SPECIAL EDITION:
Energy Geoscience in the Middle East
Welcome to this special edition of Halliburton’s Subsurface Insights, focused on energy geoscience in the Middle East. Readers will not need to be reminded that the Middle East region remains pivotal to meeting the demands of global society for energy – energy that is vital to a prosperous and healthy population in every nation on the planet. Much of that energy will continue to be supplied by oil and gas, so the region needs to continue to add reserves by identifying new, often subtle, play concepts, and by maximizing production from existing assets. At the same time, these hydrocarbon reserve additions need to be “advantaged”; they need to be both economically robust and have a low carbon intensity associated with their production. That in turn requires superior subsurface characterization to recognize subtle trapping geometries or to build plausible reservoir and storage models.
Characterizing the subsurface begins with a robust correlation that demonstrates the scalable organization of strata in the subsurface. At the heart of this is sequence stratigraphy, and through the Neftex® Predictions solution, Halliburton continues to employ the Arabian Plate Sequence Stratigraphy methodology that began with the publication of that name 20 years ago. An article herein discusses the history and legacy of the sequence stratigraphic model. Using the model for correlation and the creation of depositional environment maps or subsurface models, then permits the recognition of stratigraphic traps, be that lowstand, onlap or truncation geometries, all of which are discussed in this issue. Their recognition and understanding of their distribution are especially enhanced when integrated with Earth systems science (for example palaeoclimate and source to sink studies).
SPECIAL EDITION:
Energy Geoscience in the Middle East
WWelcome to this special edition of Halliburton’s Subsurface Insights, focused on energy geoscience in the Middle East. Readers will not need to be reminded that the Middle East region remains pivotal to meeting the demands of global society for energy – energy that is vital to a prosperous and healthy population in every nation on the planet. Much of that energy will continue to be supplied by oil and gas, so the region needs to continue to add reserves by identifying new, often subtle, play concepts, and by maximizing production from existing assets. At the same time, these hydrocarbon reserve additions need to be “advantaged”; they need to be both economically robust and have a low carbon intensity associated with their production. That in turn requires superior subsurface characterization to recognize subtle trapping geometries or to build plausible reservoir and storage models.
Characterizing the subsurface begins with a robust correlation that demonstrates the scalable organization of strata in the subsurface. At the heart of this is sequence stratigraphy, and through the Neftex® Predictions solution, Halliburton continues to employ the Arabian Plate Sequence Stratigraphy methodology that began with the publication of that name 20 years ago. An article herein discusses the history and legacy of the sequence stratigraphic model. Using the model for correlation and the creation of depositional environment maps or subsurface models, then permits the recognition of stratigraphic traps, be that lowstand, onlap or truncation geometries, all of which are discussed in this issue. Their recognition and understanding of their distribution are especially enhanced when integrated with Earth systems science (for example palaeoclimate and source to sink studies).
The recognition of “advantage” readily comes to the fore when impurities such as gas souring are considered in the hydrocarbon portfolio of the region. A readily applicable methodology is presented to screen for sour gas presence, using the Khuff reservoirs as an example. Alongside a focus on advantaged hydrocarbons, is the need to use the geological storage of carbon as a key carbon abatement technology. The Middle East region has the potential to store huge volumes of CO2 produced in the combustion of fossil fuels in both depleted fields and in saline aquifers. The industry now needs high-grade potential storage units both stratigraphically and spatially. An article here discusses a methodology to do just that, with subsurface characterization as the primary consideration.
We do hope you enjoy these articles, many of which will also form the basis for presentations by the Halliburton team at the MEOS-GEO 2023 conference, and at our booth in the exhibition hall. We look forward to meeting you and discussing the energy geoscience of this fascinating region.
The recognition of “advantage” readily comes to the fore when impurities such as gas souring are considered in the hydrocarbon portfolio of the region. A readily applicable methodology is presented to screen for sour gas presence, using the Khuff reservoirs as an example. Alongside a focus on advantaged hydrocarbons, is the need to use the geological storage of carbon as a key carbon abatement technology. The Middle East region has the potential to store huge volumes of CO2 produced in the combustion of fossil fuels in both depleted fields and in saline aquifers. The industry now needs high-grade potential storage units both stratigraphically and spatially. An article here discusses a methodology to do just that, with subsurface characterization as the primary consideration.
We do hope you enjoy these articles, many of which will also form the basis for presentations by the Halliburton team at the MEOS-GEO 2023 conference, and at our booth in the exhibition hall. We look forward to meeting you and discussing the energy geoscience of this fascinating region.