WesternGeco Commences 3D Survey in Barents Sea
WesternGeco has announced that it has begun acquisition of the Bjørnøya Phase I “Ice Bear” 3D multiclient survey in the highly prospective West Loppa area of the Barents Sea. Following previous surveys in the area, the Ice Bear survey will extend the existing WesternGeco West Loppa datasets to the North and West. “The study area is located on the rim of the Bjørnøya Basin, on the west flank of the Loppa High and includes a large downthrown terrace in the North.”
Phil Dave, who is GeoSolutions manager at WesternGeco Europe & Africa, continued: “The study area also includes other Jurassic faulted structures, all of which have potential. Other, separate, but still promising features are seen in the southwestern part of the survey area.”
Building on previous 2D datasets, the Ice Bear survey will consist of approximately 2500 sq km of 3D seismic data, acquired using 10 X 7 km streamers. Advanced acquisition techniques coupled with demultiple processing using the WesternGeco 3D GSMP* General Surface Multiple Prediction technology will provide high-quality 3D data.
Fast-Track Data
Acquisition commenced on 10 July 2011, and the fast-track data will be available in November 2011 in time for nominations for the 22nd Norwegian Licensing Round. The final processed data will be available for licensing in March 2012 in advance of the applications for the 22nd Norwegian Offshore Licensing Round. Companies are invited to contact WesternGeco to discuss their interest in this programme.