of Saudi

Arabia, with Saudi Aramco serving as the exclusive host. Mahmoud M. Abdulbaqi, chairman, IPTC Board of Directors, chairman, ARGAS, and a former president of EAGE, said, ‘As we close this edition of IPTC, the first ever to be held in Saudi Arabia, we are filled with overwhelming pride as a result of the record-breaking success and the opportunity to hold IPTC at a key hub of the global energy industry. This year’s IPTC has surpassed expectations in terms of top-level speakers, technical content, and an undeniably impressive number of attendees at over 18,000’. FIRST

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EAGE NEWS 

Priorities that the EAGE Student Fund can meet Ian Jones is the latest contributor to our series on EAGE student funding. He has been senior geophysical advisor for ION GX Technology in its UK office since 2000. A frequent contributor to EAGE publications on his specialism of velocity model building and migration, his textbook An Introduction to Velocity Model Building was published in 2010. He has toured extensively with his short courses and in 2018 was awarded Honorary Membership of EAGE. ing discouraged at the thought of accruing significant debts. EAGE-funded bursaries and travel grants can help mitigate some of these concerns in a very real way.

Learn all about the EAGE Student Fund at eagestudentfund.org.

Why is the ESF mission important? In higher education today, the cost of study and the associated living expenses are commonly very high, to the extent that some students might be discouraged from undertaking university studies. Bursaries and travel grants can make a significant difference to an individual, whether that be in deciding to undertake a course of study in the geosciences and engineering, or in attending events organized by the EAGE during those studies. From the viewpoint of EAGE as our professional society, the resources to encourage students to enter our profession and also to facilitate ongoing career development within the profession, are vital. What are the main opportunities and challenges for the EAGE Student Fund in the upcoming years? For any organization such as the EAGE, there is always pressure to keep the membership subscription dues to a minimum, and there will always be competition for the deployment of these dues to various 12

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segments of the Assocation. It would be all too easy for investment in our future membership to be overlooked because current members might tend to concentrate on more immediate needs. Hence, spreading the load of fund-raising for the next-generation is a prudent strategy, whether that is by encouraging individuals to donate, adding a small surcharge to the general membership fee, or by soliciting donations from companies. Once such funds are secured, the EAGE is then in a position to deploy these resources to the benefit of existing and potential future students. If you were a student today, what would be the most valuable aspect of the EAGE Student Fund? The costs associated with studying, whether that be in committing to a course in the first place, or in attending EAGE events during study, can be prohibitive. It might be that some parents can help with such costs, or more likely, that a form of student loan is available, but either route might leave the prospective student feel-

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What are the challenges facing students in geoscience and engineering today and how can the Fund help? Perhaps the largest issue looming on the horizon for geoscientists today, is the bad press being given to anyone associated with the hydrocarbon industry. As an industry, we have been woefully inadequate in demonstrating and highlighting the positive contribution that our work makes to society worldwide whether that be in the basics like heating, lighting, and transport, or in the more subtle contributions via advances in chemical engineering and medicines. Hence, rather than being respected as valuable contributors to society, we are being vilified. We know that de-carbonization is necessary, and our industry is strongly supporting and developing alternative energy solutions, but in the meantime, it is counter-productive to denigrate the contribution of our industry to society. As part of a more general outreach to both high school and university students, the EAGE Fund could offer a conduit for the dissemination of more positive and accurate information, i.e., to highlight the good our industry does, and to encourage participation in it. Why should people or organizations contribute to the EAGE Student Fund? Investment in the future secures not only our own wellbeing, but also that of the next generation. In the arena of the geosciences and geotechnical engineering, the EAGE offers one such mechanism to achieve this, via the Student Fund.


EAGE NEWS

New Student Chapter opens in Nigeria 2019 ended with the opening of a new student chapter in Nigeria - at Mountain Top University. This was a project long supported by the efforts and close collaboration of the EAGE Local Chapter in the country, currently coordinated by Dr Mayowa Afe (president), Awe Esther (YP coordinator) and Emmanuel Ekechukwu (YP technical director). The students’ executive and about 30 other students enrolled in the BSc degree in geophysics programme at the Department of Geosciences were present at the inauguration. Prof Elijah A. Ayolabi, vice chancellor and faculty advisor for the new chapter, Olufemi Oluwole, university registrar, Prof Amos I. Akinwande, dean of the College of Basic and Applied Geosciences, Dr James A. Adeoye, coordinator of the Department of Geosciences, as well as other members of staff were also in attendance. The collaboration with EAGE Local Chapter Nigeria will continue in the new decade, as highlighted during the inauguration, which included a presentation of the benefits of being a student member and a geosciences career talk. The services offered by the Association to the students are in line with the vision and mission of the university in producing graduates with specialized skills and value systems, who will be independent, invariably self-employable and able to impact positively on the development of their communities, Nigerian society and the global community at large. With this mind, the Chapter was officially launched. The student executives include Solomon Omishakin (president) Onimsi Thankgod (vice-president), David Agonjaru (secretary) and Eberechukwu Victor (treasurer).

The Chapter launches.

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What we do for students and what they can do for themselves Claudia Steiner-Luckabauer is co-chair of the EAGE Student Affairs Committee and, in her professional career, principal petrophysicist for the Austrian company HOT Engineering. She has a PhD from Montanuniversitat Leoben, Austria where she was a lecturer for four years. Her work experience also includes three years with Fugro Austria. Here she discusses EAGE’s approach to students and their career challenges and opportunities. What are the main priorities of the Student Affairs Committee? The SAC is a group of people steering and mentoring student activities, together with EAGE and other committees. We aim to bring students and industry closer together. Almost every SAC member works or has worked with students and is very much aware of their needs and requests. It is about creating different activities in which students can get involved. The flagship is of course the Laurie Dake Award. For students who cannot participate in this competition, EAGE offers the meetings of student chapters and other engaging events providing the chance to communicate and network. What are the benefits of forming a student chapter? Would you like to see more? Creating a student chapter is an excellent opportunity to show commitment, responsibility and the willingness to be part of the oil and gas business. If done right, it is an invaluable way to keep the transition between a student’s life and a professional’s life as short and smooth as possible. I wish more students would take this opportunity and see it as a beneficial challenge. How do you convince students that there is a viable career in geosciences applications in the oil industry? It is easy to get the impression that the oil and gas industry is declining and that a lifetime career may not be available. However, energy demand is constantly growing and oil and gas will still play a huge role in supplying energy. A thoughtful use of resources is a positive aspect and everyone can contribute to it. Fact is that the easy oil is gone, fields are mature and we need clever people to develop the remaining resources. Young people are 14

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required more than ever to be part of this new setup. Having spent a good deal of time in the academic environment, have you observed any change in student expectations or concerns? From my point of view I see students more enthusiastic and more focused on the outcome. They know what they want and are grateful for any education beyond the standard textbook equations. I am also all too aware of how media and current political dialogue are influencing the opinion of young people. As much as they are enthusiastic, they are also frustrated and confused by a vision of the future often portrayed as being poor. Here we can intervene and support some of the mental aspects by offering better connectivity to other students and young professionals. Nothing is more helpful than knowing that they are not alone and struggling is a normal process of development. Are women at a disadvantage in the oil business? If so, has the Women in Geoscience special interest community helped to make a difference? The Women in Geoscience Community has done a great job in creating awareness of possibly disadvantaged women and supporting women in uncomfortable situations. But to me, a new mind-set needs to be nurtured. People always base their attitude on their background and on their personal experience. This is fine to a point. But, in my view, the danger is that we are tending to talk women into an inferior position vis a vis their male colleagues. I see this development very critically. It allows an opening for believing that there is something wrong with being female. As

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Claudia Steiner-Luckabauer.

a result, women can go to great lengths to hide any sense of femininity, just to avoid what they perceive as sexist discrimination. Yet I have witnessed women rising to the highest positions in noted companies, just like men. I have seen women taking care of kids and doing a full time job, and men too. Similarly I have seen men disadvantaged in some way at work, and also women. To me career success originates from a commitment to constant self-appraisal and development, physically, mentally and intellectually. I strongly believe that this is true for both women and men. What can students learn from your personal career journey so far? To do the right thing in the right amount of time is a tip I want to share. I struggled in my studies with putting too much pressure on myself. I wanted it all to be perfect in the minimum of time. Such an ambition is exhausting and does not pay off in the long term. I needed to learn to focus my time on task and learn how to recharge. I studied the attitude of successful athletes and discovered that recovery, both physical and mental, is as important as the activity itself. Now I feel I can say that I am more effective than ever.


EAGE NEWS

What do you personally get out of volunteering in the EAGE community? I am volunteering because I believe I can make an impact on people’s life for the better. An organization or company is much more than just the sum of the individuals involved. It should be about creating a positive mind-set with positive people, be it students, professionals or people from individual chapters. It is like playing an instrument in an orchestra, it is about creating something greater than the sum of individual contributions. Balancing work and home is always said to be more challenging for women. What is your view/advice on this? I regard home care as something which just has to be done. It is probably a cliché but men would probably prefer to outsource home care where women normally tend to do it themselves! However, a colleague once told me that he loves ironing the laundry because for him it is a form of meditation. I really agree. For me, an audio book while ironing helps to make the time go and you can learn something at the same time. Is there more that EAGE can do for students? EAGE is already doing a lot and I wish more students would take advantage of what we can offer. I know that there are mentoring programmes helping students to maintain a positive attitude. However, I fear that we see only those students who would have made it anyway by themselves. Those who struggle beforehand, we would probably never identify.

Make your Amsterdam experience complete It’s make up your mind time! At the 82nd EAGE Annual Conference & Exhibition 2020, we have a full programme of workshops, short courses and field trips before and after the main event. Register now and you won’t miss out on the great learning opportunities suitable for members at all stages of their careers.

Monday 8 June

Workshops The workshop programme is designed to complement the conference topics, and to give you the chance to focus on presentations, debates and discussions in the fields of your choice. The purpose of the workshops is to address topics in more depth, but also to give the audience a chance to interact and actively engage with the speakers. The full workshop programme can be found on the EAGE Annual 2020 website eageannual2020.org. Pick and choose from multiple options available on Sunday 7, Monday 8 and Friday 12 June.

Field Trips If you’re looking for some real experience in a relaxed environment, while spending some time outdoors, then the field trips are the perfect choice for you. Kick off your stay in Amsterdam by joining the evening tour of ‘Building Stones in Amsterdam. A Geological Walk’ on Sunday evening. On Monday you can choose between ‘Energy Transition in the Province of North Holland’ and ‘Dinantian Carbonates: A new geothermal play?’. Then you can end your week with a ‘Site Visit to the Open Innovation Centre for Well Technology’. All field trip descriptions are available and bookable online at the EAGE Annual 2020 website.

Short Courses Every year, the EAGE Education Committee chooses several short courses that are a perfect fit with the Technical Programme. This year we bring you three highly relevant short courses presented by accomplished experts in their field. To read more about these short courses, head to our website eageannual2020.org.

Geophysical Monitoring of CO2 Storage - Prof Martin Landrø (NTNU). Friday 12 June

Machine Learning of Geoscientists and Hands-on Coding - Dr Ehsan Naeini (Earth Science Analytics).

Sunday 7 June

Petroleum Exploration Strategy - Jean Jacque Biteau (Total Professor Associate).

Amsterdam is a land of opportunity this June.

The EAGE Student Fund supports activities that help bridge the gap between the university and professional environments for students of geosciences and engineering. Thanks to our Student Fund contributors we can continue supporting students around the globe and through this securing the future of our industry. For more information to become a Student Fund contributor, please visit eagestudentfund.org or contact us at students@eage.org. SUPPORTED BY

SUPPORTED BY

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50 shades of green In what seems like an unequivocal move BP last month announced that within the context of needing to continue supplying the world its intention to become a net zero company by 2050 or sooner. with an essential resource for the foreseeable future, oil compaThe detailed strategy is to be revealed in a capital markets day nies must increasingly focus on respecting the environment in session in September. Under new CEO Bernard Looney, BP is their operations and invest in alternatives to hydrocarbons. It trailing a fundamental reorganization of the company saying that would undoubtedly be helpful if other supermajors came out with change is necessary as ‘the right thing for the world and for BP’. equally forthright statements, especially as some of them have The company is be restructured into four business groups been moving in the same direction as BP in their businesses, or to deliver performance and growth, three integrators to identify are actually farther forward. and maximize opportunities, and four core enablers to support In fact the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OCGI) is a gesbusiness delivery (such as increased advocacy for policies that ture in this direction. Thirteen of the largest and most influential support net zero, including carbon pricing). oil companies in the world have clubbed together to subscribe BP’s dramatic announcement marks a second attempt at over $1 billion. The fund launched in 2014 is investing in innoburnishing its green credentials as an environmentally concerned vative start-ups which can lower the carbon footprints of the supermajor. In 2000 BP Amoco, as it was then, rebranded to energy and industrial sectors and their value chains and make BP – said to stand for ‘Beyond Petroleum’ – with its now familiar use of the OGCI network to help them achieve commercial yellow and green sunburst logo. Not only was this audacious success. move praised in the marketing world. Sir John Browne could also The agenda of OGCI companies includes setting a target to lay claim to being the first leader of Big Oil reduce the collective average methane intento acknowledge the need for decarbonization. sity of their aggregated upstream gas and oil ‘The right thing for Inevitably there was scepticism, for example a operations to below 0.25% by 2025, with the the world and BP’ 1999 article in the The Economist asked ‘How ambition to achieve 0.20%. According to the green is Browne?’ doubting his sincerity. 2018 annual report, starting from a baseline As we all know, things did not go well for BP in subsequent of 0.32% in 2017, reaching the 0.20% target would translate into years. In March 2005 there was an explosion at a Texas refinery greatly reducing their collective methane emissions by more than inherited in the Amoco merger killing 15 workers and injuring one-third – approximately 600,000 tonnes of methane annually – a further 180. This was followed in March 2006 by a huge oil by the end of 2025. pipeline spill associated with the BP Prudhoe Bay operation in The trouble is that initiatives like these are too easily disAlaska. Worse was to come in April 2010. BP, by this time under missed as corporate ‘greenwashing’, for which there is no ready the leadership of Tony Hayward, was found mainly responsible answer. This is partly because ‘green’ itself has become such a for an explosion on board the Deep Horizon drilling rig causing powerful but indefinable term in modern usage. 11 deaths and a catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. So Depending on the context it can usually be taken to mean much for the environment … environmentally friendly, i.e., incontrovertibly good. Hence its If this time BP can be seen to be delivering on its promises, appeal to advocates in the commercial and political sphere. Green it could offer a starting point for a fresh approach to persuading Parties have participated in the cabinet of a number of governthe community at large that oil companies are not such bad guys ments in Europe and elsewhere or been involved in electoral after all. Admittedly this is a long shot. The message should be pacts providing them with influence. A notable if not coincidental

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match the risks. The principle is flawed because it ‘enables peculiarity of the recent general election in Ireland was that all decision-makers to selectively use the approach for political or four of the leading parties have at least partially green logos. policy reasons rather than scientific rationale’. The political evolution of green has meant a much looser A possibly ominous example of how this could play out folconnection to the philosophy of prominent early players in the lows recent research offshore Australia published by McCauley contemporary environmental movement such as Greenpeace et al. (2017). The researchers argue from one small study that and Friends of the Earth. Both these organizations favoured seismic surveys cause previously unacknowledged, significant direct action to draw attention to environmental issues and potential for mortality to zooplankton populations on the ocean change government policies. It is broadly the strategy of today’s bed. True or not, the claim is out there and of course poses a threat Extinction Rebellion that espouses civil disobedience to affect to the conduct of future marine seismic surveys. change. IAGC takes issue with the research methodology but its main In the seismic community, full marks go to the marine seismic argument is that the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management contractor Polarcus. It was possibly ahead of its time when a (BOEM) invested ‘more than $50 million on protected species decade ago it launched its fleet of vessels painted green from bow and noise-related research without finding to stern, effectively appropriating the green label (leaving aside that oceans are normally ‘Green concern found evidence of adverse effects, and the oil and gas industry has contributed a comparable amount thought of as blue). The company’s intention an early distinctive of research funding on this topic as well, with to be recognized as the most forward-thinking seismic vessel operator was clear. The voice with the English the same findings. At least eight studies have demonstrated no effects on plankton at ranges boats also looked pretty cool. It is a moot Romantic poets’ greater than 10-100 m, and no studies have point whether its advertised ‘Explore Green’ demonstrated impacts on plankton abundance sustainable acquisition system has made it a at ecologically meaningful scales.’ The question is whether this preferred operator when it comes to tendering for work. The last response will be enough to convince regulators possibly operating few years have been so bruising for the marine seismic contracton the precautionary principle and/or feeling green pressure from ing market that, regardless of the quality (or colour) of its vessels, their overlords in government. it says a lot that Polarcus has weathered the worst recession in the The land seismic business has been proactive in seeking history of the business. to mitigate potential harm caused by its surveys. This was a More whimsically, in this current issue of First Break, the major motivation for the development of cable-less acquisition latest advertisement from the Australian seismic processing systems. Most spectacularly Total with its partners in the Metis company DUG acknowledges today’s colour hierarchy. It refers project have been exploring drone-based technology to reduce to a full-page image of red machinery as the ‘new green’. The the impact of seismic work in inaccessible or environmentally neat claim is that the plant shown represents the ‘greenest data sensitive areas such as rainforests. (A report on the first EAGE centre on the planet’. conference on the use of drones in geoscience appears in this Marine and land seismic have rightly had to deal with green issue of First Break). issues on many fronts over time, never entirely satisfactorily for Green concern about the need to preserve land and nature the environmental lobby. No need to go into detail here, but the in the face of urban sprawl and industrialisation found an early marine seismic contracting is getting close to being regulated distinctive voice with the English Romantic poets of the lateout of business in some parts of the world. Australia and Brazil 18th century and early 19th century like William Wordsworth, are currently spoken of as the most problematic with numerous John Keats, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Percy Bysshe Shelley, environmental safeguards that have to be complied with. Whether Lord Byron and William Blake. It was Blake in the preface all the protections adopted by countries are necessary is arguable. to his epic poem Milton (1804) who wrote ‘And did those For example the industry has spent millions on research disprovfeet in ancient times’. The words were later put to music by ing some of the more alarmist claims about the impact of seismic Hubert Parry in 1916 to become known as the legendary hymn survey operations on marine mammal life. It is a tough case to Jerusalem contrasting ‘England’s green and pleasant land’ with win in the court of public opinion which is easily persuaded that ‘dark satanic mills’. any loud noise in the ocean is obviously a bad thing. The juxtaposition in those days between hankering for a The International Association of Geophysical Contractors quite probably mythical pastoral life of peace and wellbeing and (IAGC) believes that the precautionary principle is increasingly condemning of the brutality of life in the new industrial towns is being adopted by government agencies as a basis for regulation usually interpreted as a reaction to the so-called Age of Enlightin relation to environmental policy. It says that when the actual enment and triumph of rational thinking, science and engineering. or potential risks of a particular activity are unclear or unknown, The championing of green today has some uncanny parallels. regulators often propose and implement policies which do not

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

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Well count shows big rise in exploration

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Shearwater wins contracts offshore India

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TGS launches 3D survey offshore Senegal

Equinor strengthens carbon cutting targets

Eldar Sætre, Equinor CEO.

Equinor has published plans to cut net carbon intensity of energy produced by at least 50% by 2050; grow renewable energy capacity tenfold by 2026; and establish carbon neutral global operations by 2030. ‘It is a good business strategy to ensure competitiveness and drive change towards a low carbon future, based on a strong commitment to value creation for our shareholders,’ said Eldar Sætre, president and CEO of Equinor. ‘We are now looking 30 years into the future, and it is not possible to predict an exact shape and pace of the transition. But we know there will have to be significant changes in the energy markets, and our portfolio will change accordingly to remain competitive. We will produce less oil in a low carbon future, but value creation from oil and gas will still be high, and renewables give significant new opportunities to create attractive returns and growth.’

The ambition to reduce net carbon intensity by at least 50% by 2050 takes into account scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, from initial production to final consumption. By 2050 each unit of energy produced will, on average, have less than half of the emissions compared to today. The ambition is expected to be met primarily through significant growth in renewables and changes in the scale and composition of the oil and gas portfolio. Operational efficiency, CCUS and hydrogen will also be important, and recognised offset mechanisms may be used as a supplement. In 2026, Equinor expects a production capacity from renewable projects of 4 to 6 GW. This is around 10 times higher than today’s capacity, implying an annual average growth rate of more than 30%. Towards 2035, Equinor expects to increase installed renewables capacity further to 12 to 16 GW. Meanwhile, carbon efficient production of oil and gas will increasingly be a competitive advantage. In January 2020, Equinor announced ambitions to reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions from its operated offshore fields and onshore plants in Norway by 40% by 2030, 70% by 2040 and towards near zero by 2050. The ambition can be realized through electrification projects, energy efficiency measures and new value chains such as carbon capture and storage and hydrogen. Sætre said: ‘As a pioneer in CCUS, Equinor is engaged in building a European FIRST

value chain, capturing and storing CO2 from third-party industrial sites. This, combined with a strong position within natural gas, makes Equinor prepared for future growth in hydrogen, which offers large-scale opportunities for zero emission energy.’ Equinor is aiming to reduce the CO2 intensity of its globally operated oil and gas production to below 8 kg per barrel of oil equivalent by 2025, five years earlier than the previous ambition. The current global industry average is 18 kg CO2 per barrel. It is also setting a new ambition to reach carbon neutral global operations by 2030. Remaining emissions will be compensated through quota trading systems, such as EU ETS, or offset mechanisms, in support of carbon pricing and carbon market mechanisms outlined in the Paris Agreement. Equinor’s said its low methane emissions are industry leading at around 10% of the global industry average. The company aims to keep methane emissions at near zero and to eliminate routine flaring before 2030. ‘We are developing as a broad energy company, leveraging the strong synergies between oil, gas, renewables, CCUS and hydrogen. But, we can and will do much more. As part of the energy industry, we must be part of the solution to combat climate change and address decarbonization,’ Sætre said. BREAK

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Searcher launches extensive offshore Peru dataset Searcher Seismic has completed its Offshore Peru OpenSeis 2D and 3D seismic dataset as part of its Offshore Peru multi-client campaign. The Offshore Peru OpenSeis Seismic Dataset consists of 2D and 3D vintage seismic data which has been rectified in a post-stack reprocessing method. The data package comprises of 44,389 km of 2D and 15,526 km2 of 3D seismic data along the coast of Peru. ‘Offshore Peru offers high impact, moderate risk exploration in shallow water, with high prospectivity in mul-

OpenSeis dataset consists of 19 rectified and merged 2D seismic surveys and 21 rectified and merged 3D seismic surveys. The regional Offshore Peru OpenSeis 2D and 3D aims to provide a much-improved, consistent, regional grid covering the offshore basins of Peru, with multiple vintages tying as many wells, leads and prospects as possible. The rectified Offshore Peru OpenSeis 2D and 3D seismic data is also loaded and hosted on Searcher’s multi-client platform, SaismicTM, which

The data package comprises 44,000 km of 2D data and 15,000 km2 of 3D data.

tiple, unexplored basins, supported by Perupetro which is welcoming foreign investment,’ said Searcher in a statement. ‘The Offshore Peru OpenSeis Dataset is an invaluable tool for both preliminary and ongoing evaluations of regional prospectivity.’ Searcher has applied its proprietary OpenSeis post-stack reprocessing method to the Peruvian database to rectify navigation, metadata, amplitude, phase and time to create a contiguous database that can be easily loaded into any interpretation software. The resulting Offshore Peru

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offers seismic data as a service (DaaS) with support for deep learning and advanced analytics. The Saismic GIS web portal has traditional functionalities of ingestion, online viewing and export to SEGY functions and offers a global collection of rectified open-file seismic data. Offshore Peru already has a proven prolific oil play and prospectivity within multiple basins containing both thick reservoir seal pairs and a rich array of structural traps. Hydrocarbon fields both on and offshore along the north coast in the Tumbes-Progreso

2020

and Talara extensional basins currently contribute more than 1.8 billion barrels of domestic oil production. To the south of these producing fields lie five additional offshore basins where little to no exploration activity has been undertaken to date. With only four exploration wells, the Trujillo and Salaverry Basins have proven source and the Lobos-1 and Morsa North-1 exploration wells encountered significant oil shows during drilling. Hydrocarbon samples recovered from natural slicks on the sea surface demonstrate the existence and veracity of active petroleum systems within these basins. Numerous large undrilled structures in a variety of trap types have been identified on legacy seismic data that have been recently rectified by Searcher. The Lima and Pisco basins are interpreted as strike slip (pull-apart) basins with significant extensional horst and graben structures present. Geological and geophysical studies carried out on just under 50 samples collected for geochemical analysis indicate that the Carboniferous Ambo Group is likely to be one of the main source rocks within these basins, with Eocene and Oligocene sandstones being proven reservoirs onshore and therefore interpreted to be effective reservoirs offshore as well. To the south, no exploration wells have been drilled to date in the Mollendo basin. This frontier basin comprises a long narrow forearc basin located mostly on the continental slope. Asphalt layers encountered onshore in Lower and Middle Jurassic formations indicate the presence of potential source rocks which extend offshore. Even with limitations of the available offset information multiple leads have been identified on Searcher’s rectified seismic dataset, suggesting that the Mollendo Basin may yet prove to be the dark horse of Peruvian exploration.


INDUSTRY NEWS

Rex Tillerson questions action on climate change

Rex Tillerson.

Rex Tillerson, the former US secretary of state under President Donald Trump and ex-chief executive officer of ExxonMobil, has told an industry conference in Houston that he questions whether there is anything humans can do to combat climate change. ‘With respect to our ability to influence it, I think that’s still an open question,’ Tillerson told the Argus Americas Crude Summit. ‘Our belief in the ability to influence it is based on some very, very complicated climate models that have very wide outcomes.’ Tillerson’s comments come less than a month after New York’s attorney general said she would not appeal a court ruling rejecting the state’s claim that Exxon misled investors for years about its internal

ModelVision

planning for risks associated with climate change. Within weeks of his promotion to CEO in 2006, Tillerson acknowledged the threat from climate change and the need for alternative fuels to reduce greenhouse gases. However, he was an opponent of climate-friendly shareholder resolutions and carbon cap-and-trade systems. He also was a leading proponent of fracking. Tillerson told the summit that he had believed for a long time that climate change ‘is a very serious matter’. However, scientists should be allowed to continue their work on global warming without fear that their funding will be cut off if they come to ‘the wrong conclusion’, he added. He went on to say that the goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) is ‘fine’, but that modelling the impact of certain mitigation efforts on temperatures is more complicated. ‘Whether or not anything we do will ultimately influence it remains to be seen. One day we’ll know the answer to that, but our ability to predict the answer to that is quite complicated.’

Magnetic & Gravity Interpretation System All sensors Processing 3D modelling 3D inversion Visualisation Analysis Utilities

Minerals Petroleum Near Surface Government Contracting Consulting Education

TGS starts two big onshore surveys in North America TGS has started acquisition of the Plains 3D seismic survey in the Northern Shelf area of the Midland Basin in Texas and the Ravenclaw 3D survey in the Edson area of Alberta, Canada. Located in Yoakum County, Texas, the Plains 3D is a 248 km2 survey that expands TGS’ 3D seismic offerings in the Permian Basin. It encompasses a portion of Wasson Field which has produced more than 2 billion bbls since the 1930s. This new survey will aid in applying modern horizontal drilling methods to formations, such as the San Andres, which were historically drilled vertically and underwent secondary recovery CO2 flooding.

Ravenclaw 3D is a 100 km2 survey in West Central Alberta, Canada, which will help operators to derisk Lower Cretaceous plays. Multi-zone play potential exists in other historically hydrocarbon-producing formations including Rock Creek, Cardium and Ellerslie. Acquisition and completion of the project will occur in the first quarter of 2020. Both modern high-resolution 3D surveys further TGS’ leading onshore seismic data offerings in North America, said TGS CEO Kristian Johansen, who added that along with TGS’ extensive well data library, operators will have access to comprehensive data coverage from which to enhance their exploration efforts. FIRST

Tensor Research support@tensor-research.com.au www.tensor-research.com.au Tel:

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Fugro completes seep hunting study offshore Colombia

Fugro and the Colombian Maritime Authority (Dirección General Maritima,

DIMAR) have completed a joint environmental seep hunting study to help assess the country’s resource potential in the Caribbean Sea. The study involved shallow water seabed sediment coring, geochemical analyses, and seabed heat flow measurements. Fugro also provided classroom and vessel-based training to DIMAR personnel. The field programme was conducted in two phases onboard DIMAR’s new multipurpose hydrographic vessel, ARC

Roncador. Fugro provided two self-contained laboratories and a heat flow probe. Fugro claimed that the ability to perform preliminary geochemical analyses at sea is unique to the company and results in the rapid identification of high-potential cores. ‘This service can significantly reduce project delivery schedules: on this DIMAR project, our offshore analyses shortened the project by some two months,’ said Fugro in a statement.

ION Geophysical reports fourth quarter loss of -$14.5 million after data deals fail to close ION Geophysical has reported a 2019 fourth quarter net loss of -$14.5 million on revenues of $42.7 million compared with a fourth quarter 2018 net loss of -$19.3 million on revenues of $74.6 million one year ago. Excluding special items, the company reported a Q4 2019 adjusted net loss of -$5.7 million compared with an adjusted net income of $15.3 million in the fourth quarter 2018. For the full year 2019, ION reported revenues of $174.7 million, a 3% decrease compared to revenues of $180 million one year ago. ION’s full year 2019 net loss was -$48.2 million compared to a net loss of -$71.2 million in 2018. Chris Usher, ION president and chief executive officer, said: ‘Our fourth quarter financial results were quite disappointing, primarily because we were not able to launch multiple new acquisition multi-client programmes and close several data library deals in our pipeline. Tighter E&P budgetary controls and lower oil prices subdued year-end spending such that several material deals, in the order of tens of millions of dollars, were not completed prior to year-end. ‘We restructured our E&P Technology & Services segment to reflect our shift in 22

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multi-client strategy to include new 3D acquisition, and implemented a significant cost reduction programme. We reorganized our new ventures sales organization to accelerate our entry into the 3D new acquisition multi-client market, bringing our projects closer to the reservoir, where capital investment tends to be more consistent and programmes have larger-scale revenue and earnings potential. ION has rapidly grown our 3D library from almost nothing to 350,000 km2 of seamlessly integrated reimaged data over the last few years, which has led to a pipeline of opportunities for new 3D towed streamer or seabed programmes we have not seen before. ‘Offshore is picking up and we see material activity among our client base to rebalance portfolios and maximize value, which drives related data sales opportunities to fill customer knowledge gaps.’ Net cash flows from operations were $14.8 million during the fourth quarter of 2019. At 31 December, 2019, the company had total liquidity of $72.4 million, consisting of $33.1 million of cash on hand, and $39.3 million of available borrowing capacity. Fourth quarter E&P Technology & Services revenue of $29.7 million was

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down on £60.4 million in Q4 2018. Multi-client revenues were $23.6 million, a decrease of 57%. Imaging Services revenues were $6.1 million, a 14% increase. Imaging Services’ backlog is more than double that of one year ago. Operations Optimization revenues were $13 million, down from $14.1 million in Q4 2018. Software & Services revenues were $5.5 million, a 9% decline from the fourth quarter 2018. Devices revenues were $7.5 million, an 8% decline. Operating expenses were $15.1 million, compared to $54.5 million in the fourth quarter 2018. For the full year of 2019, E&P Technology & Services revenue was $125.6 million compared to $136.5 million in 2018. Multi-client revenues were $103 million, a decrease of 12%. Imaging Services revenues were $22.5 million, up 14%. Full year Operations Optimization revenues were $49.1 million compared to $43.5 million in 2018. Software & Services revenues were $23.1 million, up 10% from 2018. Devices revenues were $26 million, up 16% on 2018. Consolidated operating expenses were $84.5 million, compared to $113.9 million in 2018.


INDUSTRY NEWS

Well count shows big rise in exploration The global well count of 91 in 2019 is up 36% on 2018 according to research by Westwood Global Energy. Drilling spend was flat at $3.5 billion, however, as average well costs fell. Discovered commercial volume was the highest since 2015 at around 13 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) from the 27 high impact discoveries announced so far. The commercial success rate was at a 10-year high of 32%. This level of activity looks likely to be sustained through 2020, said Westwood. Some 77% of total estimated 13 billion boe discovered was gas. The two biggest oil discoveries were both in the Exxon-operated Stabroek licence in Guyana. North West Europe topped the charts for high impact drilling globally. ‘This was extraordinary given the maturity of the plays in the UK and Norway,’ said Westwood. ‘Unfortunately, and some would say predictably, only two high impact discoveries resulted from the 27 well programme – Glengorm in the UK and Liatårnet in Norway – a success rate of only 7%. Two wells are still drilling and could yet deliver discoveries, but the low discovery rate should cause pause for thought and the high impact well count should drop in 2020.’ Guyana topped the oil discovery charts again in 2019 with the Liza field coming onstream in December. The five commercial discoveries in 2019 bring the total so far to 14. The industry will continue to try to push the boundaries of the play beyond the Stabroek licence into both shallower and deeper Guyanese waters, said Westwood. The significant Maka Central discovery operated by Apache and announced in Jan-

uary 2020 looks to be the first commercial discovery outside of Stabroek, extending the play into neighbouring Suriname. In Mexico, the five high-impact exploration wells completed by international oil companies in 2019 failed to deliver a commercial discovery (with one still drilling). ‘In 2020 it should become clearer whether Mexico will deliver the bounty that IOCs hoped for with at least 10 wells operated by seven different IOCs testing over 2.5 billion barrels of unrisked prospective volume in a range of frontier and emerging plays. The geology is complex and mixed results can be expected,’ said Westwood. In Brazil one high impact well is currently drilling and seven wells are planned for 2020 in recently awarded licences testing 6 billion barrels of unrisked volume in pre-salt plays in the Santos and Campos basins, and the Ceara Basin. The much anticipated Peroba well drilled in 2019 by BP, for which a $598 million signature bonus was paid in the 2017 bid round, is understood to have found high CO2 content gas and is considered non-commercial, said Westwood. In Africa, 14 wells were completed in 2019 but commercial success rates were high at 57% with more than 3 billion boe discovered of which around 80% was gas. There were high impact discoveries in Senegal, Mauritania, Nigeria, Angola and Ghana. In 2020, a similar number of high impact wells are expected spread across 10 countries with potentially six frontier play tests in Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Namibia and Gabon. In the emerging gas plays of the Eastern Mediterranean there were six wells

drilled and two commercial discoveries delivering 5 tcf. Five wells testing 16 tcf of gas are planned in 2020 including Total’s Byblos-1 well offshore Lebanon. Drilling in Australasia is set to pick up in 2020 after a quiet 2019. In 2020 high impact drilling is mainly about gas with wells planned in Australia, New Zealand, Papa New Guinea and Timor Leste testing more than 10 tcf of gas most of which are testing frontier plays. South East Asia was quiet in 2019 with just three high impact wells and two high impact discoveries in Indonesia and Malaysia discovering 5 tcf of gas.

Based on current plans it looks like high impact drilling could be at a similar level in 2020, but with a shift of focus to North and South America. Westwood estimated that industry drilling plans are weighted 70/30 oil to gas. The four most active companies in 2020 are expected to be Total, Equinor, Shell and Eni, each participating in 14 or more high impact wells.

Cameroon tenders onshore 3D survey The government of Cameroon has launched an Open International Invitation to Tender (AOIO) to select a company to carry out a four-month feasibility study for a 3D seismic acquisition of the onshore Douala/Kribi-Campo basin.

Bids were due to be submitted by 6 March 2020. The survey to be commissioned by Cameroon’s National Hydrocarbons Corporation (SNH) will provide seismic data on nine blocks, which are being promoted by the SNH. They

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are: Ndian River, Bolongo Exploration and Bakassi in the Rio Del Rey basin (RDR); and Etinde Exploration, Ntem, Elombo, Tilapia, Bomono and Kombe-N’sepe in the highly prospective Doula/Kribi Campo basin (DKC).

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Shearwater wins contracts offshore India Shearwater GeoServices has won two contracts to carry out surveys offshore India in the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal to add to its growing roster of work in the region. The company is shooting a 3D broadband marine seismic acquisition

campaign for ONGC in western offshore India. The project is scheduled to commence in Q1 2020. The four-month survey covers 2000 km2 of 3D data in a shallow-water area of the Arabian Sea. The contract award follows last month’s announcement

Polar Duchess will acquire data in the Bay of Bengal in Q2.

PGS plans surveys to support Norway APAs PGS is planning new seismic surveys in the Barents Sea, Norwegian Sea, Viking Graben and Central Graben to support companies with work commitments after winning licences in the recent Awards in Predefined Areas (APA) announced in January 2020. The company said that it already has extensive data library coverage over areas awarded in the licensing round and is also planning new studies to address a variety of APA work programme commitments, with existing library data, new acquisition, imaging, G&G analysis, and rock physics. New production licences for 69 areas on the Norwegian Continental Shelf were offered to 28 companies in the APA 2019 round. ‘We have good coverage in the APA awarded areas, with opportunities to grow the recent GeoStreamer X acquisition, opening up prospects in this area with improved illumination and data quality,’ said Gunhild Myhr, VP new ventures at PGS. ‘Modern GeoStreamer multisensor data, preprocessed and imaged using the latest technology and tailored workflows will make it easier to find nearfield potential, spot hidden targets, rank, and derisk exploration in mature areas,’ he added.

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of a combined 2D and 3D broadband marine seismic survey for ONGC off the east coast of India. The company has also been awarded a 3D broadband marine seismic acquisition contract by Reliance Industries in the Bay of Bengal, India. The project is scheduled to commence in Q2 2020. The survey covers 1500 km2 of block KG-UDWHP-2018/1 in the Krishna-Godavari basin and will be executed by the vessel Polar Duchess using a dual source design. ‘We are pleased to receive these awards in India, including Reliance as a new customer,’ said Irene Waage Basili, CEO of Shearwater GeoServices. ‘This is the third contract we have won in India in recent weeks. As we continue to build our position in India, we expect increased utilization for our fleet in Asia supported by short transits between contracts.’

ION reprocesses offshore Colombia data ION Geophysical has signed a multi-client agreement with Colombia’s National Hydrocarbon Agency, the ANH, granting rights to reprocess existing data and acquire new 2D and 3D multi-client programmes offshore Colombia’s Caribbean coast. Last year the ANH announced reforms to encourage investment in exploration and production, such as a permanent licensing round and a more attractive tax regime. The reprocessed data is intended to enable better understanding of hydrocarbon potential and investment opportunities of underexplored shallow and deep-water offshore blocks on offer, said ION. ‘We are continuing to extract maximum value from existing datasets by seamlessly reimaging them into a single volume, tying all available well data and then supplementing with new data where necessary,’ said Joe Gagliardi, senior vice president of ION’s Ventures group. ‘The combination of Colombia’s new permanent licensing round and improved legislative terms are causing E&P companies to take a second look at Colombia’s offshore frontier. Analysis to date suggests several established petroleum systems offshore that we believe are worth better understanding.’


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INDUSTRY NEWS

Rystad Energy research shows upsurge in deepwater exploration

Demand for deep-water drilling facilities are set to rise further in 2020.

Oil majors have boosted demand for floating drilling units as deepwater drilling takes off, according to research from Rystad Energy. The independent energy research and business intelligence company revealed that demand from the world’s top oil

companies for these units has climbed steadily in the past two years and noted that it is set to rise further through 2020 and 2021 as majors step up exploration activity in deepwater basins. Floater demand surged from around 50 contract years in 2010 to peak at

about 80 contract years in 2014, according to Rystad, which highlighted that the oil price slump caused majors to scale back floater contract commitments to less than 35 contract years in 2017. Since then, ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, Chevron, Total and Eni have steadily increased deepwater contracting activity, having added almost 10 contract years since 2017, Rystad revealed. Meanwhile, Rystad’s head of upstream research, Espen Erlingsen, said that global public E&P company offshore free cash flow in 2019 was the third best year on record at nearly $90 billion. This figure reached $107.6 billion in 2018 and $53.9 billion in 2017, $2.3 billion in 2016, -$14.6 billion in 2015, $27.4 billion in 2014, $33.5 billion in 2013, $59.1 billion in 2012, $92.3 billion in 2011 and $61.2 billion in 2010, according to Rystad data. Total offshore capital expenditure grew by 5% last year versus 2018, with a 7% rise in deep-water spending and a 3% boost in investments on the continental shelf, Erlingsen noted. For 2020, offshore investments are on track to grow 8%, with deepwater up 12% and shelf spending up 2%, he added.

PGS launches 3D survey offshore Malaysia ahead of licensing round PGS has launched the offshore Sabah MC3D programme covering key areas of the 2020 Malaysia Licensing Round. More than 47,000 km2 of high-resolution 3D data in the Sabah offshore area is available, covering new opportunities near established plays in a highly prospective hydrocarbon province. Block SB-2T on the 2020 bid round is almost entirely covered by the Sabah MC3D survey. The block lies in the proven fold and thrust belt and is surrounded by producing oil and gas fields. Exploration targets in this area include 26

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Plio-Miocene turbidite sands trapped in anticlines and stratigraphic pinch outs. The PGS Sabah multi-sensor AVO compliant dataset can to help to derisk and identify these clastic reservoir targets, said PGS. ‘For companies interested in the Sabah Basin block SB-2T this high-quality dataset will both improve understanding of the regional petroleum systems and also allow prospect scale AVO analysis of prospects and leads,’ said Tad Choi, PGS’ sales and new ventures manager, Asia.

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Energy-related emissions stopped growing in 2019 says IEA Despite widespread expectations of another increase, global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions stopped growing in 2019, according to the International Energy Agency. After two years of growth, global emissions were unchanged at 33 gigatonnes in 2019 even as the world economy expanded by 2.9%. This was primarily due to declining emissions from electricity generation in advanced economies, thanks to the expanding role of renewable sources (mainly wind and solar), fuel switching from coal to natural gas, and higher nuclear power generation. ‘We now need to work hard to make sure that 2019 is remembered as a definitive peak in global emissions, not just another pause in growth,’ said Dr Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director. ‘We have the energy technologies to do this, and we have to make use of them all. The IEA is building a grand coalition focused on reducing emissions – encompassing governments, companies, investors and everyone with a genuine commitment to tackling our climate challenge.’

The US recorded the largest emissions decline with a fall of 140 million tonnes, or 2.9%. US emissions are now down by almost 1 gigatonne from their peak in 2000. Emissions in the European Union fell by 160 million tonnes, or 5%, in 2019 driven by reductions in the power sector. Natural gas produced more electricity than coal for the first time ever while wind-powered electricity nearly caught up with coal-fired electricity. Japan’s emissions fell by 45 million tonnes, or around 4%, the fastest pace of decline since 2009 as output from recently restarted nuclear reactors increased. Emissions in the rest of the world grew by close to 400 million tonnes in 2019, with almost 80% of the increase coming from countries in Asia where coal-fired power generation continued to rise. ‘This welcome halt in emissions growth is grounds for optimism that we can tackle the climate challenge this decade,’ said Dr Birol. To support these objectives, the IEA will publish a World Energy Outlook Special Report in June that will map out

how to cut global energy-related carbon emissions by one-third by 2030 and put the world on track for longer-term climate goals. The agency will also hold an IEA Clean Energy Transitions Summit in Paris on 9 July, bringing together key government ministers and CEOs with the aim of accelerating the pace of change through ambitious and real-world solutions.

Emissions from power generation are lower.

New study will identify best UK sites for carbon capture A new study by Heriot-Watt University in Scotland will help to identify the UK’s best sites for carbon storage. The gas fields of the southern North Sea are the focus of the study, which has received funding from the Oil and Gas Technology Centre (OGTC) and support from the UK Oil and Gas Authority (OGA), offshore operators and data owners. Professor John Underhill of Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh believes the southern North Sea is one of the most promising options for large-scale carbon capture and storage in the UK. ‘The Southern North Sea faces three of the UK’s largest carbon emission areas: the industrial hubs of Teesside, Humberside and the Thames estuary. It

also has a number of depleted gas fields that could be repurposed to store carbon. We are going to systematically examine the geology of these sites and determine which critical factors allow carbon to be safely stored over long, geological timescales,’ he said. The team will explore the potential of other sites by mapping the geological features and their carbon storage potential. Any potential leakage points will be identified. Accurate mapping of the overburden will be used to develop mitigation strategies and early warning systems for any carbon escape or seepage. The team will use data from the OGA’s National Data Repository (NDR), one of the largest-ever single open releases of field and infrastructure data from FIRST

the UK’s oil and gas industry, which was made freely available for the first time in 2019. Professor John Underhill added: ‘If we are to reach net zero targets we must make serious progress in carbon capture and storage. We need to identify the best sites based on their geology and evaluate the risk of leakage, so that we select the right sites, in the most logical order, and understand the total volume of carbon that could be stored. We must do this correctly and on a large scale. We won’t get a second chance to get this right, as all credibility will be lost if leakage takes place from a poorly-selected site.’ The Heriot-Watt team is currently recruiting two research associates to join the team. BREAK

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Exploration round-up Eni has reported start-up of its offshore Agogo oil field, situated in the 15/06 Block offshore Angola, just nine months after its discovery. Equinor has won consent to drill a well in Block 30/2 in the North Sea. It will drill in production licence PL 878 northwest of the Huldra field. BP has spudded its first exploration well on the Shafag-Asiman offshore block in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea. Vintage Energy has discovered gas in the Patchawarra Formation in Australia. Vali-1 ST1 reached a TD of 3217 m. Analysis of the data gathered indicated a discovery of more than 35 m of interpreted log net gas pay.

GeoPark has announced the discovery of the Jauke Oeste gas field in the Fell block in Chile. The Jauke Oeste 1 exploration well had an average production rate of 4.4 million standard cubic feet per day of gas (729 boepd) and 52 bopd of condensate. BP and Shell have announced encouraging early production from the Alligin field in the west of Shetland region, offshore UK, reaching 15,000 barrels gross of oil equivalent a day at peak since start-up in late December. ExxonMobil has made a further oil discovery in Guyana northeast of the producing Liza field at the Uaru exploration well, the 16th discovery on the Stabroek Block.

Eni has announced a gas and condensate discovery in the Mahani exploration prospect located onshore in the Area B Concession of Sharjah (UAE). The Mahani-1 was drilled to a total of 14,597 feet measured depth and encountered a thick gas-bearing limestone reservoir in the Thamama of Lower Cretaceous age. Iran’s Petropars will develop phase 11 of South Pars, the world’s largest gas field, after the withdrawal of Total and the China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC). Neptune Energy has signed an exploration licence with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) for the North West El Amal Offshore Concession in the Gulf of Suez, thereby growing its presence in North Africa.

CGG launches offshore Mozambique dataset

CGG’s final 3D PSDM seismic dataset from its recent 15,400 km2 multi-client survey of the outer Zambezi Delta in the Mozambique Basin is now available for licence.

The ultramodern data was acquired over Blocks Z5-C and Z5-D and surrounding open acreage as part of a multi-client programme agreed between CGG and Mozambique’s Instituto Nacional de Petroleo (INP). The final PSDM data identifies key stratigraphic intervals for a better understanding of the petroleum system and, in conjunction with the high-resolution gravity and magnetic data, brings new information on the basin morphology and its evolution. CGG said that its advanced imaging workflow, including full-waveform inversion (FWI), reveals a high level

of detail in this complex geological setting, such as the complex deep marine turbiditic system and associated frontal splays, and the complex faulting pattern and internal architecture of the Beira High. Along with the PSDM seismic data, CGG is offering an integrated geoscience analysis of all the regional data available. Set in a geological context, data from 11 wells has been analysed in detail alongside the new seismic interpretation which was supported by hydrocarbon seep identification, high-resolution potential fields data and Robertson multi-client geological data sets.

Industry risks losing social licence warns UK OGA chairman The chairman of the UK Oil and Gas Authority has claimed that the oil and gas industry’s ‘social licence to operate’ is under serious threat. Tim Eggar said that there will be ‘no scope for a second chance’, adding that the industry must do more to help solve the challenges of climate change and the drive to net zero.

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Addressing a group of senior industry leaders at a meeting of the MER UK Steering Group in Aberdeen on 15 January, Eggar called on industry to act much faster and go farther in reducing its carbon footprint. Ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) climate

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conference in Glasgow later this year, he suggested industry would need to commit to clear measurable greenhouse gas targets, with real progress on methane; progress on carbon capture and storage, including work having started on major projects; and measurable progress on energy integration opportunities.


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INDUSTRY NEWS

Fugro starts geotechnical study offshore Cambodia Fugro has won a geotechnical contract for KrisEnergy’s Apsara oilfield in Block A, offshore Cambodia, as part of the nation’s first hydrocarbon development. Fugro will carry out a geotechnical investigation to support the design and installation phases of the Apsara Mini Phase 1A development. The work will be performed using its dedicated drill ship, the Fugro Mariner, and will comprise shallow gas pilot-hole drilling, and

geotechnical sample boreholes and cone penetration tests. ‘Our involvement in the Block A exploration goes back to 2006, when we supported the drilling of the initial exploration wells,’ said Jerry Paisley, Fugro’s business line director, Asia Pacific Region. ‘Part of our success is owed to our ‘Triple A’ approach, where we acquire, analyse and advise on Geo-data across the full project life cycle’.

TGS initiates 3D survey offshore Senegal

UK Oil and Gas Authority launches mediation pilot

TGS is acquiring a 3D survey offshore Senegal to support the country’s first offshore licensing round, which was launched last month. The company is partnering with GeoPartners on a 3D seismic acquisition to acquire additional regional data so that interested parties can gain greater subsurface understanding ahead of bid submissions. This latest standalone survey (SN-UDO-19) in northern Senegal is an extension of the recently completed SS-UDO-19 3D acquisition in southern Senegal. The survey has been designed to illuminate plays in ultra-deep water, enabling explorers to build on the success the basin has experienced with the Sangomar field, the GTA complex and Yakaar discoveries. The SN-UDO-19 survey is more than 70% complete, with fast track data available during the second quarter of 2020. The full dataset will be available by Q4 2020. The National Oil Company of Senegal, Petrosen, is offering 12 blocks in the MSGBC Basin, offshore Senegal. Final applications must be delivered to the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy on 31 July, 2020. TGS said that it also holds a range of data across this acreage, including 2D seismic, 3D seismic, multibeam and seafloor sampling solutions.

The UK Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) has launched a year-long ‘UKCS Mediation Pilot’ which aims to test the extent to which mediation can resolve disputes between oil and gas licensees, operators and infrastructure owners in the UK Continental Shelf. ‘The OGA has found that disputes have generally arisen due to entrenched licensee behaviours or communication breakdowns. They can be costly and time consuming for the companies involved, as well as threatening the delivery of MER UK,’ the authority said in a statement. ‘While the OGA has a number of formal powers which can be used to resolve disputes, some matters could be better addressed by the parties themselves through mediation,’ it added. During the mediation pilot, the OGA may ask the parties involved in a dispute to proceed to mediation. If the parties agree to mediate, the OGA will refer them to the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR). If after the mediation the parties still remain in dispute, then the OGA may, either at the request of one of the parties or on its own initiative, resolve the dispute using its formal dispute resolution powers.

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Vladimir Lavie, senior geophysicist for KrisEnergy, said: ‘We’ve already completed our geophysical surveys, and Fugro’s geotechnical investigation will provide the final set of geomechanical information needed to derisk the design, installation and operation of our project.’ The Apsara field lies over the Khmer Basin, an unproduced geological basin in Cambodian waters in the Gulf of Thailand.

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The Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Guinea Conakry (MSGBC) Basin which stretches along the West African coast is home to several recent high-profile oil and gas discoveries, both on and off the shelf. The palaeo shelf-edge carbonate trend, extending south of the Sangomar field has led many explorers to the region. Rune Eng, executive vice-president, Southern Hemisphere at TGS, said: ‘The launch of Senegal’s landmark licensing round is a seminal moment in the nation’s hydrocarbon history. TGS is delighted to be able to support this initiative with a full complement of regional data sets that should help E&P companies to de-risk their exploration activities as they seek to take advantage of a world-renowned oil and gas basin.’


INDUSTRY NEWS

CGG and Fairfield team up for multiclient surveys in Permian Basin CGG and Fairfield Geotechnologies have signed a second cooperation agreement to acquire a series of large-scale, high-density, multi-client surveys in the Central Basin Platform (CBP) of the Permian Basin in West Texas. The new wide-azimuth datasets will provide a better understanding of the structural complexity of the transition between the CBP and surrounding basins to enhance industry drilling efforts. The CBP is a tectonically uplifted geological structure that separates the deep Delaware Basin and the shallower Midland Basin, which, together, make up the greater Permian Basin of West Texas. The CGG/Fairfield agreement area covers approx. 16,835 km2 across several counties, including Gaines, Andrews, Ector, Crane and Upton County.

TGS buys seismic datasets from Alaska’s North Slope

TGS will shoot additional surveys in Alaska in 2020.

TGS has completed the purchase of four 3D seismic surveys in the North Slope region of Alaska and plans to shoot additional seismic surveys in the area in 2020. The newly acquired seismic programmes provide modern high-resolution imaging which encompass 1606 km2 with an additional 632 km2 to be acquired in 2020. The surveys, which advance TGS’ effort to expand into active frontier basins, are further complemented by TGS’ extensive well data library. The North Slope of Alaska is a prolific oil and gas producing region

with more than 17 billion barrels produced since the 1960s. Onshore and near-shore discoveries have proven reserves in structural and stratigraphic traps in numerous formations ranging in age from the Mississippian Endicott Group to the Oligocene Franklin Bluffs Member. Recent discoveries in the Cretaceous topsets of the Nanushuk formation have revitalized exploration efforts in the Western North Slope and provided analogues for additional similar stratigraphic discoveries in the Eastern North Slope.

Neptune develops AI seismic data interpretation Neptune Energy is developing new tools to scan and interpret vast quantities of seismic data, significantly reducing the time spent by geoscientists on administrative work and preparation. The company is also testing new digital workstations provided by Cegal. The workstations are hosted on Microsoft Azure’s cloud infrastructure and make use of technology from Bluware which enables artificial intelligence and machine learning to interpret huge volumes of data. This would create a global data hub for Neptune’s teams around the world to collaborate and access, share and analyse vast quantities of geological data, enabling them to pool their resources and experience. Neptune’s VP exploration and development, Gro Haatvedt, said: ‘Vast

amounts of data, often stuck in multiple silos around the world, must be reviewed and interpreted before a single well can be drilled. At the same time, we employ incredibly intelligent geoscientists and exploration teams who have to spend

much of their time on administrative work. Our digital subsurface approach will provide tools and platforms for our teams to access data quickly, allowing them to focus their time on delivering insights and results.’

The new tool will cut time spent by geoscientists on preparation of data.

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INDUSTRY NEWS

PGS starts 3D survey offshore Papa New Guinea PGS started the Painimaut 3D multi-client programme offshore Papua New Guinea in early February. The 60-day survey is being acquired by the PGS vessel Ramform Hyperion, which is 104-m long with an aft beam

of 70 m. The vessel will be towing a 12 x 8 km x 150 m streamer configuration with a triple-source. The survey will provide modern 3D data over held and vacant acreage in the frontier Papuan Basin. Fast-track 3D data

over Phase 1 will be available end of April 2020. PGS said that the survey will mark the first time a Ramform Titan-class vessel has acquired data offshore Papa New Guinea.

IOCs results round-up Schlumberger has reported fourth-quarter revenue of $8.2 billion, down 4% sequentially. North American revenue dropped 14% and international revenue grew 2%. Fourth-quarter cash flow from operations was $2.3 billion. Full-year revenue for 2019 was $32.9 billion, essentially flat year on year. CEO Olivier Le Peuch said: ‘Most of our international geomarkets benefited from favourable market conditions, and almost half of them registered double-digit, year-on-year revenue growth driven by exploration activity, offshore operations, and

acceleration of the industry’s digital transformation. Reservoir Characterization revenue benefited from international market exposure. Sequential international growth was led by the Middle East & Asia area, where revenue increased 5% driven by higher year-end product sales in Kuwait, Iraq, and Oman. Latin America revenue grew 1% due to stronger WesternGeco multiclient seismic licence sales in the Mexico Bay of Campeche. Equinor has reported Q4 2019 earnings of $3.55 billion and $1.19 bil-

lion after tax. Net operating income was $1.52 billion and the IFRS net income was negative -$0.23 billion after impairments of $1.41 billion. Chevron has reported a loss of -$6.6 billion for the fourth quarter of 2019, compared with earnings of $3.7 billion in the fourth quarter 2018. Included in the current quarter were previously announced upstream impairments and writeoffs totalling $10.4 billion. Full-year 2019 earnings were $2.9 billion compared with $14.8 billion in 2018.

Trident commissions 4D survey offshore Equatorial Guinea

Polarcus Naila will survey an area of 340 km2 over 45 days.

Trident Energy has started a 4D seismic survey over its Block G assets, which contain the Ceiba and Okume fields, offshore Equatorial Guinea. The data is being shot by the vessel Polarcus Naila and the survey is 32

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expected to last 45 days in total, covering an area of 340 km2. This will be the third 4D seismic monitor survey over the Block G fields and the first commissioned by Trident Energy, which has been operating the

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assets in partnership with Kosmos Energy, Tullow Oil and GEPetrel since acquiring them in 2017. Since the last monitor survey in 2014 there has been continued production, the addition of new producer wells and improvements to the water injection pattern, all of which have altered the fluid flow patterns within the reservoir. The results of the new 4D seismic survey, expected in 4Q 2020, will be used by Trident and its partners to quantify these changes in the Equatorial Guinea reservoir to create new development opportunities in 2021 and beyond.


INDUSTRY NEWS

Fugro launches geophysical study offshore Ghana Fugro is carrying out geotechnical and geophysical surveys at the Pecan field, offshore Ghana for client Aker Energy. The surveys will obtain critical seabed and sub-seabed information to facilitate the planning and emplacement of the Pecan subsea infrastructure and the floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) ship.

The company will collect critical seabed data.

The contract includes surveys performed by two vessels over a 10-week period starting in March, and subsequent laboratory testing. Geophysical survey data will be acquired using the Fugro Searcher and one of Fugro’s fleet of deepwater AUVs, Echo Surveyor VI; the geotechnical vessel Fugro Scout, specifi-

BRIEFS EMGS has won additional work from Pemex after signing a two-year acquisition contract with the Mexican national oil company worth up to $73.3 million. The extra work consists of deep-water acquisition and is worth $3.4 million. The company has also won extra modelling work in preparation for other potential acquisition operations.

cally designed for geotechnical operations in water depths of up to 3000 m, will then follow to provide drilling, and seabed sampling and in situ testing. The deepwater Tano Cape Three Points (DWT/CTP) block is centrally located in the prolific Tano Basin offshore Ghana. Seven successful exploration wells and eight appraisal wells on the block have proved a significant resource base. Aker Energy sees numerous opportunities in the DWT/CTP block, and is starting with development of the Pecan field with a purpose-built FPSO connected to a subsea production system at 2400 m below sea level offshore Ghana. The Pecan field was discovered by Hess in 2012. Drill-stem tests showed a light, under-saturated oil with favourable oil characteristics suited for waterflood. While improving reservoir understanding of the field, Fugro will place emphasis on local involvement via its Ghana office. The shore base for the two ships will be Takoradi, in the west of the country, materials will be locally sourced where possible, and the Fugro team will comprise at least one trainee surveyor and one experienced surveyor from Ghana. Educational and capacity-building activities will be implemented through partnerships with Ghanaian educational institutions and the Petroleum Commission of Ghana.

Tina Bru has been appointed minister of petroleum and energy in Norway, replacing Sylvi Listhaug. Listhaug was appointed on 18 December, 2019 but left the post after the Progress Party quit the coalition government. Norway’s production figures for December 2019 show an average daily production of 2.82 million barrels of oil, NGL and condensate, up 95,000 barrels per day from November. Average daily liquids production in December was 1.76 million barrels of oil, 296,000 barrels of NGL and 27,000 barrels of condensate. Seabird has won a contract for two OBN surveys in West Africa, with an expected duration of 80 days. The first survey is expected to start in April 2020 and the second will follow immediately after. SeaBird will use the Eagle Explorer for both surveys. Meanwhile, SeaBird has extended its time charter agreement with EMGS for the vessel Petrel Explorer until 30 April 2020.

Lebanon extends deadline for Second Offshore Licensing Round Lebanon’s Ministry of Energy and Water and the Lebanese Petroleum Administration (LPA) has extended the application deadline for the Second Offshore Licensing Round. Companies interested in participating are now invited to submit their applications for Blocks 1, 2, 5, 8 and 10 before 30 April 2020. Lebanon’s official data provider is PGS, which has been acquiring multiple

Eni and Total have won licences to develop three offshore blocks in Angola out of 10 auctioned late last year. They have won operator rights to Blocks 28 and 29 in the offshore Namibe basin, while Angola’s state oil company Sonangol and majors Equinor and BP won smaller stakes, regulator ANPG said in a statement.

2D and 3D surveys in the Levantine Basin since 2006. The company’s data there includes a PSDM MegaSurvey: more than 10,000 km2 of matched, fully migrated, and merged 3D seismic data; and 8800 line km of 2D GeoStreamer seismic data (acquired 2009 and 2011) tying to the 3D surveys. Data rooms are available in PGS offices globally and in Beirut via LPA and the Ministry of Energy and Water. FIRST

State-owned Indian energy company ONGC has received bids for 50 out of the 64 small and marginal oil and gas fields it offered in a bidding round. Twelve companies made 28 bids for 50 fields. Partners must raise output beyond a preagreed baseline and then share revenues.

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Special Topic

MODELLING / INTERPRETATION

Modelling and Interpretation is a rapidly developing area with artificial intelligence and machine learning leading major advancements in the field. The latest high performance computing and algorithmic innovations aimed at enhancing the quantity and quality of modelling and interpretation of the most challenging seismic data are presented here. Mohammad Reza Saberi models the velocity on 23 core samples from a carbonate province by taking into account their pore structure variations, which will be linked to the formation processes of these carbonate rocks. Christoph Georg Eichkitz et al apply three approaches to computing GLCM using three different datasets. Chris Han et al look at the uplift to seismic fault interpretation achievable by implementation of AI and discuss how this new technology can be incorporated into fault interpretation workflows. Dan Kosloff et al describe several approaches for using seismic simulation for tracking down converted wave arrivals and identifying the locations where they were created and then reconverted back to pressure waves. Deborah Sacrey et al present a workflow to find the best attributes for ML classification aided by Principal Component Analysis and demonstrate why unsupervised ML classification of multi-attribute seismic samples can be highly effective at revealing stratigraphic patterns in a complex structural setting when combined with new technologies. Sriram Arasanipalai et al outline the impact of advanced modelling and inversion technologies on seismic data reprocessing to support exploration in a prolific presalt play offshore Brazil and demonstrate the value that legacy seismic data may have for alleviating all forms of uncertainty.

Submit an article

Special Topic overview January

Land Seismic

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.

February

Reservoir Monitoring

March

Modelling / Interpretation

April

Passive Seismic / Unconventionals

May

Petroleum Geology

June

Delivering for the Energy Challenge: Today and Tomorrow

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

July

Machine Learning

August

Near Surface Geoscience

September

Reservoir Geoscience and Engineering

October

Energy Transition

November

Marine Seismic & EM

December

Data Processing

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

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

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CALENDAR

CALENDAR OF EVENTS 12-14 OCTOBER 2020

Second EAGE Conference on Sulfur Risk Management in E&P

srm.eage.org Braga, Portugal

March 2020 2-4 Mar

The 20 th North Sea Decommissioning Conference https://npf.no/konferansen/the-20th-north-sea-decommissioning-conference

Stavanger

Norway

2-8 Mar

36th International Geological Congress

New Delhi

India

9-11 Mar

First EAGE Workshop on Fibre Optic Sensing www.eage.org

Amsterdam

Netherlands

16-19 Mar

GEO 2020

Manama

Bahrain

23-25 Mar

Eighth EAGE Workshop on Passive Seismic www.eage.org

Prague

Czech Republic

29 Mar 2 Apr

SAGEEP 2020 www.sageep.org

Denver

United States

30 Mar 1 Apr

Fifth EAGE Eastern Africa Petroleum Geoscience Forum www.eage.org

Cape Town

South Africa

6-8 Apr

EAGE Workshop on Quantifying Uncertainty in Depth Imaging www.eage.org

Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia

6-9 Apr

EAGE Saint Petersburg 2020 Geosciences: Converting Knowledge into Resources www.eage.org

Saint Petersburg

Russia

6-9 Apr

First EAGE Digitalization Conference and Exhibition www.eage.org

Vienna

Austria

7 Apr

Marine Technologies 2020 2 nd scientific workshop www.eage.org

Saint Petersburg

Russia

19-21 Apr

EAGE Seabed Seismic Today: from Acquisition to Application www.eage.org

Abu Dhabi

United Arab Emirates

20-22 Apr

3 rd Asia Pacific Meeting on Near Surface Geoscience & Engineering www.eage.org

Chiang Mai

Thailand

April 2020

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May 2020 7-9 May

GISTAM 2020 6th International Conference on Geographical Information Systems Theory, Applications and Management www.gistam.org

Prague

Czech Republic

12-14 May

5th AAPG/EAGE Myanmar Oil & Gas Conference www.eage.org

Yangon

Myanmar

12-14 May

Third EAGE Workshop on Offshore Development and Exploration in Mexico www.eage.org

Merida

Mexico

12-16 May

EAGE Engineering & Mining Geophysics 2020 www.eage.org

Perm

Russia

8 Jun

YP Summit 2020 www.yp-summit.org

Amsterdam

Netherlands

8-11 Jun

82nd EAGE Conference & Exhibition 2020 www.eage.org

Amsterdam

Netherlands

25-26 Jun

First EAGE/NAPE Workshop on Emerging Exploration www.eage.org

London

United Kingdom

28-30 Jun

First EAGE Conference on Guyana Basins www.eage.org

Georgetown

Guyana

June 2020

August 2020 17-21 Aug

Geobaikal 2020 6th Scientific Conference www.eage.org

Irkutsk

Russia

20-21 Aug

First EAGE Workshop on EOR Development and Evolution in Latin America www.eage.org

Bogotá

Colombia

24-26 Aug

GeoUtrecht 2020

Utrecht

Netherlands

25-27 Aug

Second EAGE Marine Acquisition Workshop www.eage.org

Oslo

Norway

30 Aug 3 Sep

Near Surface Geoscience Conference & Exhibition 2020 www.eage.org

Belgrade

Serbia

September 2020 7‑9 Sep

EAGE/AAPG Digital Geoscience Asia Pacific Conference & Exhibition www.eage.org

Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia

7‑11 Sep

Geomodel 2020 www.eage.org

Gelendzhik

Russia

14-17 Sep

ECMOR XVII 17 th European Conference on the Mathematics of Oil Recovery www.eage.org

Edinburgh

United Kingdom

15‑17 Sep

IX Simpósio Brasileiro de Geofísica

Curitiba

Brazil

16‑18 Sep

90 Congress of the Italian Geological Society xxxx

Trieste

Italy

16‑18 Sep

Second EAGE Conference on Pre-Salt Reservoir www.eage.org

Rio de Janeiro

Brazil

21‑23 Sep

EAGE Geochemistry Workshop www.eage.org

Muscat

Oman

22‑24 Sep

First EAGE Conference on Machine Learning www.eage.org

Cartagena

Colombia

28-30 Sep

First EAGE Workshop on East Canada Offshore Exploration www.eage.org

St. John’s

Canada

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First EAGE Workshop on East Canada Offshore Exploration 28 - 3 0 S EP TEM B ER 2 02 0 • ST. JOH N ’S, N.L ., CANADA

Submit your Abstract! W W W. E AG E .O R G

NLW20 V2H.indd 1

07/02/2020 15:15

SUBMIT YOUR ABSTRACT! 12-14 OCTOBER 2020 • BR AGA, PORTUGAL SRM.EAGE.ORG

SRM2020 V2H.indd 1

10/02/2020 13:13




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