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3D Seismic
on Surmont – Improving Resources and Risks Assessment*
By
Denis Druesne1, Richard Shang2, and Bryan Vandal2
Search and Discovery Article #40280 (2008)
Posted March 27, 2008
*Adapted from extended abstract prepared for AAPG Hedberg Conference, “Heavy Oil and Bitumen in Foreland Basins – From Processes to Products,” September 30 - October 3, 2007 – Banff, Alberta, Canada
1Total EP Canada seconded to ConocoPhillips Canada, Calgary, AB
2ConocoPhillips Canada, Calgary, AB
Located within the Athabasca basin, the resources in the Surmont lease (Figure 1) are currently estimated to approximately 20 Bbbl of bitumen in place. The Surmont project will develop the oil sands (~8 API) by the means of the Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage process (SAGD). SAGD development projects for oil sands are characterized by a large number of horizontal wells required to maintain a production plateau of ~30 years.
The reservoir, located within the McMurray Formation (Albo-Aptian), is primarily
made of unconsolidated sandstones deposited in a fluvio-estuarine environment
with high facies variability. As for most
development projects in the Athabasca oil sands the resource evaluation
historically relied on the delineation wells with very limited seismic
input.
The interpolation of well information in this highly heterogeneous reservoir
environment remains a challenge, especially when dealing with a relatively low
well density.
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From a subsurface viewpoint, the challenges are numerous; three of them are particularly relevant:
The Surmont database
consists of 415km2 (two third of the Lease area) of high
quality 3D
·
The · The complex geological environment: high facies variability. · The complex fluid distribution (gas and water over bitumen) together with a limited knowledge of the petroelastic behavior of the bitumen.
The only obvious
Integration of
The integration of
conventional well logs, high resolution electric imaging, geological
core, and · Better resources and risks categorization assessment. · Reducing uncertainties. · Improving reservoir models, therefore well performance predictability
In this presentation we offer an
Barson, D., Bachu, S., Esslinger, P., 2001, Flow systems in the Mannville Group in the east-central Athabasca area and implications for steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) operations for in situ bitumen production: Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology, v. 49, p. 376-392.
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