Coincident with this issue of E&P, with its special focus on the contribution of geophysics in exploration and production (E&P), those in the profession and who have associated interests once... more

Fiber-optic, four-component (4-D/4-C) permanent monitoring systems for four-dimensional seismic are being tested in the Gulf of Mexico and North Sea to prove that optical systems meet the criteria established for... more

In the March 2006 issue of E&P, I wrote about microseismic monitoring, referring to it as “the other 4-D.” In that article I described some of the then-current developments on... more

Until recently, interactions between internal components of an umbilical have been more or less neglected in modeling for fatigue prediction. However, in deeper waters and larger umbilicals, such interactions can... more

Obtaining the maximum operating efficiency from your company’s equipment is similar to taking a team of athletes’ performance to the next level. But what happens when some of your athletes... more

The main purpose of the primary cement job is to provide long-term zonal isolation for the life of the well. However, events in the life of the well can alter... more

To many, the heavy oil fields in the Bakersfield area of California might not seem like the first place a company would look to implement an intelligent development strategy. After... more

Saudi Aramco successfully applied a natural gas lift method to sustain production in an intermittent well in Saudi Arabia’s Abqaiq field. The application of WellDynamics’ SmartWell intelligent completion technology used... more

The Champion West field was discovered in 1975, but its rich oil reserves lay dormant for 30 years, locked 6,500 to 13,000 ft (2,000 to 4,000 m) beneath the seabed... more

High pressure/high temperature (HP/HT) wells require non-standard products. While the basic material specifications are well defined, the influence of higher temperatures on yield strength and the extreme pressures drive designs... more

Challenges in developing subsea high-pressure/high-temperature (HP/HT) prospects relate to the extremes of the operating envelope. The first key decision is around how the extreme pressure will be handled. Two options... more

In January 2007, The Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA) was Figure 1. RPSEA membership. (All figures courtesy of RPSEA) awarded the contract to manage the “Ultra-deepwater and... more

At the Tight Gas Workshop held June 9 at the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (EAGE) Convention in London, the theme of Marlan Downey’s keynote address set Figure 1.... more

Trillions of cubic feet of natural gas lie in tight gas reservoirs that 20 years ago were considered uneconomical to produce. Interest in these tight gas fields has increased substantially... more

Developing HP/HT prospects can require overcoming some formidable drilling challenges. HP/HT wells require a higher density fluid, which typically requires high solids loading. High solids loading and resulting higher pressures... more

The complex conditions encountered in the harsh downhole environments of HP/HT wells drive difficult decisions because the scientific data needed to predict tubing/fluid compatibility has not been available until recently.... more

The economic viability of field-development projects in low-permeability or “tight” gas sands depends on identifying optimum field well spacing in order to maximize gas recovery with the fewest number of... more

As the oil and gas industry moves farther offshore into ultradeep water, the need for drilling and production platforms becomes more acute. The dry tree semisubmersible is an application of... more

Assembly of the next-generation subsea separation, boosting and injection system, designed and built by FMC Technologies for Statoil’s Tordis field, was completed in early April, 2007. The Tordis system, the... more

Nanotechnology moved into the oil and gas marketplace the same way it moved into other industries, by using molecular manipulation to supply fit-for-purpose solutions to specific oilpatch situations. Stuart Burchill and... more

“The purpose of computing is insight, not numbers.” — Richard W. Hamming Petascale computing refers to both petaflops, a million-billion calculations per second, and petabytes, a million-billion bytes of data. This... more

Not all of our projects here at E&P involve writing about cutting-edge technology. Once in awhile we get a chance to review interesting moments from this industry’s vital past. And... more

In an early example of the petroleum publishing industry’s nose for business, the first issue of The Petroleum Engineer (this magazine’s predecessor) appeared in October, 1929 — just in time... more

Jim Mulva got it right. The chairman and chief executive officer of ConocoPhillips, in a talk to the US Chamber of Commerce, noted proposals by the US Congress to raise... more

With apologies to surrealist artist and world-class eccentric Salvador Dali, from whom the headline was borrowed, a persistent institutional memory would remind us that some problems seem more like permanent... more

Today’s exploration and production demands require not only that we sharpen existing tools but that we incorporate new technology such as multicomponent methods as we seek to gain important subsurface... more

The creation of the CGGVeritas marine acquisition capability produced not only the largest fleet of seismic vessels in the industry, but also the most flexible and adaptable fleet in terms... more

Nexans, the worldwide leader in the cable industry, has been awarded a 30 million Euro contract by the state-owned Brazilian company Petróleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) to supply umbilicals for the... more

Innovative oil and gas design company, Red Spider Technology (Red Spider) has delivered specialist drilling equipment for Talisman Energy (UK) Limited’s first through tubing rotary drilling (TTRD) project. Red Spider supplied... more

In recognition of the importance of the Middle East’s government-owned oil companies, Deloitte Middle East will welcome two partners to the Arabian Gulf from the Deloitte global network. The leaders... more

SCAN Geophysical ASA (SCAN) announced that the company has successfully completed a specialized 2-D seismic acquisition program for GEMS International NV (GEMS) offshore Sri Lanka. The survey was carried out... more

Schlumberger announced the acquisition of a minority interest in PetroMarker, a Norwegian-based company that specializes in the development of marine electromagnetics technologies. Schlumberger provides electromagnetics services through its WesternGeco Electromagnetics... more

The International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR Institute), a membership-based, nonprofit alliance of global corporations, law firms, scholars, and public institutions dedicated to the principles of conflict prevention... more

Panoram Technologies has announced the release of its PSP 2400, a high-definition 24-in. LCD monitor that provides a passive stereo 3-D solution for the desktop. The circular polarized passive stereoscopic LCD... more

Schlumberger has announced the acquisition of exclusive development and distribution rights to the oil and gas sector for ThinAnywhere, remote access high-end 3-D graphics visualization technology, from Mercury International Technology... more

Electromagnetic Geoservices ASA (EMGS) has announced that Brazil's Agência Nacional de Petróleo (ANP) has, for the first time, included electromagnetic (EM) seabed logging as a valid work item in the... more

Professor Martin Landrø has been awarded StatoilHydro's 2007 researcher prize for his work in four-dimensional seismology, or 4-D seismic. The prizewinner is a professor in applied geophysics at the Norwegian... more

Wavefield Inseis has secured additional high-end 3-D streamer capacity. With continued very strong long-term demand for marine seismic 3-D services, the new 10-streamer vessel, which will be completed at an... more

Tom Davis, Ph.D., professor of geophysics and leader of the Reservoir Characterization Project at Colorado School of Mines, was selected for this year’s Melville F. Coolbaugh Award, which recognizes outstanding... more

Fugro Seismic Imaging announces that California-based 4th Wave Imaging; an advanced seismic imaging technology company specializing in time-lapse (4-D) reservoir monitoring, rock and fluid property estimation, and multicomponent seismic analysis;... more

GGS-Spectrum, a provider of advanced seismic processing and multi-client surveys, today announced the signing of a joint venture between Global Geo Services ASA and TGS-Nopec Geophysical Co. ASA (TGS) for... more

Roxar, a technology solutions provider to the oil and gas industry, has announced the release of Tempest 6.4, its software suite for advanced reservoir simulation. Tempest 6.4 will allow users... more

IHS Inc. has released a new version of its map of the world's sedimentary basins, which has been created electronically at a scale of 1:20,000,000. This third edition includes numerous... more

WesternGeco has announced the completion of Fruholmem, a 3-D multi-client survey in the Barents Sea, Arctic Ocean. The survey acquired data over an area of 158 sq miles (408 sq... more

Ultera Systems Inc., a provider of high-performance virtual tape libraries, announced today that it is now shipping the Mirage Marine Recorder (MMR), designed to meet and exceed the performance, capacity... more

Barco, a global provider of display solutions for oil & gas applications, has implemented an advanced, multi-purpose virtual environment for the US Minerals Management Service (MMS) in New Orleans, La.... more

CGGVeritas announced today that it has increased the number of dedicated processing and imaging centers that it operates for major oil companies with the launch of a center for Repsol... more

Weatherford International Ltd. today announced that it has acquired Rotary Laboratories Inc., a strong player in the full-diameter and sponge-core analysis sector of the oil and gas industry. This acquisition augments... more

On Monday, Oct. 29, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) signed a contract with Landmark, a product service line of Halliburton, for the provision of software and operational management services for... more

Schlumberger announced today that it is offering to acquire all outstanding shares, convertibles and warrants in Eastern Echo Holding Plc, a Cyprus-registered company quoted on the Oslo Axess Market under... more

Geotrace, a leading reservoir services company that provides subsurface imaging solutions to the oil and gas industry worldwide, has established its presence in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), by opening... more

Knowledge Systems has developed a velocity modeling methodology that improves the quality and reliability of seismic data for greater accuracy in subsurface imaging. Knowledge Systems was issued US Patent No.... more

Whether a company is trying to get more oil out of the ground by exploring for new reservoirs or improving production from existing ones, the challenge remains the same. Operators... more

By the early decades of the 20th century Americans were well-versed in the art of migrating toward economic windfalls. In the 1920s, Texas oil promised fast bucks for speculators; earnest... more

Climate change, to use a bad pun, is the hottest environmental issue of our time. However, is focusing on the increase of CO2 in the atmosphere distracting us from bigger... more

Nearly 2 decades after the last time any company had enough interest to bid, a surge of oil and gas industry interest convinced the US Minerals Management Service (MMS) to... more

Hurricane season is upon us again. The first threatening storm, Dean, is whirling toward northern Mexico as I write this. In the wake of the devastation caused by hurricanes Katrina... more