3D AVO and seismic inversion in María Inés Oeste field, Santa Cruz, Argentina, a case study

Abstract

The successful exploration for new reservoirs in mature areas, as well as the optimal development of existing fields, requires the integration of unconventional geological and geophysical techniques. In particular, the calibration of 3D seismic data to well log information is crucial to obtain a quantitative understanding of reservoir properties. The advent of new technology for prestack seismic data analysis and 3D visualization has resulted in improved fluid and lithology predictions prior to expensive drilling. Increased reservoir resolution has been achieved by combining seismic inversion with AVO analysis to minimize exploration risk.In this paper we present an integrated and systematic approach to prospect evaluation in the María Inés Oeste field. We will show how petrophysical analysis of well log data can be used as a feasibility tool to determine the fluid and lithology discrimination capabilities of AVO and inversion techniques. Then, a description of effective AVO and prestack inversion tools for reservoir property quantification will be discussed. Finally, the incorporation of the geological interpretation and the use of 3D visualization will be presented as a key integration tool for the discovery of new plays.

Hydrocarbon detection and depositional environment prognosis in the Niger Delta - Integrated insights from log and seismic avo-inversion attributes

“…So, an enhanced integration of datasets from seismic and well logs for reservoir properties mapping is a requisite for optimal economic returns in diverse petroleum reser voirs and depositional environments (Russell et al, 1997;Schuelke et al, 1998, Brown et al, 2004Bose et al, 2004). Reservoir characterization has been demonstrated to enhance the lateral prediction of lithology and modelling of the internal reservoir architecture while seismic, sedimentological, petrophysical and reservoir engineering information have been methodically combined to give a very detailed reservoir evaluation (Soldo et al, 2001, Huang, 2001. Also, seismic inversion techniques have been proven to be very effective tools for facilitating integration of datasets and production of reservoir characterization (Bahorich and Farmer, 1995;Connolly, 1999;El-Mowafy and Marfurt, 2008).…”