Global Petroleum
Evaluation -The Role of Integrated Regional Analysis
Stephen Creaney
ExxonMobil Exploration Company,
The evaluation of petroleum
systems for new opportunities requires a fully integrated approach to Geoscience often on a broad regional scale. Over the last
two decades our ability to execute such studies has been significantly improved
by a combination of Geoscience advances and the
massive increase in the data handling capability of computer systems.
Modern regional studies
incorporate an understanding of geodynamics and structural development with an
integrated understanding of sediment accumulation and distribution. The
occurrence of source rocks and the timing of load generally control the
subsequent evolution of petroleum systems. We refer to the study of this
integrated process of basins forming, filling and maturing as Genetic Basin
Analysis. As an example the geological evolution of
The advent of Geographic
Information Systems has provided a computing platform perfectly suited to
storing and manipulating regional scale, map-based data. By treating maps as
data and interacting mapped datasets we can handle very large datasets, observe
broad trends in geologic parameters etc.
This presentation will
describe the concept of Genetic Basin Analysis and how it results from fully
integrated geologic analysis combined with petroleum systems analysis. It will
also describe how Geographic Information Systems are used in regional analysis
to facilitate this integration as well as provide the platform for spatial
analysis of geologic data.
AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90064©2006-2007 AAPG Distinguished Lecturers