Near-field exploration

Fast-track exploration to production

Overview

Fast-track exploration to production

As the industry looks to reduce cycle times, costs, and risks, exploration is shifting near existing infrastructure. Today, about 80% of exploration and appraisal activity focuses on near-field exploration, helping operators explore untapped reserves in their own backyards and tie back to existing infrastructure. Also known as infrastructure-led exploration (ILX), this approach minimizes initial investment, accelerates production, and reduces carbon intensity per barrel. SLB uses digital and innovative technologies to optimize ILX, delivering greater certainty and at the speed that the job demands. With advanced tech, high-quality measurements, and timely insights, you not only can confirm commercial viability of untapped reserves quicker but expedite well placement, sidetracking, completions design, and overall field development.

How SLB Reservoir Evaluation Optimizes Near-Field Exploration

One of many ways we're fast-tracking exploration to production

"The type of data you acquire for near-field exploration is very important because you're making decisions on what will be your completions, field development plan, and tie-in based on one well."
- Rinat Batyrshin, Director, Reservoir Performance Evaluation
Learn how an intelligent workflow provides the data you need to accelerate near-field decisions.

Meeting energy demand with a lower carbon footprint
As energy demand grows and decarbonization targets become key value drivers, operators as well as global and local communities are looking to transition to lower-emitting solutions without compromising energy supply. ILX is an important component in a mixed basket of solutions that will help meet this demand with a lower carbon footprint. By tapping into nearby reserves using advanced technologies and digitalization, SLB enables more efficient ILX, reducing emissions while improving project economics—crucial for offshore and deepwater environments.

Fueling energy security
Advanced SLB solutions not only enhance efficiency and deliver greater subsurface insights but accelerate energy security in regions with supply shortages. By leveraging existing infrastructure, these regions can tie back nearby newly discovered reserves that have been deemed commercially viable, thereby reducing costs and risks associated with exploration and development.

Leveraging existing transportation networks
Solely relying on discovery drilling can be capital intensive, not just in terms of field development and production but also in the transportation of hydrocarbons to market. Proximity to transportation facilities significantly reduces logistical hurdles associated with bringing newly found reserves into production. Near-field exploration is a strategy that enables operators to optimize existing assets, enhancing project economics and maximizing returns on investment.

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