Death by 0.9
During an evening lecture organized by the Geoscience Energy Society of Great Britain (GESGB) in Aberdeen the other day, a discussion unfolded about how to risk play elements in a…
Geology & Geophysics
Less is more – uncertainty in rock properties
My last article opened a topic of uncertainty in basin models. Discussion following its publication brought up an interesting research paper describing how increasing model complexity increases uncertainty in its…
Static reservoir modelling to transition from POS to POM
Probability Of Success (POS) is the central concept for petroleum exploration. POS is used to predict dry well occurrence, risk an exploration portfolio of prospects and eventually decide what gets…
Horsetail splays, wing cracks, and splay faults
These funny faults go by several names, but traditionally refer to the secondary faults and fractures that develop near the tips of a primary fault. Although these can occur on…
Exploration geology – science or art?
During my career in the oil industry, exploration geology has changed enormously. Not long after I joined Shell in February 1979, my son, who was play school age, asked me…
Subsurface exploration by plane
Data, particularly information about subsurface geology, is key to successfully exploiting natural resources, be they mineral, hydrocarbon or renewables such as geothermal and natural hydrogen. Especially in Africa, where large…
Deep-water Delaware
The featured photo shows a road cut in the Permian (Guadalupian) Brushy Canyon Formation off US Highway 62/180 in the foreground. The west-facing exposure, with the Delaware Mountains in the…
Is Multi-Point Statistics the future of reservoir modelling?
In our quest to build more realistic reservoir models, we stumble upon the challenge of how to fill up the blanks between well data. Many robust algorithms are widely used…
Translating and expansional McMurray point bars
In the captivating world of sedimentary geology, point bars offer a window into the dynamic processes sculpting fluvial and near-coastal landscapes. The classical model of (expansional) point bars is best…
What can resistivity tell you about your prospect?
Over the last few years, significant advancements have been made in the field of seismic quality, fundamentally transforming the landscape of geological exploration. The increase in bandwidth coupled with improved…
Strike-slip kinematics for pop-ups and pull-aparts
Pop-ups and pull-aparts, releasing- and restraining-bends, positive- and negative-flower structures. These are the various names given to the little, and big, structures that develop along strike-slip faults. They often form…
Oman – beneath the surface
Much has been written, including in this magazine, about the fantastic outcrop geology of Oman, the wonderful exposure, the preservation of salt at surface in the arid climate, and the…