Print this pageAAPG GEO 2010 Middle East
Geoscience Conference & Exhibition
Innovative Geoscience Solutions – Meeting Hydrocarbon Demand in Changing Times
March 7-10, 2010 – Manama, Bahrain
How to Think Further Ahead in Hydrocarbon Prospecting
(1) Drilling & Evaluation, Halliburton, Houston, TX.
When assessing the value of a collection of prospects and leads, we tend to ignore the more complex and costly development scenarios such as multi-laterals, because we fear that these would erode the value of our venture. In reality, however, a more costly development scenario may actually make rather than break an opportunity by integrating the development of a number of prospects that wouldn’t pass the hurdles when considered in isolation.
The approach we advocate (and actively practice) is based on a simple principle: If one can measure and model the performance of an asset, then one can optimize it by considering a wide range of alternative development scenarios at the earliest possible stages of assessment.Think of this simple example: We work in an area where drilling is very hard (and therefore expensive). As a consequence, most operators consider the drilling of vertical wells only. However, by being able to model the use of much more complex well geometries, we can actually assess scenarios that involve the joint development of a number of accumulations, which may more than offset the much higher cost of the more complex well geometry.
The presentation will discuss a number of real-life examples.