Brittle Deformation, Hydrocarbon Generation And Fluid Migration, Triassic-Lower Jurassic, North Somerset

This field trip will make observations from superbly exposed outcrops along the north Somerset coast (inverted southern margin of the Bristol Channel Basin) that reveal interactions between hydrocarbon generation, elevated pore pressures and resultantly enhanced deformation. We will infer the migration of overpressured fluids through the crust from a diversity of phenomena including sandstone dykes, reduction zones and mineralized hydrofractures (see photo), mud volcanoes (see photo), and low-angle faulting. Understanding links between maturation of organic matter and brittle deformation is of wide interest because it is increasingly clear that hydrocarbon generation and expulsion is a central process in creating the pathways that allow fluids to migrate from source to reservoir.

 

The north Somerset coast is one of the best places in the world to examine brittle deformation processes and many generations of MSc students have been there. Like a 3D seismic survey, it combines a continuous cliff line (‘vertical seismic profile’) and extensive foreshore (‘time slice’). We will stay in a traditional hotel-pub in the small market town of Dunster, in the shadow of the Quantock hills, with all the outcrops to be visited located within a 40-minute drive from the hotel. Distances to be walked are no more than a few kilometres but the foreshore can be uneven and slippery in places. Dunster is famous for its imposing Norman castle with ruined tower and impressive medieval gateway, now owned by the National Trust and with opportunities to visit in the evenings.

 

26th – 28th May 2017,  from £200

Led by Jonathan Turner, Radioactive Waste Management Ltd.

Find out more at http://www.pesgb.org.uk/events/event-388/

 

Go on a journey from Late Palaeozoic reservoirs in the Southern North Sea and through to the youngest Tertiary plays of the Central and Northern North Sea.

The course reviews the structural, stratigraphic and sedimentological components of the North Sea petroleum system and provides an overview of their respective role in hydrocarbon generation, migration and trapping in the various sub-basins. It also focuses on reservoir geology, development history and exploitation of the remaining reserves.

Whilst the course covers all the elements of the petroleum system in the mature basin, its content is foundered on the basin’s structural and stratigraphic history and takes delegates on a journey from Late Palaeozoic reservoirs in the Southern North Sea and through to the youngest Tertiary plays of the Central and Northern North Sea.

The PESGB acknowledge Nautilus for their continued support in producing the course manual. Nautilus, an international training group is recognised as a valuable provider of Geoscience training in North America and Europe by the companies affiliated to the Geoscience Training Alliance (GTA). The PESGB are able to draw on the skills and experience Nautilus provides, to ensure delegates receive a valuable learning opportunity.

North Sea Petroleum Geology Course

Controls on the Geological Development and Evolution of the North Sea Petroleum Province

9th-11th May 2017, PESGB Training Centre Croydon

 Find out more at http://www.pesgb.org.uk/events/event-389/

Africa Conference – Early Bird Registration Open Now!

Early bird registration rates will be available from the start of April until the 30th June. Get your place at the PESGB website 
Please note that standard & onsite rates are subject to availability and may be more expensive so please pre-register to make sure you don’t miss out!

This conference series, which has been alternating annually between London and Houston since 2002, has evolved into the premier event for technical discussions and networking on exploration and geosciences in Africa. With attendances in recent years reaching over 600; including operators, consultants, governments and academia, there is a large poster programme in addition to the oral programme of over 25 high quality talks covering E&P in all regions of Africa. This is complemented by a lively exhibition floor which boasts over 60 exhibitors.

 

The 16th PESGB / HGS Conference on African E&P

New Thinking, New Technology, New Hydrocarbons . . . . 

31st Aug – 1st Sept 2017, Business Design Centre London

Register Now!

 

 

Petroleum Systems of North Africa & The Mediterranean Course

The Tamar, Leviathan and Zohr discoveries have revitalised interest in North Africa and the Mediterranean. This course is an abbreviated version of the original 3 day PESGB North Africa course and is designed to provide participants with a regional overview to back up their own block and prospect-specific interpretations. Discussions are focussed round a series of paleotectonic reconstructions, paleogeographic maps, play cross-sections and chronostratigraphic charts over the region (provided in a manual), with particular attention given to the newer petroleum systems such as biogenic gas plays. Countries covered include Algeria, Tunisia, Malta, Sicily, Libya, Egypt, Cyprus, Israel and Lebanon. Two regional exercises focus on crystallising the learnings of the course for fairway and prospect evaluations.

30 August 2017 • London Art House, Islington

Find out more at http://www.pesgb.org.uk/events/event-400/

Sequence Stratigraphy For Petroleum Exploration

This two-day short course is designed to introduce the principles,concepts and practical methods of sequence stratigraphy as a fundamental component of the petroleum exploration workflow. Sequence stratigraphy is an informal chronostratigraphic methodology that provides a practical means of subdividing the stratigraphic record, permits the identification and prediction of facies, and documents the time-transgressive nature of lithostratigraphic units.

Through a mix of lectures and exercises the course will utilise outcrop, core, well log and seismic data to provide a hands-on,learning experience in sequence stratigraphy. The exercises include classic case studies from which many sequence stratigraphic concepts were originally developed.

With Vitor Abreu, Abreu Consulting and Training & Chris Edwards, ERC Equipoise Ltd

9-10 October 2017 • PESGB Training, Croydon

Find out more at http://pesgb.org.uk/events/event-397/

or combine with the Deep Water Course for a 10% discount!

Reservoir Characterization of Deep Water Systems – Impact from Exploration to Production

This course examines the aspects of deep water reservoir models critical to exploration and production.   Participants will learn how to interpret and map environments of deposition (EoD’s) in deep water systems and understand how the different EoD’s and sub-EoD’s behave as reservoirs. Engineering data is integrated with the EoD interpretations to improve predictions of reservoir performance.  Examples and exercises link 1-D core information to well-logs and seismic data in order to create 3-D views of the reservoir-scale depositional systems.  The class discusses the evolution of concepts in deep water models, emphasizing recent approaches that integrate experimental and numerical models, quaternary analogues, and ultra-high resolution data. The improved understanding of the depositional system has led to better description and prediction of deep water reservoirs at both exploration and production scales.

 

With Vitor Abreu, Abreu Consulting and Training & Chris Edwards, ERC Equipoise Ltd

11-13 October 2017 • PESGB Training, Croydon

Find our more at http://pesgb.org.uk/events/event-398/

or combine with the  Sequence Stratigraphy course for a 10% discount!

North Sea Petroleum Geology Course Controls on the Geological Development and Evolution of the North Sea Petroleum Province

The PESGB are pleased to announce the much-anticipated return of the well-established North Sea Course. Registration is open now; be sure to book soon as there is a limited number of places available to this popular course!

The North Sea Course is a well-established training opportunity for members of the Oil and Gas Industry interested in gaining a comprehensive insight into the controls on petroleum prospectivity in the North Sea Basin. The PESGB are pleased to announce that the next offering of the 3-day course will take place in May at the PESGB Training Centre, Croydon.

The course will again be led by Professor John Underhill, who is supported by a group of leading experts from industry and academia who contribute their experience and knowledge of finding, developing and producing oil and gas from all of the prospective basins present in the North Sea.

The course reviews the structural, stratigraphic and sedimentological components of the North Sea petroleum system and provides an overview of their respective role in hydrocarbon generation, migration and trapping in the various sub-basins. It also focuses on reservoir geology, development history and exploitation of the remaining reserves.

Whilst the course covers all the elements of the petroleum system in the mature basin, its content is foundered on the basin’s structural and stratigraphic history and takes delegates on a journey from Late Palaeozoic reservoirs in the Southern North Sea and through to the youngest Tertiary plays of the Central and Northern North Sea.

The course is continually updated from previous ones and the presentations will provide delegates with the latest insights on petroleum exploration and development success in the basin are included.

9-11 May 2017, PESGB Training Centre Croydon

Find out more  http://www.pesgb.org.uk/events/event-389/

What Geoscientists Need To Know About Developments

Geoscientists are tasked with reviewing new ventures opportunities and generating prospectivity. However, not all exploration successes lead on to successful developments. This one day workshop is aimed at geoscientists of all levels who are involved in exploration, in particular, but also appraisal, development and production who would like to better understand what makes a good development opportunity and how to critically asses technical data associated with this.

• What makes an exploration discovery into a successful development?
• What issues you need to consider when looking at exploration prospects

o    Reservoir quality and distribution (different reservoirs, pore types)

o    Connectivity (stratigraphic and structural

o    Fluids and pressures

o    Well test data and what they mean

o    Recovery mechanisms and development plans

• Non technical issues – over/under sizing facilities, politics (stranded discoveries) etc.

 

The workshop will use taught material, plus several practical examples.

Find out more at http://www.pesgb.org.uk/events/event-391/

2 for 1 Discount Available to PESGB Members

Mitigating Bias, Blindness and Illusion in E&P Decision Making Rose & Associates course offering on 6 – 7 February 2017 – to incentivize your participation in this important course, a “2 for 1” discount is now offered.

Just follow the instructions detailed here to register on our website and take advantage of this offer.  If you have any questions about this process, please let us know.

The course begins by examining the types of bias, blindness, and illusion that affect us.  Exercises, videos, examples, and discussions help illustrate how these exert themselves in our daily activities.  We then address their role in the oil and gas industry via case studies followed by real-world exercises that give participants practice in addressing these distortions using project data.  The course concludes by presenting a ‘toolkit’ with mitigation techniques that can be immediately applied to project work.

Over the last 9 months, the course has been held for Southwestern Energy, Exxon-Mobil, Total, Shell (London and Houston), and the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain (PESGB).  In fact, two of the PESGB attendees wrote a review that appears in the November 2016 PESGB Bulletin.  The course has been very well received and we believe you’ll benefit greatly from it too!

Marc Bond and Creties Jenkins, Rose and Associates

There are also a limited number of free places for unemployed PESGB members available for this course. Please email bethany@pesgb.org.uk to be entered into the draw.

94% of People would recommend the Carbonate Reservoirs Course

With a few places left remaining on the 2017 course people wanting a framework or a refresher on Carbonates are urged to book quickly to avoid missing out.

Of the 2015 course Tobore Orife (PA Resources UK Limited) wrote “In summary, I greatly enjoyed the course and would recommend it to others who may want a fast-paced introduction (or maybe as a re-fresher) to the wonderful world of carbonate reservoirs.  The PESGB should be proud of this training facility.  It is my opinion that the course format will be difficult to improve upon.” In fact 94% of those who responded said that they would recommend the course to a colleague.

Make sure that you don’t continue miss out on carbonates by attending the PESGB day seminar on them on 2nd March 2017  http://www.pesgb.org.uk/events/event-339/

Welcome to the PESGB Blog…

The PESGB Blog has been designed to complement the PESGB website, and bridge the gap between the PESGB Magazine and social media, whilst providing a forum for discussion for the PESGB community.

Post your comments, or contact blog@pesgb.org.uk to write a feature, share your anecdotes, pearls of wisdom or musings on the industry. This blog is for the members, shaped by the members. If there is anything you would like to see here, please get in touch.

Get involved, we would love to hear from you!

---