Explorer Division Column EMD

This is my final contribution to the AAPG EXPLORER as president of the Energy Minerals Division and it has been an honor. As with many other division presidents, I feel safe in the assumption that I did not achieve as much as I had hoped but take solace in the fact that as least some forward progression was made. It is in this that I would like to make my final contribution by addressing three EXPLORER articles in the last issue that reference issues that are of great concern to me: These three articles could not have been published at a better time.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer President’s Column

We have seen many changes in the oil and gas industry since AAPG’s founding more than 100 years ago. AAPG has also changed along with the industry in response to these changes. Our industry’s focus on various plays and areas constantly varies, while shifting product prices and sweeping changes in public opinion and governmental policy have a major impact upon companies of all sizes, as well as the geoscientists working for them.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Geophysical Corner

The processing of land seismic data entails a series of steps through which the data passes, including sorting, static correction, deconvolution, residual static correction, velocity analysis, migration, stacking, filtering and scaling. Some tasks, such as velocity analysis, are interactive, while others are automated. The processing of seismic data from the same area often follows the same proven series of steps or sequence, barring any unforeseen issues that need to be addressed. Such a sequence of tasks designed to process data from their initiation to completion is referred to as a “workflow.”

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

National and international energy companies today face enormous pressure from government, shareholders and society to meet increasing demand and deliver profits while meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and progressing toward a transition away from fossil fuels. The Energy Trilemma – the capacity to provide energy security, energy equity and environmental sustainability simultaneously – is a term developed and measured by the World Energy Council since 2010. Whether they use “Energy Trilemma” or another term, industry leaders face daily decisions about how to provide reliable, sustainable energy for all while reducing CO2 emissions and developing cleaner energy sources.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

Alaska’s North Slope is the best conventional onshore oil play in the world. That’s according to Bill Armstrong, CEO and president of Armstrong Oil and Gas, Inc. And, he will give no quarter on his belief about how robust the future is for the North Slope’s prospects. In short, Armstrong calls the area “incredible.”

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer President’s Column

We are at the point that we either evolve or fade away. I’m reminded of a quote: “We stand now where two roads diverge. The road we have long been traveling is deceptively easy, a smooth superhighway on which we progress with great speed, but at its end lies disaster. The other fork of the road – the one less traveled by – offers our last, our only chance to reach a destination that assures the preservation of the earth.”

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

I have read with genuine excitement about new technologies for direct air capture of CO2, electrolytic conversion of water to hydrogen and then using the H2 to make ammonia and using CO2 from direct air capture and combining it through electrolysis to make jet fuel. These technological advances are truly impressive from a scientific perspective. However, you will need to forgive me for being rather simple-minded as I look at these impressive accomplishments.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

Natural carbon sinks, such as oceans, vegetation and soils are, and will remain, critical when it comes to the best way to remove carbon from the atmosphere. But those natural solutions, as presently operating, will not be sufficient to meet climate goals. It’s not that the systems are not working, they just need to be working better. Enhancements to those sinks will be needed.  Emitting less carbon would help, too. “One of the misconceptions is that CCS is still too expensive,” said Max Brouwers, Getech’s chief business development officer. There are many challenges with the successful operation of CCS and carbon capture, utilization and storage, he said, but the incremental societal cost is not one of them.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

The Colombian people have a complex relationship with the oil and gas industry. While companies bring economic development and social programs to rural areas, they are not always received well by local populations. On March 2, the “indigenous guard” and rural residents kidnapped oilfield workers in southern Colombia. The national government intervened, leading to the release of the hostages, but Emerald Energy later requested the suspension of their hydrocarbon exploration contract. The Colombian Association of Geologists and Geophysicists is working to foster understanding between companies and communities and to take geoscience knowledge from cities and universities into remote territories.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Division Column DEG

Carbon capture utilization and storage was labeled “a gold rush” by Bloomberg Businessweek in January. Much of it is driven by the 45Q carbon capture and storage tax credit that has significantly changed the economic outlook for CCUS. Injection of CO2 into the subsurface has been used for tertiary oil recovery efforts in the Permian Basin of New Mexico and West Texas since the 1970s. However, the permanent storage of CO2, especially in saline reservoirs, is a relatively new enterprise.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)

Hot Items

Explorer Article

What’s trending in exploration geophysics these days, in eight words: Machine learning, artificial intelligence, data, data, data and data. Those concepts fit together into one reality. As the oil and gas industry acquires larger and larger masses of geophysical data, it leans even harder on machine learning and AI to sort it all out.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Historical Highlights

Fate is defined by the American College Dictionary as, “fortune, destiny.” However, in life sometimes the outcome of fate is not so desirable, nor is it predetermined. This is the tale of two situations in which fate played a role in the early oil industry in the United States. The first instance had two fateful moments with very good outcomes, but the second led to some tragically unintended consequences.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

Oklahoma State University’s Professional Science Master’s in Geoscience program is on the way to graduating its first cohort next year. The program, with the goal of creating “scientists to run tomorrow’s business,” was developed with input from professionals and partnerships with professional societies including AAPG and Society of Exploration Geophysicists, and targets working geoscience professionals.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

The latest AAPG Geoscience Technology Workshop, “Mixed Systems on Continental Margins,” focused on turbidite, contourite and mass-transport deposits and was held recently in Lisbon, Portugal. More than 75 participants from six continents from the energy industry, academic institutions and government agencies discussed the recent achievements and uncertainties of global deepwater sedimentary systems. Highlights included a geological field trip, deep technical contributions by the presenters, a networking dinner at the local legend Trindade and a geohistory tour of the Alfama, Baixa, Chiado and Mouraria districts of downtown Lisbon.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

In 2024, one of AAPG’s most iconic programs will take an important step into the new energy landscape. The Imperial Barrel Award is a leading global educational subsurface basin analysis program for graduate geoscience students to experience the work of a team evaluating sustainable resource potential using geological and geophysical data within a simulated corporate environment.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
wwwUpdate Blog

Claudia J. Hackbarth, a Houston-based geologist who has held a variety of management and leadership positions for the Royal Dutch Shell Group, assumed the presidency of AAPG on July 1.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)

Headquarters Contacts

Susan Nash
Susan Nash Director, Innovation and Emerging Science and Technology, AAPG +1 405 314 7730