Press Releases
Vector Seismic Hires New Chief Executive Officer
May 4, 2010
Peter Jones has been named Chief
Executive Officer for Vector Seismic Data Processing, Inc., an energy services
company with offices currently in Houston and Denver. Most recently serving as
Vice President of Latin America for ION Integrated Seismic Solutions, Peter
brings 28 years of industry experience in business development and marketing to
his new role of directing worldwide operations for Vector Seismic. Peter has
B.Sc. in Physics from Leeds University in England.
Vector Seismic Conducts Second Seismic Program in Bakken Trend
December 2008
With the recent downturn in energy prices, operators find themselves squeezed between a rock and a hard place to keep the cost of finding oil as low as possible. 3D seismic is playing an increasing role. No place is this more true than in the booming Bakken trend in North Dakota. Up to now, the use of 3D seismic to identify sweet spots in the Middle Bakken has been marginalized by the inability to identify a specific seismic signature that says, "drill here." The prolific success that operators such as EOG Resources, Whiting Oil and Gas, and Hess Corp. have enjoyed to date seems to support the assertion that seismic does not play a key role in the development of this resource play. That is until now. When Behm Energy drilled a dry horizontal well in the Bakken in February 2008, had they crossed the eastern boundary of Parshall Field, or had they somehow missed an opportunity to use geophysics to high-grade their location and the length and direction of the lateral?
With these questions in mind, Vector Seismic proposed a 2D test program connecting the Behm Energy Edwards 1-33 BH well in the nw-nw 33 154n-88w, with producing wells in both Parshall and Sanish fields to the west.
"The logic of conducting such a test was inescapable," said Scott Stockton, manager of geophysics for Vector Seismic Data Processing, Inc. (Vector) in Denver, a custom seismic processing company for the last 25 years. "This is all about reducing risk at the drill bit."
The objective, though, wasn't just to get continuous seismic coverage between the dry hole and the lucrative centers of both fields. It was to break new ground and see if a radically different approach to acquisition and processing could once again establish surface seismic as a viable tool for imaging Bakken sweet spots."
To that end, Vector designed a 3-component (polarized), high-resolution, dual-source acquisition project. They contracted Conquest Seismic Services (Conquest) in Greenwood Village, Colo. to acquire a 27-mile, 2D line spanning both oil fields and intersecting the Behm well. Using state-of-the-art ARAM Aries recording equipment and 3-component geophones, Conquest recorded the line twice—once with Vibroseis source, and once with shot-hole dynamite source. The net result of the acquisition was 6 separate profiles totaling more than 160 miles of coverage. The data were recorded as 4,000 percent coverage and with 64 geophone stations per linear mile. Because of the need for long offsets for the converted-wave recording, the nominal far offset was nearly 20,000'. The records were recorded to 6 seconds at a 1 millisecond sample rate.
"Most of the oil-in-place in the Middle Bakken is trapped in fractures," according to Mike Johnson, Denver geologist and a key player in the discovery of Parshall Field. Vertical fractures are virtually invisible to conventional surface seismic, and horizontal fractures, triggered by the volume expansion of the hydrocarbons-in-place, require very close control and a fine sample rate to image subtle time and waveform differences at the Bakken level. In addition, shear wave seismic energy will be significantly diminished when it crosses fluid-filled cracks in the Middle Bakken formation.
The differences don't stop there, either. In addition to a comprehensive 3C source test, Vector Seismic is also performing intense analysis and experimental seismic processing of the production data to squeeze every drop of information from the field data. Further, ultra high—density fourth-order velocity analysis is producing a detailed velocity field, and Vector is applying its patent-pending VHF process to the data to maximize signal and bandwidth.
This is the second such venture that Vector has conducted in the Bakken trend. In March 2008, Vector recorded and processed a 10-mile (60 profile miles) 2D program east of Tioga Field in northern Mountrail County. The results, including a comprehensive report and source tests, are available on a nonexclusive basis from the company. If the NE Nesson test program was any indication of the potential of this type of test, the Parshall-Sanish 2D test is expected to image the Bakken interval with 200Hz+ reflection data.
Vector's president, Mark Ziegler, states, "Very few of the players in the Bakken have time for the systematic approach that Vector has applied to experimental seismic imaging—both from an acquisition and processing standpoint."
In addition to the acquisition and processing expertise brought to bear for both experimental programs, Vector is collaborating closely with geologic and geophysical experts including Mike Johnson, Gayle Bechtold, Dr. Roger Gilbertson, and Dr. Matt Ralston, a converted-wave seismic expert, to assist in processing these data and to package these studies with meaningful models correlative to the seismic data. The Parshall-Sanish 2D test program was fully funded by active players in the Bakken trend and is expected to be released by the end of the year. The NE Nesson 2D test program is available now.
Both the Parshall—Sanish 2D test program, and its predecessor, the NE Nesson 2D test program, are available for license from Vector. The packages include all of the seismic data, raw and processed; a comprehensive source test and report; and models and geologic analysis. For operators that are planning on expenditures in the millions of dollars for seismic and drilling, the small entry cost for the Vector test programs can be an important addition to the body of knowledge and can help maximize the bang for the seismic buck.
For additional information, please contact Vector Seismic at info@vector-seismic.com.
Press release from Rocky Mountain Oil and Gas Journal.
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Celebrating 25 Years of Excellence
Feb 1, 2009
Through the peaks and valleys of the oil and gas industry, Vector Seismic Data Processing, Inc. has continued to deliver consistent, reliable results to our customers. And after 25 successful years, Vector continues to provide specialized seismic services, leading processing technology, enhanced software solutions and has recently launched a seismic data library business.
We change with the times, in order to remain on the cutting-edge. As our customers needs expand, we develop new technology to help them remain competitive. Our large investment in research and development, integrated with leading geophysical tools, allows us to exceed the demands of the industry.
We plan to soar to new heights. We hope you'll join us and be a part of the exciting, yet challenging, future of the oil and gas industry.
It's the combination of vast resources and a resourceful team that keeps Vector positioned ahead of the rest!
We couldn't have done it without the support of our loyal customers.
Thanks for 25 great years!
We've Moved Our Offices
DENVER
We've moved our Denver office to the Trinity Building . . . next to the fabulous Trinity Grill restaurant and across from the historical Brown Palace.
Please note our new location:
Our main number remains the same, so feel free to give us a call any time. We look forward to seeing you at our new location.
HOUSTON
Our Houston offices have moved, as of June 1, 2003. We are in the well-known West Chase Business District, just off Beltway 8. Our phone numbers and fax have remained the same. We look forward to hearing from you.
Our new location is: