A 3D VSP Schrader Bluff Survey at Milne Point, North Slope Alaska

By

C.C. West, J. Lemaux, D. Urban, C. Sullivan, B. Hornby, A. Ross, and J. Garing (BP Exploration)

The Schrader Bluff formation extends over parts of the Milne Point and Kuparuk River units in Alaska’s North Slope. Recent advances, including horizontal multilateral wells, make development economically robust. Primary development risk was the increase in drilling time caused by the presence of numerous sub-seismic faults. A multi-well 3D VSP survey was used to image the faults and reduce the drilling risk.

A 3D VSP survey was conducted to increase resolution and imaging quality, reduce costs, reduce HSE risk, and provide a quicker turn-around time for a pre-stack depth migrated section. Collecting the S-pad survey presented a number of challenges, including areal image coverage, deviated wells, coordination with drilling operations, and arctic conditions. Results of the 3D VSP survey will be shown along with a discussion of acquisition and processing challenges.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90008©2002 AAPG Pacific Section/SPE Western Region Joint Conference of Geoscientists and Petroleum Engineers, Anchorage, Alaska, May 18–23, 2002.