UKCS Petroleum Systems Project: Year 1

<div><p style='text-align:justify; color:windowtext; text-indent:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-left:0px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; margin-right:0px; margin-left:0px; background-color:transparent;'><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>The deliverables from the first year of the UKCS Petroleum Systems Project are being released in support of the 32</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:8.5pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>nd</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'> Licensing Round. This initial year </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>was carried out in collaboration with Lloyd’s Register, IGI and the British Geological Survey (BGS) and </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>has focused </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>primarily </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>on the compilation of a UKCS-wide geochemical database</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>.</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'> </span></p></div><div><p style='text-align:justify; color:windowtext; text-indent:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-left:0px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; margin-right:0px; margin-left:0px; background-color:transparent;'><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>The majority of</span><span style='background-color:inherit;'> the entries in the database represent </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>legacy </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>geochemical </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>data </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>collated </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>from CDA (now NDR)</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>, </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>the </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>core/cuttings </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>accessions </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>database </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>(</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>held by the </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>BGS </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>on behalf of the OGA</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>)</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'> </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>and other </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>geochemical data previously released by the NSTA. The database also includes new fluid analyses that have been carried out to fill data gaps. The database contains over 91,000 samples which have been </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>extracted </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>from more than 2700 wells (onshore and offshore)</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'> and a consistent stratigraphic framework has </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>been applied to enable the user to be able to query the database according to stratigraphic intervals of interest</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>.</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'> </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>As such, this </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>represents the largest publicly available geochemical database ever compiled for the UKCS.</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'> </span></p></div><div><p style='text-align:justify; color:windowtext; text-indent:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-left:0px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; margin-right:0px; margin-left:0px; background-color:transparent;'><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>The geoch</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>emical database is being made available in </span><span style='background-color:inherit;'>p:IGI</span><span style='background-color:inherit;'> and Excel format and is provided as a single UKCS database as well as 5 regional reports. Due to the volume of the data provided in the Excel files, the data has been grouped and colour coded for ease of use and the user is encouraged to read the available documentation provided before using the geochemical database.</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'> High level interpretation reports are also provided for </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>each </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>region of the UKCS.</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'> </span></p></div><div><p style='text-align:justify; color:windowtext; text-indent:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-left:0px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; margin-right:0px; margin-left:0px; background-color:transparent;'><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>In addition to the geochemical database, shallow seismic interpretation has been carried out across the UKCS using a </span><span style='background-color:inherit;'>coarse</span><span style='background-color:inherit;'>, regional 2D seismic grid. The objective was to identify features on the seismic data that may indicate the presence of hydrocarbons or a working petroleum </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>system. These have been mapped and </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>categorised and are represented within the ArcGIS project. Other deliverables of the project include petro</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>physical TOC evaluations for</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'> potential source intervals in the Devonian and Middle Jurassic and a set of integrated regional depth maps.</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'> </span></p></div><div><p style='text-align:justify; color:windowtext; text-indent:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-left:0px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; margin-right:0px; margin-left:0px; background-color:transparent;'><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>As a result of the  NSTA getting geochemical data extracted from core/cutting sample data reported to the BGS, </span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>the BGS’s accessions database is now fully available in digital format. Information linked to data reported for both offshore and onshore samples can be queried via layers provided by the BGS as part of their Onshore and Offshore </span><span style='background-color:inherit;'>Geoindex</span><span style='background-color:inherit;'> pages:</span></span><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'> </span></p></div><div><p style='text-align:left; color:windowtext; text-indent:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-left:0px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; margin-right:0px; margin-left:0px; background-color:transparent;'><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>For the Onshore </span><span style='background-color:inherit;'>Geoindex</span><span style='background-color:inherit;'>, the accessioned data layer is under Deposited Data and can be accessed via this link: </span></span><a target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer'>https://mapapps2.bgs.ac.uk/geoindex/home.html </a></p></div><div><p style='text-align:left; color:windowtext; text-indent:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-left:0px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; margin-right:0px; margin-left:0px; background-color:transparent;'><span style='font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>For the Offshore </span><span style='background-color:inherit;'>Geoindex</span><span style='background-color:inherit;'>, the accessioned data layer is under Oil and Gas (NSTA) and can be accessed via this link</span></span><span style='color:rgb(31, 73, 125); font-family:Calibri,Calibri_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'>:</span></span><span style='color:rgb(31, 73, 125); font-family:Arial,Arial_MSFontService,Sans-Serif; font-size:11pt;'><span style='background-color:inherit;'> </span></span><a target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer'>https://mapapps2.bgs.ac.uk/geoindex_offshore/home.html </a></p></div><div><p style='text-align:justify; color:windowtext; text-indent:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-left:0px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; margin-right:0px; margin-left:0px; background-color:transparent;'><span style='font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt;'>The geochemical database produced as part of the UKCS Petroleum Systems Project </span><span style='font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt;'>is </span><span style='font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt;'>made available under the terms of the OGA’s </span><a href='https://www.nstauthority.co.uk/site-tools/access-to-information/' style='text-decoration-line:none; font-family:inherit; font-size:16px; font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal;' target='_blank' rel='nofollow ugc noopener noreferrer'><span style='color:rgb(0, 0, 255); font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt; text-decoration-line:underline;'><span style='background-color:inherit; font-family:inherit;'>User Licence Agreement</span></span></a><span style='font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt;'>. All other deliverables are released under the</span><span style='font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt;'> </span><a href='https://www.nstauthority.co.uk/media/5850/oga-open-user-licence_210619v2.pdf' style='text-decoration-line:none; font-family:inherit; font-size:16px; font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal;' target='_blank' rel='nofollow ugc noopener noreferrer'><span style='color:rgb(0, 0, 255); font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt; text-decoration-line:underline;'><span style='background-color:inherit; font-family:inherit;'>OGA Licence</span></span><span style='color:rgb(0, 0, 255); font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt; text-decoration-line:underline;'><span style='background-color:inherit; font-family:inherit;'> (OGAL)</span></span></a><span style='font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt;'>, the terms of which can be found in the documentation included with this delivery.</span><span style='font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-family:Arial, Arial_MSFontService, sans-serif; font-size:11pt;'> </span><br /></p></div>

Tags: Exploration, Geology, NSTA, Petroleum Licensing Round, Petroleum Systems
Organization: North Sea Transition Authority