ViaLogy Delivers Novel Technology to Chevron

LONDON, March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

ViaLogy PLC (VIY) announces it has completed a key demonstration project of its QuantumRD technology under contract with Chevron U.S.A. Inc. Working closely with Chevron geophysicists, ViaLogy successfully applied QuantumRD to a 3D seismic data set for the purpose of delineating the porosity trends in the tight dolomites of the lower Permian Basin.

Variations in carbonates with low porosity have extremely small expression in the seismic response buried below background noise in the data and previous attempts to discriminate had not been successful. The QuantumRD workflow processes events down to signal amplitudes below -24dB to assess how coherent and random noise within the full seismic acquisition spectrum is differentially and directly modulated by subtle changes in porosity. Unlike conventional signal processing, QuantumRD uses a synthetic noise source, designed using rock-physics and well-control data to probe the acquired seismic data and to detect, characterize and amplify changes in seismic noise. This process of excitation of conventionally acquired seismic data using synthetic noise in software, determines attributes of interest, such as presence of pre-specified levels of porosity, as emergent quantum resonances. In less technical terms, ViaLogy points out that QuantumRD was able to discern porosity, a key rock property in locating and identifying hydrocarbon deposits, where other techniques have not. The significance of this is that it could bring a new level of accuracy and predictive capability to hydrocarbon reservoir characterization.

Sandeep Gulati, ViaLogy's VP for Product Development and CTO, states: "QuantumRD produced an attribute for predicting porosity 2 to 3 miles away from existing wells, something considered extremely difficult for this type of formation. Such predictions at the vertical intervals used represent a twofold increase over conventional seismic interpretation resolution. One project conclusion is that utilizing this method could result in significant reduction of the wells actually needed to extract oil over current standard gridding techniques, while increasing recovery from optimally placed wells based on QuantumRD analysis."

ViaLogy's CEO Robert Dean commented: "Putting our technology to use on behalf of another of the world's leading oil companies has given Vialogy the opportunity to show that it could solve some of the key extraction problems facing the industry today, and that it holds the promise of helping E&P firms avoid risks and saving considerable capital expenditure costs, and -in an era of increasing demand for gas and oil - could serve as a valuable tool for further and more efficient production from fields that have thus far proven to be uneconomic. We look forward to continuing our work with Chevron under our existing contract with them."

About ViaLogy:

ViaLogy provides reservoir characterization, geophysical imaging and hydrocarbon sizing services to global oil and gas customers based on proprietary, patented active signal processing technology. ViaLogy's QuantumRD platform assists clients in de-risking prospects over a broad range of subsurface lithologies and complex stratigraphies to generate drilling targets, position offsets and enhance recovery.

ViaLogy's core technology rapidly and accurately detects weak signals buried in high noise background and clutter, and is applicable to active/passive seismic, electromagnetic and magneto telluric data. By exploiting normally disregarded noise variations induced by changes in porosity, fluid presence and permeability across the formation, and adding computer-designed noise to the data, ViaLogy is able to amplify subtle noise variations to enhance areal and depth resolution in complex lithologies that are not achievable through conventional means. For more information on ViaLogy, visit http://www.vialogy.com.

SOURCE ViaLogy PLC