INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY

Explore for Challenging Resources

Mastering the necessary skills to effectively explore frontier and environmentally harsh areas becomes crucial to gaining access to resources adding up to several billions of barrels.
Even though there still are large quantities of oil held by producing Countries, the search for hydrocarbons trapped into environmentally complex formations (deep or ultradeep waters, Arctic and sub-Arctic regions) is still open.
Accumulations estimated to account for several hundreds of billions of barrels of resources are believed to be trapped in those basins: over 200 billion barrels of oil can potentially be discovered in basins located in deep and extra deep waters (10% of the world total) and over 400 billion barrels in Arctic regions (over 20% of the world total).
These areas present complex geological structures or weak seismic response (in presence of salt domes, basalts, geological systems, diffused gases or hydrates). Therefore, improving the subsurface description is essential – increasing the resolution of seismic images from tens of meters to meters – and the ability to estimate the quantities and quality of the fluids contained in the sedimentary basins.
In the two year period that spans from 2007 to 2008, Eni’s most significant activities have concerned techniques for the identification of hydrocarbon accumulations in the subsurface, technologies for geophysical prospection, as well as for reservoir characterization.

Seismic on ice
DVA
CSEM
4D-MGG
Coil shooting

Exploration activity in the Arctic region Seismic on ice.

Eni has successfully completed in Alaska the first (ever) seismic campaign for hydrocarbon research on floating ice. The campaign has demonstrated the possibility to extend exploration activities beyond the summer season and to devise innovative systems minimizing the environmental impact of oil exploration in Arctic and sub-Arctic areas. The next activities will concern the analysis of the data gathered during the campaign, with the aim of identifying potential hydrocarbon accumulations.

internal technology (DVA) Depth Velocity Analysis (DVA).
Eni has developed special software that can accurately analyze the velocity of seismic signals moving through different geological structures in the subsoil analized. Its use is possible in every situation where visualizing structurally complex subsoil zones is required (e.g. deep water fields "hidden" by salt or basalt layers in the Gulf of Mexico, in Brazil, Africa, the Caspian Sea, etc.).
For the development of DVA platform, the Eni Award - Eni innovation prize 2009 was assigned to Clara Andreoletti (E&P Division).

Multi-frequency Marine Controlled Source Electromagnetic (CSEM).
Eni has developed a technology that can identify areas with higher resistance, which may indicate the presence of hydrocarbons, at up to a few kilometres below the surface, through the recording of the electromagnetic response from the subsoil to an impulse produced by an artificial source. Together with the most advanced seismic analysis techniques, CSEM has significantly reduced the technical risk in the Nigerian and Norwegian off-shore area, allowing an accurate production potential assessment that was later confirmed by the results of the drilling activities.

Time-Lapse Micro-Gravity and Electric/Magnetic Methods (4D-MGG)
A new technology has been developed for the measurement of variations in gravitational, electrical and magnetic fields in a reservoir (for which a patent application has already been filed) that can distinguish among areas occupied by gas rather than liquid – oil or water. Field-tests carried out in Italy have proven to be highly effective in characterizing fields that are interrupted by barriers of permeability and in monitoring/optimizing production (e.g. gas storage).

Seismic map (continuous line) and magnetio-gravimetric image (colored bubbles linked by a sketched line)

Coil Shooting.
This is a methodology for seismic data acquisition in offshore fields, by using streamers dragged on sea spiral routes rather than on traditional regular geometric grids. In 2008, seismic data acquisition was successfully carried out in Indonesia by using this methodology and data interpretation is actually on-going.