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Featuring Dr. Jarrett Wise, research engineer for the USDA, and petroleum engineer Les Skinner, this webinar addresses contamination and risks prevention, regulatory compliance, and research trends around orphan well integrity.

Added on 17 January, 2024

Explorer Historical Highlights By Kira Timm,M. R. Silverman

Shale Plays Led the Way in Colorado’s Pioneer Days

Colorado’s hydrocarbon industry was built on the foundation of early explorers and field geologists venturing through rough and often dangerous terrain, surveying and mapping in a young nation at a time when geology was in its technological infancy. Without even the aid of a Brunton compass (patented 1894) early geologists, such as Ferdinand Hayden and John Powell, created the beginnings of Colorado’s geological knowledge through exceptional skill and work, upon which we continue to build today.

Added on 01 May, 2023

Explorer Article By David Brown

Offshore Investment Sees Massive Revival

Over the next two years, led by the Middle East and South America, a resurgent offshore sector is poised to reach its highest level of activity in more than a decade. That’s right: the Middle East. With so much happening around the world, the energy industry will need to play catch-up to prepare for future growth.

Added on 01 April, 2023

Explorer Historical Highlights By Rasoul Sorkhabi

Steineke of Arabia

Working in arduous desert conditions and leading a team of explorers in the 1930s and ‘40s from the company that would come to be Aramco, Max Steineke put Saudi Arabia on the world petroleum map. A definitive, book-length biography of Steineke is yet to be written, but what follows outlines his career and contributions to petroleum geology and exploration during a period and in places far from the comforts, facilities and technologies enjoyed today. And yet, his exploration output from a single basin remains unparalleled, and his story offers valuable insights.

Added on 01 March, 2023

Explorer Article By Heather Saucier

High Prospects for Helium in Arizona’s Holbrook Basin

The need for helium is growing and supplies in the United States are dwindling, creating an economic opportunity for geoscientists whose knowledge and skills are ideal for this niche industry. In Arizona, known for its helium-rich formations, a growing number of companies are leasing land and drilling for the gas.

Added on 01 March, 2023

Explorer Historical Highlights By Dan Plazak

When Doodlebugs Ruled the Earth

The idea of an oil-finding instrument was not new. Water dowsers were common throughout the United States and among most people of European descent worldwide, and they were quickly adapted to looking for oil. Soon after the Drake well in 1859, people started working on inventions to detect oil by geophysical methods.

Added on 01 February, 2023

Explorer Emphasis Article By Emily Llinás

Trinidad and Tobago Concludes Onshore and Nearshore Bid Round

On Jan. 9, Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries concluded the 2022 Onshore and Nearshore Competitive Bid Round. This bid round featured a total of 11 blocks covering more than 115,000 hectares. Blocks offered included Aripero, Buenos Ayres, Charuma, Cipero, Cory D, Cory F, Guayaguayare, South West Peninsula Onshore, St. Mary’s and Tulsa, located in the central to southern onshore Trinidad; and the South West Peninsula Offshore, located off the southern coast of Trinidad. Xavier Moonan, president-elect of AAPG’s Latin America and Caribbean Region and exploration manager of Touchstone Exploration Inc., follows the bid rounds closely.

Added on 01 February, 2023

Explorer Historical Highlights By Orlando Méndez

One Hundred Years of a Lost Blowout

A century ago, a gusher helped transform Venezuela from an agricultural country known as an exporter of coffee, cacao and cattle into one of the world’s largest oil producers. It was front-page news on the world’s most important newspapers. The country’s most significant 20th-century discoveries took place in the Maracaibo Basin between 1910 and 1925 and were based on surface geological exploration of concessions held by American and European companies. One of the strikes, the large La Rosa Field, was discovered in 1917 by Venezuelan Oil Concessions, a Royal Dutch Shell affiliate, on a 3,000-square-mile concession.

Added on 01 December, 2022

Explorer Article By Heather Saucier

Can Closed-Loop Geothermal Bridge the Transition?

As countries seek to transition to cleaner-burning fuel to address environmental concerns, it can also be argued that the need to eliminate energy poverty remains just as crucial. The future energy mix must be wide-ranging and diverse to meet the needs both of the environment and the people living on the planet. New companies have begun to bring geothermal energy to areas that aren’t adjacent to volcanoes or that don’t have access to tectonic settings, which allow for an easy harvesting of the Earth’s heat. Some are embracing the niche operation of repurposing traditional geothermal wells and non-producing oil and gas wells. Others are promoting widespread geothermal energy through deep vertical and multilateral wells that can bring heat and electricity to the masses.

Added on 01 December, 2022

Explorer Article By Heather Saucier

Geophysics Has Proven Key in Giant Stratigraphic Fields Discoveries

In the world of oil and gas, an increasing number of plays in stratigraphic traps are being made – in large part due to ever-evolving seismic technology. The Discovery Thinking forum at the annual IMAGE conference in August served to highlight some of these plays in offshore frontier basins and the role that geophysics played in their discovery. “We are seeing more giant stratigraphic fields, and seismic is the key,” said past AAPG President Charles A. Sternbach, chair of the Discovery Thinking forum. “And, we are seeing more oil found at greater depths. Unconventional plays are migrating outside of the Western Hemisphere.”

Added on 01 November, 2022

Online e-Symposium

Tuesday, 25 January 2011, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Integrating Disciplines, Data and Workflows in Resource Plays

This esymposium takes a close look at workflows associated with resource plays, and analyzes where integration must occur between disciplines, data, and workflows at all phases of the process.

Added on 02 December, 2013

Online e-Symposium

Thursday, 12 July 2012, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Shale Wells: Making the Engineering Fit What Geology Offers

This presentation will look at well placement vertically in the pay, well azimuth and well trajectory with explanations of how geology and post-depositional effects can make the difference between a successful well and a failure.

Added on 11 December, 2013

Online e-Symposium

Tuesday, 16 April 2013, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Successful Oilfield Water Management: Case Studies and New Directions (including recycling)

The goal of this e-symposium is to provide an overview of the latest trends and technologies for water management for oil and gas drilling, completions, and production.

Added on 11 December, 2013

Online e-Symposium

Thursday, 28 July 2011, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Marcellus Shale: Integrating Information to Optimize Horizontal Well Performance

This presentation discusses one operator’s approach to fully integrate data captured in the Marcellus Shale in order to optimize horizontal well performance.

Added on 02 December, 2013

Online e-Symposium

Thursday, 22 October 2009, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Fluvial Stratigraphy

This course can help you gain the ability to describe the complex and highly variable reservoirs, which are typified by complex internal heterogeneity.

Added on 02 December, 2013

Webinar By Jean-Jacques Biteau

Virtual Webinar

Thursday, 22 October 2020, 3:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m.

Pressures, Seals, and Petroleum Traps

Join us to hear Jean-Jaques Biteau talk about key parameters controlling pressure regimes, trap sealing at the level of both the basin and the prospect, as well as areas of uncertainty. Webinar will be presented on Thursday 22 October at 15:00 SGT (UTC+8) Singapore time zone.

Added on 09 September, 2020

Online e-Symposium

Thursday, 17 March 2011, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Basic Tools for Shale Exploration

This e-symposium will provide information on which tools, processes, and procedures all geoscientists, engineers, and technical professionals working in shale plays need to understand and implement.

Added on 02 December, 2013

Online e-Symposium

Thursday, 9 February 2012, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Seismic Reservoir Characterization of U.S. Shales: An Update

Projects in several shales will be discussed, including Marcellus, Eagle Ford, Haynesville, Fayetteville, Montney, and Barnett, as will several seismically-detectable drivers for success including lithofacies, stress, pre-existing fractures, and pore pressure.

Added on 11 December, 2013

Online e-Symposium

Thursday, 25 August 2011, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Overview of Hydraulic Fracturing Mechanics, Analysis and Design

This e-symposium provides highlights of the hydraulic fracturing mechanics, analysis, and design, and is derived from a two and one-half (2-1/2) day course which is designed for drilling, completion, production engineers, engineering technicians, geologists, well-site and completion supervisors, and managers, who desire to possess a comprehensive and integral knowledge of Hydraulic Fracturing.

Added on 02 December, 2013

Online e-Symposium

Thursday, 8 December 2011, 12:00 a.m.–12:00 a.m.

Connectivity in Fluvial Systems

This e-symposium focuses on methods for predicting connectivity within clastic fluvial systems.

Added on 11 December, 2013

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DL Abstract By Tao Sun

Integrated Reservoir Characterization and Modeling with Computational Stratigraphy

As oil and gas exploration and production occur in deeper basins and more complex geologic settings, accurate characterization and modeling of reservoirs to improve estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) prediction, optimize well placement and maximize recovery become paramount. Existing technologies for reservoir characterization and modeling have proven inadequate for delivering detailed 3D predictions of reservoir architecture, connectivity and rock quality at scales that impact subsurface flow patterns and reservoir performance. Because of the gap between the geophysical and geologic data available (seismic, well logs, cores) and the data needed to model rock heterogeneities at the reservoir scale, constraints from external analog systems are needed. Existing stratigraphic concepts and deposition models are mostly empirical and seldom provide quantitative constraints on fine-scale reservoir heterogeneity. Current reservoir modeling tools are challenged to accurately replicate complex, nonstationary, rock heterogeneity patterns that control connectivity, such as shale layers that serve as flow baffles and barriers.

Request a visit from Tao Sun!

Added on 20 July, 2022

DL Abstract By John Suppe

Probing What Makes the Crust Strong (or Weak): Insight from Boreholes, Earthquakes, Active Fault Systems, and Toy Models

For well over a century there have been conflicting indications of the strength of the crust and of faults and what controls them. Much of our ignorance comes quite naturally from the general inaccessibility of the crust to measurement--in contrast with our understanding of the atmosphere, which is much more accessible to observation as well as more rapidly changing. Crustal strength is best understood in deforming sedimentary basins where the petroleum industry has made great contributions, particularly in deforming petroleum basins because of the practical need to predict. In this talk we take a broad look at key issues in crustal strength and deformation and what we can learn from boreholes, earthquakes, active fault systems, and toy models.

Request a visit from John Suppe!

Added on 14 September, 2023

DL Abstract By Alex Simms

Interactions Between Ice Sheets and Relative Sea Levels: Lessons From Antarctica and NW Scotland

Local sea-level changes are not simply a function of global ocean volumes but also the interactions between the solid Earth, the Earth’s gravitational field and the loading and unloading of ice sheets. Contrasting behaviors between Antarctica and Scotland highlight how important the geologic structure beneath the former ice sheets is in determining the interactions between ice sheets and relative sea levels.

Request a visit from Alex Simms!

Added on 21 July, 2022

DL Abstract By Kurt W. Rudolph

Tectonic Controls on Source Rock Deposition

While there are many habitats that are associated with the deposition of organic-rich marine and lacustrine source rocks, one important pathway is linked to the onset of increased basin subsidence associated with major tectonic events. A key aspect is that this subsidence is spatially variable, with the uplift of basin flanks contemporaneous with the foundering of the basin center, resulting in a steeper basin profile.

Request a visit from Kurt W. Rudolph!

Added on 14 September, 2023

VG Abstract By Juan I. Soto

Salt versus Shales in Continental Margins and Orogens

In comparison with the known boundary conditions that promote salt deformation and flow in sedimentary basins, the processes involved with the mobilization of clay-rich detrital sediments are far less well established. This talk will use seismic examples in different tectonic settings to document the variety of shale geometries that can be formed under brittle and ductile deformations.

Request a visit from Juan I. Soto!

Added on 26 June, 2019

DL Abstract By Fernanda Raggio

Shaping New Leadership in an Evolving Energy Business

The Energy sector is a changing business environment. Throughout the 20th century fluctuations of oil supply and demand produced changes in the barrel price that pushed the growth or shrinkage of the industry. In this 21st century, new challenges such as diversification of the energy mix, boosting gas demand, require the exploration of critical minerals and development of new technologies as well.

Request a visit from Fernanda Raggio!

Added on 19 August, 2024

DL Abstract By Jennifer Wilcox

The Role of Carbon Capture in Meeting Net-Zero Carbon Goals

President Biden has laid out a bold and ambitious goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions in the United States by 2050. The pathway to that target includes cutting total greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 and eliminating them entirely from the nation’s electricity sector by 2035. The Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management will play an important role in the transition to net-zero carbon emissions by reducing the environmental impacts of fossil energy production and use – and helping decarbonize other hard-to abate sectors.

Request a visit from Jennifer Wilcox!

Added on 20 July, 2022

DL Abstract By Lesli Wood

The Shelf is a Dangerous Place: Surfing the Cretaceous Seaways

Engineering of wind farms, development of carbon sequestration projects in shelfal waters, the proliferation of communication cables that connect the world, all of these things suggest that it is time to re-examine what we know about shelf processes both updip-to-downdip and along shoreline, and the influence of shelf processes on erosion and transport of sediments.

Request a visit from Lesli Wood!

Added on 19 August, 2024

DL Abstract By Kurt W. Rudolph

The Assembly of Pangea, a View from Laurentia: Paleozoic Orogenies and their Impact on Basin Evolution and Petroleum Systems

Paleozoic North America has experienced multiple mountain building events, from Ordovician to Permian, on all margins of the continent. These have had a profound effect on the resulting complex basins and their associated petroleum systems. Subsequent uplift, erosion and overprinting of these ancient systems impedes the direct observation of their tectonic history. However, the basin sedimentary records are more complete, and provide additional insights into the timing and style of the mountain building events. In this study, we employ ~90 1D basin models, ~30 inverse flexural models, isopachs, and paleogeographic maps to better understand the Paleozoic history of North America.

Request a visit from Kurt W. Rudolph!

Added on 14 September, 2023

DL Abstract By Kurt W. Rudolph

Estimating, Benchmarking, and Managing Subsurface Uncertainty: Principles and Examples

Subsurface risk and uncertainty are recognized as very important considerations in petroleum geoscience. And even when volume estimates are relatively accurate, the reservoir characteristics that determine well placement and performance can remain highly uncertain. In analyzing results and work practices, three aspects of uncertainty are reviewed here.

Request a visit from Kurt W. Rudolph!

Added on 14 September, 2023

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