Dana Energy Uses Complicated Seismic Method To Process Data

Among Iranian oil and gas companies, Dana Energy appears to have the largest processing center. Since three years ago, the company has been using a new complicated processing method known as PreStack Depth Migration (PSDM), a seismic technique which has significantly enhanced oil and gas exploration operations across the world in the past two decades.

PSDM is an important processing tool for hydrocarbon study in complex regions containing highly deformed plastic strata such as Gachsaran Formation. In Iran, the Zagros region has such a characteristic. Without PSDM, much of the oil and gas now being found and produced in complex geological settings would not have been identified.

Dana Energy was awarded a seismic project last September in the Lali and Karun oilfield located in an area of over 1,000 square kilometers in the north of Khuzestan province. The company and its German partner Petrologic Geophysical Services GmbH used a series of seismic methods, including PSDM, in the project that is expected to be finished by January next year.

Due to several reasons, including the existence of underground salt formations, the quality of the collected data was poor, affecting the processing operation. To resolve this problem, Dana Energy and its foreign partner have recently suggested further technical solutions to their client, National Iranian South Oil Company. If NISOC gives the go-ahead, the contractors could improve the processing of data to a large degree.

The value of seismic surveys in areas of complex geology can be significantly enhanced by offering PSDM data as part of the final product. The recent reports prepared by Dana Energy seem to have illumination on the complexities of the Lali and Karun oilfield, delineating a series of clear images of it. This could help client to design more precise development plans for the oilfield in the future.