Oil & Gas UK launches project to stimulate exploration on UKCS

Oil & Gas UK launches project to stimulate exploration on UKCS

LONDON -- Oil & Gas UK has launched the first phase of a project to stimulate more exploration by promoting new and existing plays on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS).  It has commissioned SLR Consulting to complete a three-month preliminary study to investigate the way forward for a 21st century exploration road map -- a digital perspective of petroleum geology.

Oonagh Werngren, Oil & Gas UK’s operations director, explains: “The aim of the 21st Century Exploration Road Map is to contribute to improving exploration success and address the 50% decrease in the number of wells drilled. The outcome of the preliminary study will provide industry with the specifications for a subsequent implementation project to deliver an on-line, more dynamic source of digital geological maps summarizing current subsurface understanding and the hydrocarbon resources potential within key areas of the UKCS."

Oil & Gas UK’s fellow stakeholders supporting the initiative include DECC, the British Geological Survey (BGS), The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Common Data Access (CDA), exploration companies, operators and firms providing offshore services.

Hamish Wilson, SLR Consulting’s technical director, explains: “SLR Consulting will be engaging with individuals and organizations with expertise in UKCS exploration to establish recommendations for both the geological and geographical scope and key priorities of the 21st Century Exploration Road Map. This process will enable us to define the prospective content, timing and phasing of the project which is scheduled for delivery by the end of 2015.”