Oil & Gas - Maximising Recovery Programme (formerly SHARP) IOR Views

Welcome to Issue 8 of SHARP IOR Views.

Note the new name. In the last issue, we asked for ideas for a new name for this web based publication (to avoid confusion with email based newsletters), but no suggestions were submitted. However, we have chosen the name “IOR Views” to reflect the fact that we are encouraging contributors and readers alike to express their views on IOR through this website. Also we have a new format which complies with DTI guidelines for their websites.

Along with the format change we have introduced a beefed-up front page for IOR Views. As well as access to the latest and past issues, there is now an explanation of the purpose of IOR Views, instructions for contributing authors, information on receiving notification emails, planned issue dates etc. There is also an explanation of many of the acronyms used (at the request of Steve Coutts of Shell) and an ability to do a keyword search of all articles and features in the latest and all past issues.

Future of IOR Views

The DTI has been asked by ACHARR (the committee with representatives from industry and the academic sector that advises the DTI on the SHARP programme) to look at the future of IOR Views. For example is it meeting its original objectives and purpose. There is a range of options available going forward and we will be looking into these in the coming months. If you have ideas on how you would like to see IOR Views evolve, please email these directly to me (david.hughes@senergyltd.com). Your input would be appreciated.

New in This Issue

Thank you to the many authors who have provided the content for this issue; I appreciate the time and effort expended.

The articles this time cover the future of petroleum geology education, air injection in light oil fields, pore architecture models, reservoir stimulation using acoustic waves, relative permeability hysteresis, improved pipeline transport of heavy oil, the role of incremental projects in the future of the UKCS, the use of 4D seismic in reservoir management, issues surrounding a CO2 EOR demonstration project, and an analysis of all wells drilled along the Atlantic margin. The “Talking Point” this time is by Gavin Longmuir who asks “Is Darcy’s Law a Flawed Foundation for IOR?”. Is it? Please provide us with your views.

There are also reports on the recent SPE/DOE symposium on IOR and the DTI’s own recent seminar on UKCS heavy oil recovery. As noted elsewhere, a dedicated Heavy Oil Portal (web pages), constructed by Senergy Ltd for the DTI, was launched with this event to cater for the renewed interest in exploiting UK's remaining heavy oil discoveries. This is a difficult and challenging area and we will watch its progress with interest.

DTI Maximising Hydrocarbon Recovery from the UKCS Seminar 2004

This year DTI’s improved oil recovery seminar is being expanded to two days and reorganised to include geoscience topics and a much greater participation from industry. It is being held on 22 and 23 June 2004 at the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre.

Technical sessions are planned on: Condensate and HPHT Reservoirs, Reservoir Characterisation and Simulation Techniques, Advanced Seismic Techniques, and Maximising Recovery from “Brown Fields”. Each session will have presentations from DTI, academia, operating oil companies, and from the service sector where appropriate. Time has also been set aside for panel discussions.

Speakers have been invited from DTI, Imperial College, University of Aberdeen, University of Edinburgh, Heriot Watt University, ECL, BP, Shell, Talisman, Veritas, TGS-NOPEC, WesternGeco, and CDA. There will be an introduction and welcome by Simon Toole, Director, DTI Licensing and Consents Unit - Licences, Exploration and Development.

There is a drinks reception and dinner on the evening of the 22 June, with an after dinner talk by Paul Blakeley, Vice President, Talisman Energy (UK) Limited.

For the full programme, please see http://events.senergyltd.com, you can also register (and pay) online at this link. We expect 75+ delegates and I look forward to seeing you there.

Statistics Relating to Issue 7

During the just under four month period from 9 February - 27 May 2004, IOR Views has received nearly 100,500 hits. This is the first time that we have reached 100,000 hits on the site during the period between issues. There were 12,600 visits from 5000 unique visitors. Of course Issue 6 and all the previous issues are available for viewing on the website and these statistics cover all issues.

The table below shows the statistics relating to the top ten technical articles from Issue 7. In addition to the technical articles, sections such as "Introduction" and "Editorial" received around 200 visits.

As noted above, all previous issues are available for viewing, and during the last four months one article in particular has received over 500 visits. This is Jim Munns and Sue Stoker’s article “UKCS: The Future is Stratigraphic!”. This has replaced Malcolm Greaves article from Issue 2 as the most popular article! The top five articles from earlier issues accessed during the last four months are shown below.

Acknowledgements

Thanks are due to Tissa for his support at the DTI and to Chris McLeod in the IT department at RML for his efforts in compiling the new front page and the webpage versions of the articles.