Palaeozoic reservoirs - key factors in distribution, characterisdation and controls on reservoir quality

Who should attend:

Petroleum and reservoir geologists, stratigraphers, and explorationists involved with exploration and production in Palaeozoic reservoirs of the world.

Overview:

This course is designed to provide an understanding of the importance of Palaeozoic reservoirs in terms of petroleum exploration and production. Hydrocarbons from Palaeozoic reservoirs constitute a significant proportion of known reserves in the world and the knowledge gained from this course will allow further understanding of the geological controls on their distribution, sedimentological character and ultimately the controls on reservoir quality. This course will determine how these reservoirs are identified through age dating and correlation, wireline log interpretation and sedimentological recognition from core. FMI analysis, a technique well suited to Palaeozoic reservoir study, will be covered in detail, with the use of key examples to demonstrate the benefits of FMI in sedimentary structure and fracture analysis. Run as a series of presentations and exercises covering key case studies across the world, this course will examine the various issues involved in Palaeozoic reservoir exploration, differentiating these reservoirs from younger plays and defining the implications for future exploration in the various case studies covered.

Contents:

• General introduction on the distribution of Palaeozoic reservoirs and the relevance of Palaeozoic plate configurations and palaeogeographies.
• Classification and recognition: extensive investigation of core, FMI and wireline logs in order to identify environmental and structural aspects of various Palaeozoic reservoirs.
• Reservoir quality: with recognition of key sedimentological factors, the course will examine how these influence reservoir quality, with demonstrative examples taken from petrographic thin sections, scanning electron microscopy, all related to available conventional core analysis data.
• Exploration: a review of specific issues encountered in Palaeozoic reservoirs, the difference between Palaezoic reservoirs and other younger plays and implications for future exploration.
• Case studies: all aspects of this course will utilise various case studies from across the world that illustrate the variation in geological controls and implications for exploration. Examples range from the Ordovician glaciomarine sediments of North Africa to the Permian aeolian sediments of the North Sea.