Tutor(s)
Mark Bentley: TRACS International Consultancy and Langdale Geoscience.
Overview
Experience the classic, well-exposed Grès d’Annot turbidite outcrop area in the French Alps, an excellent analogue for deepwater exploration and development targets in structurally active slope and basin settings. This course will provide insights into field development challenges in relatively confined, high-net, submarine fan systems by using the world-class exposures along with static/dynamic models of the outcrops to support discussions. Seismic forward-models of 3-D and 4-D responses to waterfloods in these systems add to the conversation. The setting allows reservoirs to be observed at a range of scales from seismic- and field-scale, to the scale of a core plug, and is intended for a cross-discipline, geoscience and petroleum engineering audience.
Duration and Logistics
A 7-day field course in the French Alps, comprising field activities and exercises on-site, unless weather doesn’t allow. The manual will be provided in paper format, with a digital copy available as a take-away.
Level and Audience
Advanced. The course is designed for integrated teams (geologists, geophysicists and reservoir engineers) evaluating development opportunities for fields in deepwater confined basins. The ideal group would be an asset team, who would be encouraged to bring their own field issues (and data where possible) to discuss live on the analogue.
Exertion Level
This class requires a DIFFICULT exertion level. The Grès d’Annot is quite comfortable in the early summer, with temperatures of 10–25°C (50–80°F) and occasional rain showers. Some field locations require path-based hillwalking involving ascents up to 600m (2000 feet). The longest excursion involves a full-day hike and will be conducted at a leisurely pace.
Objectives
You will learn to:
- Assess discrete, structurally controlled sediment transport pathways into bathymetrically complex deepwater basins.
- Assess the role of relative structural and flow confinement on turbidite reservoir architecture.
- Characterize internal reservoir architecture in different parts of the system and assess the impact of heterogeneities on fluid flow.
- Formulate reservoir and simulation modelling requirements, in order to forecast production performance from reservoirs of these types.
- Determine the level of detail required for reservoir characterization under a range of fluid fills and production mechanisms.
- Understand how much of the observed heterogeneity would be detectable on seismic, and predict how fluid-sensitive heterogeneities would be visible on 4-D seismic for a field on production.