Assess new data management challenges

Established in 1974, RWE Dea is an oil and gas operator in Egypt. It has partnered with other companies to successfully develop the crude oil fields Ras Budran, Ras Fanar, and Zeit Bay in the Gulf of Suez. A surge of natural gas exploration in the western Nile Delta, both onshore and offshore, positioned RWE Dea as a major stakeholder in the region—responsible for the operation of several promising concessions. This opportunity also brought data management challenges. Plans for significant seismic testing, drilling, and offshore projects meant the company had to be ready to handle expanding data volumes for all aspects of its Egyptian operations. 

Develop central resource for all data 

RWE Dea is always looking to develop and enhance the way its business is managed. The company recognizes that the increasing amounts of data in today’s oil and gas industry demand advanced solutions that align with its policies and objectives. 

RWE Dea knew its success in this growing market depended on a more sophisticated method to catalog, cross reference, and manage the growing volume of E&P asset data companywide—including photos, scanned drawings, logs, and other site-specific documentation. An alternative would be to purchase expensive third-party data as a quick way to find required information, though it would ultimately create more complexity (e.g., data redundancy taking up valuable storage space). 

eSearch software was implemented by the RWE Dea head office in Germany and RWE Dea offices in Egypt and Libya to allow users to efficiently index, search for, and order physical assets consistently across multiple repositories and sites. With the help of an experienced Schlumberger deployment team, successful implementation of eSearch software was accomplished.

 

The first step was to build a new database model. All existing data was then exported from the previous software to CSV files, which were then loaded into the new system. 

Improved asset understanding and reporting 

Using eSearch software, the company now manages existing information from scattered repositories in a central resource, keeping all data intact. The software also improves asset understanding and reporting. 

The intuitive interface of eSearch software delivers a single, common view of physical and digital data, providing powerful search capabilities for swift retrieval of cataloged information. The team now benefits from more accurate valuation of prospects and assets in a lifecycle context—from data acquisition to disposition. Data integrity and security are also improved. The new system has ultimately driven an improvement in data management, expediting interpretation processes and information delivery to partners.

The new system has ultimately driven an improvement in data management,  expediting interpretation processes and information delivery to partners.