GEO acquires broadband long offset border survey

GeoPartners, in partnership with MAGE, Seabird Exploration and DownUnder GeoSolutions (DUG), has announced completion of the acquisition of a new Ireland/UK multi-client 2D seismic survey. This is the first broadband long offset cross border survey of its kind, comprises a total of 5124 line km and is located mostly in the Irish North Celtic Sea and St Georges Channel. Acquisition was completed in September 2015 using the MAGE vessel Nikolay Trubyatchinsky (formerly Polar Explorer).

This project will provide high quality regional data in an area of increasing industry interest following the 28th licensing round awards on the UK side of the median line and several new licence options on the Irish side. However, a considerable portion of this area currently remains unlicensed.

Promising province

The Celtic Sea and UK Western Approaches province is largely underexplored at pre-Cretaceous levels and shows promise, especially within the Jurassic and Triassic sequences - which few wells have penetrated. There is a proven Liassic source rock and potential reservoirs include the Triassic Sherwood sandstone and Jurassic limestone and sandstone. Locally, the Carboniferous could provide a gas source from coal measures and a potential oil source from the Bowland shale, as in the Morecambe Bay Hamilton field.

The survey provides well ties to most of the key wells in the survey area, including:

Broadband processing and imaging will be carried out by DUG, utilising their deghosting solution, DUG Broad. Processing is ongoing and is due for completion early Q2 2016. The survey is well supported by industry funding and the data is now available for licensing at early participant terms until the end of 2015.

Read the article online at: https://www.oilfieldtechnology.com/offshore-and-subsea/11112015/acquisition-of-first-uk-ireland-cross-border-seismic-survey-completed/