The goal of oil and gas exploration using seismic methods is to accurately locate geological structures that could host such reserves. As the search for these resources tends towards more complex regions, it is necessary to develop methods to extract as much information as possible from the seismic data acquired. Prestack depth imaging is a seismic processing technique that has the capability to produce a realistic depth image of geological structures in complex situations. However, improvements to this technique are required to increase the accuracy of the final depth image and ensure that the targets are accurately located. Although prestack depth imaging possesses the ability to produce a depth image of the Earth, it does have its disadvantages. Three problematic areas in depth imaging are: the computer run times (and hence costs) are excessively high; the success of depth migration is highly dependent upon the accuracy of the interval velocity model; and seismic multiples often obscure the primary reflection events representative of the subsurface geology. Velocity model building accounts for most of the effort in prestack depth imaging and is also responsible for the likelihood of success. However, the more effort that is expended on this process, the greater the cost of producing the required depth section. In addition, multiples remain a problem in complex depth imaging since many attenuation techniques are based assumptions that may only be approximately correct and in addition require a priori information. The Kirchhoff method is considered to be the workhorse in industry for prestack depth imaging. It is a simple and flexible technique to implement, and usually produces acceptable images at a small fraction of the cost of the other depth migration methods. / However, it is highly dependent on a method for calculating the traveltimes that are required for mapping data from the prestack domain to the output depth section. In addition, it is highly dependent on the accuracy of the interval velocity model. Multiples can also be problematic in complex geological scenarios. To improve the quality of the depth section obtained from Kirchhoff depth imaging, these three issues are considered in this thesis. This thesis took on the challenge of developing new techniques for (a) improving the accuracy and efficiency of traveltimes calculated for use in Kirchhoff prestack depth imaging, (b) building the interval velocity model, and (c) multiple attenuation in complex geological areas. Three new techniques were developed and tested using a variety of numerical models. A new traveltime computation method for simulating seismic multiple reflections was tested and compared with a Promax© finite-difference traveltime solver. The same method was also used to improve the computational efficiency whilst retaining traveltime accuracy. This was demonstrated by application to the well-known Marmousi velocity model and a velocity model obtained from analysis of data from the North West Shelf of Western Australia. / A new interval velocity model building technique that utilises the information contained in multiple events was also implemented and tested successfully using a variety of numerical models. Finally, a new processing sequence for multiple attenuation in the prestack depth domain was designed and tested with promising results being observed. Improved accuracy in the depth image can be obtained by combining the three techniques I have developed. These techniques enable this to be achieved by firstly improving traveltime accuracy and computation efficiency. These benefits are then combined with a more accurate interval velocity model and data with a minimal problematic multiple content to produce an accurate depth image. These new techniques for Kirchhoff depth imaging are capable of producing a depth section with improved accuracy, and with increased efficiency, that will aid in the process of seismic interpretation.

On 28 July 2010, the Nigerian Federal Executive Council approved January 1, 2012 as the effective date for the convergence of Nigerian Statement of Accounting Standards (SAS) or Nigerian GAAP (NG-GAAP) with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). By this pronouncement, all publicly listed companies and significant public interest entities in Nigeria were statutorily required to issue IFRS based financial statements for the year ended December, 2012. This study investigates the impact of the adoption of IFRS on the financial statements of Nigerian listed Oil and Gas entities using six years of data which covers three years before and three years after IFRS adoption in Nigeria and other African countries. First, the study evaluates the impact of IFRS adoption on the Exploration and Evaluation (E&E) expenditures of listed Oil and Gas companies. Second, it examines the impact of IFRS adoption on the provision for decommissioning of Oil and Gas installations and environmental rehabilitation expenditures. Third, the study analyses the impact of the adoption of IFRS on the average daily Crude Oil production cost per Barrel. Fourth, it examines the extent to which the adoption and implementation of IFRS affects the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of listed Oil and Gas companies. The study further explores the impact of IFRS adoption on the contractual relationships between Nigerian Government and Oil and Gas companies in terms of Joint Ventures (JVs) and Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) as it relates to taxes, royalties, bonuses and Profit Oil Split. A Paired Samples t-test, Wilcoxon Signed Rank test and Gray’s (Gray, 1980) Index of Conservatism analyses were conducted simultaneously where the accounting numbers, financial ratios and industry specific performance measures of GAAP and IFRS were computed and analysed and the significance of the differences of the mean, median and Conservatism Index values were compared before and after IFRS adoption. Questionnaires were then administered to the key stakeholders in the adoption and implementation of IFRS and the responses collated and analysed. The results of the analyses reveal that most of the accounting numbers, financial ratios and industry specific performance measures examined changed significantly as a result of the transition from GAAP to IFRS. The E&E expenditures and the mean cost of Crude Oil production per barrel of Oil and Gas companies increased significantly. The GAAP values of inventories, GPM, ROA, Equity and TA were also significantly different from the IFRS values. However, the differences in the provision for decommissioning expenditures were not statistically significant. Gray’s (Gray, 1980) Conservatism Index shows that Oil and Gas companies were more conservative under GAAP when compared to the IFRS regime. The Questionnaire analyses reveal that IFRS based financial statements are of higher quality, easier to prepare and present to management and easier to compare among competitors across the Oil and Gas sector but slightly more difficult to audit compared to GAAP based financial statements. To my knowledge, this is the first empirical research to investigate the impact of IFRS adoption on the financial statements of listed Oil and Gas companies. The study will therefore make an enormous contribution to academic literature and body of knowledge and void the existing knowledge gap regarding the impact and implications of IFRS adoption on the financial statements of Oil and Gas companies.

Magister Legum - LLM / The objective of this study is to analyse the law relating to exploration and production of oil and gas in Tanzania in relation to the protection of FDI. The analysis will be based on the international standards for the protection of FDI. Some of these standards are contained in international instruments and some of them have attained the status of customary international law. Examples of such standards include: Fair and Equitable Treatment (FET), Full Protection and Security (FPS), non-arbitrariness and non-discrimination, among others. Some international instruments to be referred to include the 1992 World Bank Guidelines on Treatment of FDI and the CERDS.

Oil and gas exploration conducted in the 1970s left behind a legacy of abandoned well sites in the Mackenzie Delta region of northern Canada, including several in the Kendall Island Migratory Bird Sanctuary and surrounding areas. Evidence of 30 year-old well sites is present in the form of drilling mud sumps, which are mounds of disturbed tundra that contain frozen drilling-wastes. One to two years after the wells were decommissioned some of the sites were seeded with non-native grass species and fertilized to test whether these treatments could accelerate vegetation recovery and prevent erosion. The main objective of this research was to examine the long-term impact of post-disturbance seeding treatments on the vegetation recovery of drilling mud sumps.<p> Surveys of vegetation composition and environmental conditions at 12 sump sites (6 seeded and 6 unseeded) showed that, after over 30 years of recovery, seeded sumps in the Mackenzie Delta did not significantly differ from those left for natural recovery. However, seeded and previously introduced grasses <i>Festuca rubra</i> and <i>Poa pratensis</i> were found on both seeded and unseeded sumps. The undisturbed surrounding tundra seems to be resistant to invasion by these introduced grasses. However, these species could become invasive in the future, particularly in the context of warming in the North and increasing anthropogenic disturbance. The results of this study contribute valuable information on the long-term effects of revegetation treatments that is critical for making informed management decisions about the rehabilitation of industrial disturbances in the Arctic.

Oil and gas exploration conducted in the 1970s left behind a legacy of abandoned well sites in the Mackenzie Delta region of northern Canada, including several in the Kendall Island Migratory Bird Sanctuary and surrounding areas. Evidence of 30 year-old well sites is present in the form of drilling mud sumps, which are mounds of disturbed tundra that contain frozen drilling-wastes. One to two years after the wells were decommissioned some of the sites were seeded with non-native grass species and fertilized to test whether these treatments could accelerate vegetation recovery and prevent erosion. The main objective of this research was to examine the long-term impact of post-disturbance seeding treatments on the vegetation recovery of drilling mud sumps.<p> Surveys of vegetation composition and environmental conditions at 12 sump sites (6 seeded and 6 unseeded) showed that, after over 30 years of recovery, seeded sumps in the Mackenzie Delta did not significantly differ from those left for natural recovery. However, seeded and previously introduced grasses <i>Festuca rubra</i> and <i>Poa pratensis</i> were found on both seeded and unseeded sumps. The undisturbed surrounding tundra seems to be resistant to invasion by these introduced grasses. However, these species could become invasive in the future, particularly in the context of warming in the North and increasing anthropogenic disturbance. The results of this study contribute valuable information on the long-term effects of revegetation treatments that is critical for making informed management decisions about the rehabilitation of industrial disturbances in the Arctic.

No description available.

The study area, Dhurnal oil field, is located 74 km southwest of Islamabad in the Potwar basin of Pakistan. Discovered in March 1984, the field was developed with four producing wells and three water injection wells. Three main limestone reservoirs of Eocene and Paleocene ages are present in this field. These limestone reservoirs are tectonically fractured and all the production is derived from these fractures. The overlying claystone formation of Miocene age provides vertical and lateral seal to the Paleocene and Permian carbonates. The field started production in May 1984, reaching a maximum rate of 19370 BOPD in November 1989. Currently Dhurnal‐1 (D-1) and Dhurnal‐6 (D-6) wells are producing 135 BOPD and 0.65 MMCF/D gas. The field has depleted after producing over 50 million Bbls of oil and 130 BCF of gas from naturally fractured low energy shelf carbonates of the Eocene, Paleocene and Permian reservoirs. Preliminary geological and geophysical data evaluation of Dhurnal field revealed the presence of an up-dip anticlinal structure between D-1 and D-6 wells, seen on new 2003 reprocessed data. However, this structural impression is not observed on old 1987 processed data. The aim of this research is to compare and evaluate old and new reprocessed data in order to identify possible factors affecting the structural configuration. For this purpose, a detailed interpretation of old and new reprocessed data is carried out and results clearly demonstrate that structural compartmentalization exists in Dhurnal field (based on 2003 data). Therefore, to further analyse the available data sets, processing sequences pertaining to both vintages have been examined. After great effort and detailed investigation, it is concluded that the major parameter giving rise to this data discrepancy is the velocity analysis done with different gridding intervals. The detailed and dense velocity analysis carried out on the data in 2003 was able to image the subtle anticlinal feature, which was missed on the 1987 processed seismic data due to sparse gridding. In addition to this, about 105 sq.km 3D seismic data recently (2009) acquired by Ocean Pakistan Limited (OPL) is also interpreted in this project to gain greater confidence on the results. The 3D geophysical interpretation confirmed the findings and aided in accurately mapping the remaining hydrocarbon potential of Dhurnal field.

[pt] Em muitos países, uma área de Exploração e Produção de petróleo é adquirida através de um leilão. Embora o processo de liquidação do leilão seja tipicamente simples, sob a ótica do tomador de decisão a identificação da melhor oferta é complexa. Para sua valoração, deve ser pré-definido o modelo de desenvolvimento com diversas alternativas associadas, alto grau de incertezas técnicas, de mercado e operacionais, e submetido a uma determinada condição fiscal. A decisão por uma determinada alternativa gera impactos e investimentos elevados para a empresa. O trabalho proposto visa a construção de um framework para dar suporte ao processo de escolha da melhor oferta que maximize uma medida de valor para a empresa, auxiliando o tomador de decisão e considerando as incertezas envolvidas no processo. Foram utilizados os indicadores de performance apresentados na literatura: Valor Presente Líquido (VPL), Conditional Value-at-Risk, Omega e Exposição Financeira. Afim de melhor quantificar risco/benefício financeiro no processo de tomada de decisão foram construídas medidas de risco: Mean-Weighted CVaR, Mean-Weighted Double-Sided CVaR, Beta e Negative-Positive cashflow ratio. Para ilustrar a aplicabilidade do framework proposto, um experimento numérico baseado em um caso hipotético é apresentado. Em decorrência deste experimento, foi identificado que alterações na configuração da produção alteram significativamente os resultados dos indicadores. Além disso, a partir de uma ponderação entre probabilidade de ganho e o resultado do indicador Mean-Weighted CVaR, foi identificada a melhor oferta para a área, dada a condição fiscal do leilão. / [en] In many countries, an oil and gas area of Exploration and Production is acquired through an auction. Although the auction settlement process is typically simple, from the decision maker s point of view, identifying the best offer is complex. For its valuation, the development model must be pre-defined with several associated alternatives, a high degree of technical, market and operational uncertainties, and submitted to a fiscal term. The decision for a particular alternative generates high impacts and investments for the company. The proposed work aims to build a framework to support the process of choosing the best offer that maximizes a measure of value for the company, helping the decision maker and considering the uncertainties involved in the process. The performance indicators presented in the literature were used: Net Present Value (NPV), Conditional Value-at-Risk, Omega and Financial Exposure. In order to better quantify financial risk/benefit in the decisionmaking process, risk measures were constructed: Mean-Weighted CVaR, Mean- Weighted Double-Sided CVaR, Beta and Negative-Positive cashflow ratio. To illustrate the applicability of the proposed framework, a numerical experiment based on a hypothetical case is presented. As a result of this experiment, it was identified that changes in the configuration of production significantly alter the results of the indicators. In addition, from a weighting between the probability of gain and the result of the Mean-Weighted CVaR measure, the best offer for the area was identified, given the fiscal term of the bid.

[pt] O objetivo da dissertação é avaliar a gestão da função metrológica em uma unidade de exploração e produção de óleo e gás de uma grande empresa de energia no Brasil e propor ações de melhoria a partir dos resultados do diagnóstico da referida função. Desde a emissão da Portaria Conjunta n°1 ANP/Inmetro, em junho de 2000, as atividades de exploração e produção de petróleo e gás natural no Brasil passaram por um acelerado processo de reestruturação organizacional e de adequação das instalações de medição para atender ao novo marco regulatório. Nesse contexto, a motivação da pesquisa vincula-se a uma real necessidade de melhoria da gestão da função metrológica em uma unidade de exploração e produção de óleo e gás natural da Petrobras, particularmente no que tange à consolidação da cultura metrológica e ao desenvolvimento de competências associadas a novos requisitos de medição de vazão de óleo e gás natural. A metodologia compreende: (i) pesquisa bibliográfica e documental sobre os temas centrais; (ii) proposição de modelo conceitual para avaliação da gestão da função metrológica; (iii) elaboração e aplicação do instrumento de pesquisa; (iv) estudo de caso da Unidade de Operações de Exploração e Produção da Petrobras no Espírito Santo e de quatro unidades incorporadas ao caso; (v) proposição de ações frente aos desafios e oportunidades reveladas no diagnóstico situacional. Destacam-se como resultados da pesquisa: (i) o modelo conceitual para avaliação da gestão da função metrológica, com foco na medição de vazão de óleo e gás natural; (ii) o diagnóstico da situação atual da gestão da função metrológica na referida Unidade e em quatro unidades incorporadas ao estudo de caso; (iii) mapeamento dos desafios e oportunidades associados à efetiva gestão da função metrológica nas unidades analisadas. Como conclusão, a pesquisa mostra que o modelo conceitual proposto foi adequado para os fins a que se destina, constituindo um importante instrumento de avaliação e retroalimentação para a gestão da função metrológica. Esse modelo poderá ser disseminado em outros contextos organizacionais de exploração e produção de óleo e gás natural. / [en] The objective of this dissertation is two-fold: (i) to assess the management of metrological function of an oil and gas exploration and production unit within a large energy enterprise in Brazil; and (ii) to propose recommendations for its improvement. Since the creation of Portaria Conjunta n 1 ANP/Inmetro, in June 2000, oil and gas exploration and production activities in Brazil have suffered an accelerated process of organizational reengineering and adapted all their measurement installations to attend the new regulatory framework. In this context, the motivation of this research arose from Petrobras’needs to have an assessment tool capable of measuring efficiency and efficacy of its metrological function, incorporating in the analytical framework elements concerning organizational culture and development of competences towards attendance of new metrological requirements. The methodology comprises: (i) bibliographic and documentary research on the central themes of dissertation; (ii) propose of a conceptual model for assess metrological function management, which links theoretical approaches reviewed; (iii) development and application of a survey questionnaire, based on this conceptual framework; (iv) case study focusing on the metrological function at Exploration and Production Operational Unit of Espírito Santo and its four subunities; (v) formulation of improvement actions for Petrobras metrological function at the selected unities, and suggestions for future research and replication in other organizational contexts. As a conclusion, it can be said that the proposed assessment model fulfilled expectations and assumptions formulated at the very beginning of this research. According to the opinion of managers and teams involved, the model is an useful management and learning tool for improve the management of metrological function and has a large potential for replication in other organizational contexts from the empirical evidences achieved.