Workshop 8

Last European Frontiers

Friday 9 June 2023 | Room Lehar 2

 

Convenors

  • Gabor Tari (OMV Upstream)
  • Joan Flinch (Elsevier)
European Frontiers

Description

For a sustainable future, replacing crude oil and natural gas as the dominant elements in the global energy supply with lower carbon footprint sources is a major challenge on its own. It is even more so in Europe given the energy supply security issues highlighted recently due to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.

To work towards a future energy mix which could meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, the increasing energy demand will dictate the exploration and production of low carbon intensity and cost efficient “advantaged” hydrocarbons.

A good example of an advantaged hydrocarbon is biogenic gas which can be found in large quantities in offshore regions around Europe, such as in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea.

In addition, thermogenic gas may be found at greater depth in established hydrocarbon basins where the risk and cost of considering these targets prevented exploration to date. There are several basins in Europe which still have plays which have not been fully explored. Last exploration frontiers also include thrust-fold belts and volcanic basins in the broader European region with considerable gas potential.

Since hydrocarbons cannot be entirely replaced by greener geo-energy solutions in the next few decades, a deliberate effort is needed to focus the carbon capture and storage capacity that will be needed to mitigate the consequences of the ongoing, but slowly decreasing reliance on fossil fuels. Given the increasing focus on low-carbon geo-energy solutions, the European region needs a modern re-evaluation of the subsurface geo-energy potential not related to hydrocarbons. For example, the willingness to interpret a collage of “old” 2D seismic reflection data could provide critical new insights in many other underexplored basin segments globally in the context of the energy transition. Oil and gas companies, given their unique subsurface legacy data sets, will play a key role in the re-assessment of “forgotten” basin segments worldwide.

This workshop is intended to capture the latest ideas about the last exploration frontiers in Europe discussing various case studies, including new plays and underexplored basin segments considered and/or innovative technologies involved.

 

Participant Profile

Geo-energy company geoscientists engaged in green energy solutions
Academic researchers
Low-carbon business developers
Governmental regulatory and legislative experts

 

Workshop Programme

TimeActivity
09:00Workshop Introduction
TRANSITION TO NEW ENERGIES
09:10Transition to non-fossil energy in Europe - pipe dream or feasible target? Scenarios review – I. Tischenko (OMV)
09:30The use of assisted interpretation tools for extracting new insights from legacy well and seismic data – A. Davies, L. Cowliff, J.C. Wrobel-Daveau, D. Possee, G. Baines, and M. Simmons (Halliburton)
09:50Gádoros Geothermal concession: A breakthrough in geothermal energy utilization in Hungary? – G. Bada, E. Dombrádi, M. Peffer, and B. Saathoff (Aspect Energy)
10:10Guadalquivir Basin (SW Spain). Past, present and future of a mature basin – S. Ledesma (Trinity Energy Storage)
10:30Coffee Break
GAS DISCOVERIES AND RESOURCES
11:00Case study of a stacked-pay gas discovery in Dnieper Donets Basin, Ukraine – P. Kuzmenko, R. Bodnaruk, A. Ficarra, B. Sralla, and M. Vityk (UGV NaftoGaz)
11:20Should we expect more beyond the Sakarya gas discovery in the deep-water Turkish Black Sea? – Ö. Sipahioğlu, T. Petrolleri, and A. Ortaklığı (TPAO – Turkish Petroleum Corporation)
11:40How the prolific biogenic gas play in the Western Black Sea basin could find its counterpart in the East: a case study in offshore Georgia? – F. Mohamed, H. Peresson, and C. Krezsek (Petrom)
12:00Upper Cretaceous and Paleogene gas potential of the Norwegian Margin – S. Planke (VBER)
12:20Discussions and Lunch Break
NEW EXPLORATION FRONTIERS
13:202D and 3D seismic acquisition in the Western Greece offshore: the last Mediterranean exploration frontier? – A. Pagoulatos, P. Gkotsis, G. Mikoniatis, and C. Turrini (HELLENiQ ENERGY)
13:40Appraisal and Exploration Opportunities in the Kura-Kartli Basin, central Georgia – P. Pace, R. Tevzadze, N. Tevzadze, A. Janiashvili, and M. Sirazde (Pace Exploration and Georgia oil and gas Limited)
14:00A New insight of the External Dinarides – Lika Area, Croatia – D. Takač, L. Dubravko, and G. Jovic (INA)
14:20Evidence of a working hydrocarbon system through active oil and gas seepages and exploration potential of Kyparissiakos Block, offshore Western Greece – A. Stathopoulou, E. Tripsanas, and I. Oikonomopoulos (HELLENiQ ENERGY)
14:40Coffee Break
14:50How the integration of 80 years of E&P data and understandings transform two small onshore gas discoveries into large resources to be developed to sustain country energy security – R. Di Cuia (Delta Energy)
COMPLEX RESERVOIRS
15:10Intra- and subvolcanic geo-energy exploration: one of the final frontiers in Europe – G. Tari (OMV)
15:30Modern concepts related to fractured carbonate reservoir characterisation applied to an old discovery: the birth of a new large onshore field – R. Di Cuia (Delta Energy)
15:50Discussion and concluding remarks
16:00End of the Workshop