Technology Focus: Reserves Management (December 2022)
Authors: Pribyl Barbara , Horton Greg 
Published: January 2023

We continue to live in volatile times. While there has been an easing of the global pandemic, geopolitical issues and conflicts have been increasing. There is also ever-increasing pressure to sanction and maintain oil and gas projects in a socially and environmentally sustainable manner. These projects can no longer be considered part of an isolated or independent petroleum sector but as part of the whole resource base of an area, country, or region. There needs to be visibility of the linkages among company vision; national, regional, and global targets; and the project attributes in meeting sustainable development goals and maintaining good governance.

Paper SPE 205603 is a good example of a systematic approach to managing oil and gas reserves and resources data that has been assessed using the SPE Petroleum Resources Management System (PRMS). It is important for entities to accurately capture the information gathered during resource evaluation to use for strategic planning and sound resource management. We have been encouraged with the ongoing adaption of PRMS and many of the recommendations of the system, including the use of project-maturity subclasses.

We would like to provide a cautionary note that several papers in the 2021–22 cycle highlight the need to ensure that management of resources complies with the requirements of PRMS when they say they do—for example, that when modifications are made to the system, the project still meets the requirements for inclusion in a particular class, such as discovery for contingent resources; and that discovered unrecoverable resources are not contingent resources.

Paper SPE 207801 is a case study in trying to apply the principles of sustainable resource management by repurposing oil and gas wells for geothermal production. The paper follows a systems approach to testing the principles of the circular economy (though this term is not used in the paper). A circular economy is a systems approach that enables the resource to maintain its highest value for as long as possible. Critical considerations in implementing circularity are reducing and rethinking resource use and pursuing longevity, renewability, reusability, reparability, replaceability, and upgradability for resources and value-added products.

Paper SPE 208483 discusses the challenge of decommissioning oil and gas equipment in Australia. The paper is a comprehensive discussion that highlights the importance of good regulation and the development of visible and robust decommissioning plans by industry titleholders. This important issue will resonate at a global scale and underlines the importance of a lifecycle focus on decommissioning rather than a just-in-time approach, which may not optimize costs or engender safe and environmentally responsible practices.

Finally, we encourage you to seek out the additional reading material. Topics include good governance in exploration planning, testing pathways to decarbonization for remote offshore gas fields, an integrated subsurface study, and an example of the complementary use of PRMS and the United Nations Framework Classification.

Recommended additional reading at OnePetro: www.onepetro.org.

IPTC 21458 The Dusk of the Minimum Economic Field Size in the Digital Era of Exploration Value Creation by Dmitry Surovtsev, Schlumberger, et al.

OTC 30941 Pathway to Decarbonization and Maximum Value Recovery for Remote Offshore Gas Fields by Lee Thomas, Intecsea, et al.

SPE 205688 Integrated Subsurface Study To Convert Upside Intrabeta Subzone Stakes Into Additional Main Targets in Tunu Gas Field, Mahakam Delta, Indonesia by Dwiki Drajat Gumilar, Pertamina Hulu Mahakam, et al.

SPE 207055 The United Nations Framework Classification Concept and the Possibility of Its Application in Azerbaijan by Narmina Garayeva, Baku Higher Oil School, et al.