E&P Magazine - October 2010

As I See It

Exploration Technologies

Depth imaging for land seismic?

One Houston-based company says, “Absolutely.”

Drilling Technologies

Renewable energy calls the long shot

Even with the recent rise in natural gas reserves in the US and possibly parts of Europe, proponents of renewable energy are calling for half of the world’s energy to be supplied by something other than hydrocarbons by 2050.

Completions and Production

Death and taxes

American statesman Benjamin Franklin once said, “In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes.”

Digital Solutions

Application enables customizable workflows

New SDK allows the oil and gas industry to innovate on the fly.

Open innovation changes the playing field

Changing the way the industry innovates will allow tools and knowledge from many disciplines to bring about more rapid technology advances.

Features

Bob Peebler

The CEO of ION Geophysical has helped his company weather a tough decade.

Evolving CTD technology aids underbalanced drilling operations

Companies are realizing the full potential for CTD in underbalanced conditions.

Exploration needs a synergistic approach

Making graphs to quantify the effect of synergy for the first time is an innovation that has created new ways to think about oil and gas exploration and synergy.

Global analogs can be used for prospecting

All plays are different, but their key parameters could be similar.

HPC is simplified for seismic analysis

Geophysicists no longer have to be skilled computer programmers to do their job.

Increasing activity at a lower cost

After a difficult 2009, the oil and gas industry is starting to see several signs of recovery.

Increasing emphasis on transportation safety, regulatory compliance improves profitability

Managing compliance processes, regulating workflow, and making data-based decisions offer competitive advantages to improve control of insurance and operating costs.

ION/BGP JV is off to a fast start

A year after its inception, INOVA Geophysical is making its presence felt.

LF seismic improves E&P success

New hardware and software developments in low-frequency seismic technology are helping operators improve efficiency.

New treatment creates infinite fracture conductivity

Technology decouples fracture performance from proppant pack permeability, increasing conductivity by orders of magnitude.

Platelet technology allows mature asset optimization

A new rigless through-wellhead workover system is redefining work practices in the global well integrity industry and breathing new life into existing production infrastructure.

Pressure, flow control bring new drilling efficiency to Haynesville

A new level of insight into the wellbore environment is providing more accurate control.

Robert Stewart

This University of Houston professor reminds everyone that science can be fun.

Rough seas are ahead

There is plenty of ocean left to explore, but the Gulf of Mexico may never be the same.

Sand plugs isolate frac stages in Barnett well

Faster and more cost-effective than other multistage technologies, a technique that places competent sand plugs in horizontal wells improves fracture control and reduces stage spacing.

Technology breathes new life into mature assets

Thinking outside the box has resulted in the prolonged production life of two North Sea fields.

Technology set to revolutionize exploration

A new approach to oil and gas exploration heralds a major industry change.

Water is available in the desert

Water treatment schemes abound as hydraulic fracturing takes a front seat in unconventional play development, but high costs and low volumes have been a concern.

What a year it has been!

CEO Ray Leonard is taking formerly struggling Hyperdynamics in a new direction.

Tech Trends

Tech Watch: Satellites allow reservoir modeling from space

The rise of InSAR provides a new window to monitor and generate information.

On The Move

Last Word

Software technologies are instrumental to E&P risk management

Reducing risk while maximizing assets is one of the main challenges facing the oil and gas E&P industry.

Activity Spotlight

Modern seismic supports Trinidad and Tobago

Reprocessed seismic data aids the competitive ultra-deepwater bid round.

Management Report

Streamlining, automating best practices improves FM efficiency

FM activities make up one of the largest line items on the company balance sheet and can have a significant impact on how effectively operating units deliver on their charters.