Searcher Seismic, in cooperation with BGP, was pleased to announce the expansion of its modern offshore data library with the completion in acquisition of the Triok Broadband Non-Exclusive 2D Seismic Survey in the Northern Basins of Papua New Guinea. Following the successful acquisition of the Solomon Sea Non-Exclusive 2D in the Northern Basins of Papua New Guinea, the Triok Broadband Non-Exclusive 2D Seismic Survey comprises of 3,845 kilometres of 2D long-offset, high-resolution, broadband seismic and offers an extensive regional coverage of the Cape Vogel Basin and Huon Gulf.
Seismic (public)
Searcher completes Airborne Geophysical Survey in Papua New Guinea
Searcher Seismic has announced completion of the regional multi-client airborne gravity, gravity-gradiometry and magnetics survey covering the transition zone of the Gulf of Papua. The Roho Airborne Gravity, Gravity-Gradiometry and Magnetic Survey covers approximately 60,700 square kilometres (~52,700line km) along the southern coast of PNG. The survey compliments several marine seismic and geochemical projects recently completed by Searcher aimed at assessing the hydrocarbon potential of the Gulf of Papua and adjacent Coral Sea areas, offshore PNG.
CGG and TGS announce Greater Castberg Survey in Barents Sea
CGG and TGS have announced the Greater Castberg TopSeis™ survey in the Barents Sea. The survey is 5,000 sq km, and will be acquired and processed with the latest developments of CGG’s TopSeis acquisition and imaging technology. The survey will include the highly prospective Castberg area, and cover existing and newly awarded licenses in addition to open acreage with several play models in multiple geological layers. The acquisition is expected to commence late Q2 2019 with final delivery to clients in Q4 2020. The project is supported by industry funding.
Total steps on the gas with South Africa’s biggest discovery.
South Africa’s first ever globally significant oil and discovery was announced by Total last week when the French supermajor revealed it had made a billion-barrel oil equivalent gas find in the Southern Outeniqua Basin. The discovery is big enough to meet South Africa’s imported fuel needs for four years and is located 175km offshore in the Brulpadda Prospect, which is about 180km from South Africa’s gas-to-liquids plant at Mossel Bay on the Cape south coast.
FAR completes survey across WA-458-P permit
Late last quarter FAR concluded stakeholder engagements with CGG to join in the much anticipated Davros Extension Multiclient 3D Survey. FAR received a Notice of Start of Acquisition from CGG in mid-December as the MV Geo Coral began its mobilisation from southeast Asia. After a brief port call in Broome, the vessel commenced deployment of in-water equipment whilst on route to the survey area. Post end of the quarter, seismic acquisition across permit WA-458-Pbegan. The survey was safely and securely completed in mid-January and FAR anticipates receiving the final processed data in the second half of 2019.
New CGG Survey Supports Gabon’s 12th Offshore Licensing Round
Building on the success of its 25,000 km2 3D BroadSeis™ survey, which led to the recent Boudji-1 and Ivela-1 oil discoveries, CGG is extending its Gabon multi-client data footprint with a 9,800-km long-offset 2D seismic survey in an unexplored deepwater area of the South Basin. A subset of the data over the offered license blocks will be available in advance of Gabon’s 12th offshore licensing round planned for June 2019. CGG said the new 2D data will help define the full extent of existing and new plays in the region.
Aker BP commits to $500m exploration spend in 2019
Norwegian E&P company Aker BP is upping the ante this year with a turbo-charged exploration program in 2019 aimed at tripling production by 2025. The company said from the launchpad of a strong performance in 2018, it now plans to cut production costs from US$12 to US$7 per barrel and to significantly increase dividend payments to shareholders. “Excellent execution and rapid change towards lower cost, lower emissions and improved efficiency are key ingredients to value creation in Aker BP.
Norway anticipates accelerated oil and gas production
The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate’s has predicted that oil and gas production will recover from a slight dip in 2019 and increase in the period 2020 to 2023 as it approaches record production set in 2004. The NPD Director General, Bente Nyland, said: “The activity level on the Norwegian Shelf is high. Production forecasts for the next few years are promising and lay a foundation for substantial revenues, both for the companies and the Norwegian society. There is considerable interest in exploring for oil and gas.
Quadrant Energy applies for Bedout seismic permit
Quadrant Energy has applied to NOPSEMA to conduct a seismic survey in the Bedout sub-basin offshore Australia. Quadrant Energy, which was recently acquired by Santos, is eager to acquire additional subsurface data for further appraisal of identified hydrocarbons in several reservoirs within the Bedout sub-basin. NOPSEMA said the proposed Keraudren seismic survey would be conducted approximately 118km off Port Hedland in water depths of 50m to 150m. The survey is in permits WA-435-P, WA-436-P, WA-437-P and WA-438-P and covers a total area of 5,539 km2, including vessel ramp up zones.
Fresh exploration potential in offshore Argentina highlighted in new study.
Explorers interested in Argentina’s upcoming offshore bid round will benefit from a new geological study which constrains the timing and structural context for Triassic to Early Cretaceous basin development prior to and during continental rifting of the South Atlantic Ocean. This new framework for basin evolution will inform exploration strategy and reduce investment risk in the unexplored and underexplored Argentina and Falklands regions. The Offshore Argentina and Falkland Islands SEEBASE® Multi-client Study and GIS is an integrated geological and geophysical study of basement and basin evolution on the Argentine Shelf.