Pressure Prediction in Exhumed Basins
Predicting pressure in basins that are exhumed or contain rich source rocks is difficult. We look at a case study from the Barents Sea region. The dominance of gas over…
Middle East
If Iran Strikes a Deal…?
After years of frustration and stalemate in the negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme between Iran and the six world powers (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus…
Australia’s New Oil Heavyweight
Australia has a surprising new heavyweight in oil production – the western flank of the Cooper-Eromanga Basin. il production from this arid and remote region 800 km north of Adelaide…
Broadband Seismic Technology and Beyond, Part II: Exorcizing Seismic Ghosts
“I wouldn’t describe myself as lacking in confidence, but I would just say that – the ghosts you chase you never catch“ John Malkovich (1953– ) American actor, producer and…
Kuwait: A trading city
Kuwait City, a gleaming metropolis of designer shopping malls, hotels and restaurants, has evolved dramatically in the last couple of decades. As the capital of the state of Kuwait, it…
Oil Exploration in Yemen
Yemen is a land of physical contrasts, bounded by mountains, desert and sea. It includes the Socotra archipelago and various islands in the Red Sea. At the heart of the…
Thriving on Challenges
Intisaar Al Kindy, the first Omani Exploration Director of Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) for forty years, drifted into geology almost by accident – but it proved to be a lucky…
Once Upon a Red Line – the Iraq Petroleum Company Story
A consortium of four oil majors (today’s BP, Shell, Total and ExxonMobil) and oil magnate Calouste Gulbenkian, the Iraq Petroleum Company (IPC) was designed to explore and extract oil in…
Bahrain: 80 Years and Still Producing
For such a small country, Bahrain certainly knows how to make an impression on the world. It is currently celebrating the 80th anniversary of the first discovery of oil in…
The Arab Spring and the Oil Industry
What has been the impact of recent political developments in North Africa on the oil and gas industry? The challenges facing the oil and gas industry in North Africa in…
The search for oil in Oman
The Beginning In the Omani desert, a few miles inland from Nafun, lies a groundwater seepage in the Wadi Jurf. On approaching this spring, you can see streams of glistening…
The Great Burgan field, Kuwait
In 1991, the US-led Operation Desert Storm drew the occupying Iraqi forces out of Kuwait. The retreating Iraqis set fire to over 700 Kuwaiti oil wells, half of which were…