Explorer President’s Column

Oil prices were at near record highs when I became AAPG president almost exactly one year ago – and immediately thereafter they began to fall.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

Some might argue that not much has changed in Colorado politics over the last year – except for the fact that the battle to ban drilling by certain groups has escalated from the local to statewide level.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

This may come as a surprise to a number of industry participants, but Utah is home to the largest oil sand resource in the United States. Largest, as in an estimated 16 billion barrels of bitumen and heavy oil.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

Are current conditions in oil and gas creating a big opportunity for petroleum geologists in the Rocky Mountain region? Some experts say today’s drilling slowdown gives geologists time to catch up on recent advances in science, providing a less hectic opportunity to analyze data, study reservoirs and create improved models.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

The word “Mexico” brings many images to mind. For some, it’s mariachis and tequila. Others think of good food and beautiful beaches. For many in the petroleum industry, though, the word “Mexico” means newfound opportunity. The Mexican Petroleum Congress, scheduled for June 10-13 in Guadalajara, offers a chance to experience that opportunity.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

On the heels of an April 23 article in The New York Times headlined, “A New ‘OPEC’ Emerges: The U.S.,” this year’s Unconventional Resources Technology Conference (URTeC) will take that topic into the field, tracking the country’s shale boom from its inception to turning the United States into the world’s No. 1 petroleum and natural gas producer in 2014 – overtaking Saudi Arabia and Russia.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Energy Policy Blog

As part of Senator Lisa Murkowski’s (R-AK) efforts to craft comprehensive energy legislation, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee recently held a hearing to discuss 26 bills that would expand energy supplies. 

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Policy Watch

AAPG Congressional Visit Days (CVD) are held annually in the spring in Washington, D.C. – and I was fortunate to participate this past March, adding the perspective of a graduate student to the event.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

AAPG Honorary member Alfredo E. Guzmán, this year’s recipient of the Michel T. Halbouty Outstanding Leadership Award, had a small hand in the changes many are calling “Mexico’s Moment.”

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

The mood is gloomy, but not for everyone, according to the 2015 Salary Survey.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)

Hot Items

Explorer Director’s Corner

Perhaps you did a double take pulling the April issue of EXPLORER from the mailbox. What is this? If you joined AAPG in the last 40 years, you’ve only known EXPLORER in its long-standing tabloid format. It worked well for many years as our advertisers – particularly seismic companies – loved the large format and the ability to display their data on a sweeping canvas. For readers, it was a little more awkward.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

A new type of buoyancy model can be used to understand the source of residual oil zones, both thick and thin, to help determine the likelihood that economically viable recoverable oil resides in transition zones of imbibition reservoirs. Application of a buoyancy and breech model will fill a void in reservoir characterization. It will help distinguish between TZs and ROZs, the first of which allows application of primary and secondary (waterflooding) oil recovery methods and the second of which requires more difficult CO2-enhanced oil recovery projects.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Historical Highlights

The Casablanca oil field, discovered in 1975 and located on the Mediterranean shelf edge, has been greatly significant in the world’s offshore oil industry activity, besides being by far the biggest oil field in Spain.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

It isn’t news to anyone that prediction is difficult, especially when it’s the future (as a great man once said). Uncertainty and unpredictability are just a part of the job of tracking and predicting the future supply and demand of energy. That being the case, when energy analysts say that the current level of uncertainty is particularly high, it might be easy to dismiss it as a “dog bites man” story. It isn’t.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Geophysical Corner

Advancements in processing and imaging techniques have continued over the last several decades, which have gradually improved the quality of the processed surface seismic data. When the quality of the existing seismic data is not adequate to perform an interpretation task reasonably, then the interpreter looks for other options. Is it feasible to acquire a new survey? In the absence of an improved survey, will reprocessing of seismic data be a good option?

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)

Headquarters Contacts

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