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In this paper we present a new marine seismic acquisition technique initially developed to meet imaging challenges of the Loppa High in the Norwegian Barents Sea. Two seismic vessels operate in tandem; one streamer vessel towing a spread of deep, densely spaced streamers, and one source vessel towing two or more sources. The source vessel is positioned on top of the seismic spread. The unique configuration facilitates acquisition of zero-offset data. This, together with the fact that both negative and positive offsets are recorded, creates a unique illumination density of the subsurface. The solution is developed and tested in close cooperation between CGG and Lundin through a comprehensive modelling and field trial program involving a series of safety and mechanical tests and also a small 3D test survey. The result is high-resolution seismic images in the shallow and improved S/N in the deeper sections.

While significant progress has been made in CCUS over the last five years, the industrial and financial sectors need to see how projects are being effectively de-risked. By capitalizing on the latest technology advances and the integration of multidisciplinary skills and data, geoscience has a critical role to play in de-risking for CCUS development.

Each year the geoscience industry creates huge volumes of documents containing a wealth of knowledge which cannot be easily queried or extracted. Key to the successful extraction and transformation of data is an understanding of the nature of the data that exists within a corpus of files. For large datasets, it is time-consuming to manually open and review each document in turn. Therefore, in this article, we discuss how machine learning is used at CGG to classify documents in our automated pipeline and reduce project times significantly.

Based on an extensive 3D modelling study utilising full-wavefield Finite-Difference modelling and Full-Waveform Inversion (FWI) we demonstrate that the TopSeis/OBN hybrid acquisition acquired from May to August 2021 in the Nordkapp basin in the Barents Sea has the potential to image salt flanks and sedimentary details, given an accurate initial model in the shallow and a carefully designed deblending and FWI workflow. As a part of this we demonstrate that the large offsets and multi-azimuth recorded by the ocean bottom nodes are crucial to image the complex salt diapirism in the area including the steeply dipping flanks.

Survey design comparison regarding seismic reservoir characterization objectives: a case study from South Tunisia L. Michou, L. Michel, P. Herrmann, T. Coleou, P.Feugere, J.L. Formento The objective of this onshore survey designs’ comparison case study is to highlight the impact of the acquisition trace density on seismic reservoir characterization in order to optimize acquisition geometries. Structural, AVO and AVAz seismic reservoir attributes and QCs from 4 seismic surveys over the same area, the Jebel Grouz South Tunisian field, are compared. Results highlight the added value of the acquisition trace density in comparison to the source strength or the source and receiver proportion, especially for elastic and anisotropic seismic reservoir characterizations.

Executives from CGG, PGS and TGS shared how their companies are helping businesses minimize their carbon footprints by implementing CCS subsurface technologies and services.

By August 2014 a full Permanent Reservoir Monitoring system was installed at the Grane field; since going live, five PRM surveys have been acquired. This paper describes how a robust sequence has been designed and optimized, thanks to the successful collaboration between processing (CGG) and interpretation (Statoil) teams. The 4D products are available to the interpreters 8 to 10 days after the last shot. An example is presented, illustrating the value of fast delivery of fresh 4D PRM seismic data; we also discuss a 4D processing designed to address the different acquisition geometries between vintage OBC surveys and PRM surveys.

Hydrocarbon energy resources have been extracted from the Earth for many decades using in-depth technical knowledge of its subsurface. With the need to achieve net zero goals, many traditional hydrocarbon companies are reducing the carbon intensity of their operations and investing in renewable energy and carbon offsetting, repurposing existing hydrocarbon infrastructure and technology to support this transition. Subsurface technical specialists across the energy sector have decades of knowledge and skills that can help to accelerate decarbonisation. In this article, we summarise some of our recent multi-disciplinary projects that demonstrate the valuable role geoscience can play in the energy transition, particularly when supported by data science, high performance computing (HPC) and other technologies.

The recent world-class Baleine discovery within the Deep Tano Basin has attracted renewed exploration interest for the offshore Côte d’Ivoire. Its structural complexity and depositional stratigraphy, resulting from multiphase rifting of this basin, require high-quality seismic data to develop detailed geological models. To achieve this, CGG recently conducted a seismic stratigraphic analysis using the CDI-14 broadband multi-client 3D seismic dataset over the Grand Bassam subbasin. The goal was to develop new insights into Late Cretaceous depositional mechanisms and key facies distribution to shed light on the potential prospectivity of this basin.