company strategy…
leads to successful frontier exploration.
The Mukluk Prospect (offshore North Slope Alaska), is an example of the industry’s failure to adequately qualify a hydrocarbon
charged trap. The Mukluk prospect, a 1.5 billion barrel prospect, had all the correct geological parameters: trap; source rock; reservoir
rock; and seal. The prospect was also on structural trend and analogous to the Prudhoe Bay field (25 bn boe reserves). However,
the Mukluk #1 well tested water and non-commercial oil, at a total cost of $1.65 billion. What Happened? – the SEAL, that was
(supposedly) analogous to the Prudhoe Bay field, was ABSENT and the oil migrated out of the trap. One of the key elements of
Pilot’s technology: “knowing” that the trap is hydrocarbon charged.
BASIN PRODUCTIVE EXTENT
Worldwide, petroleum basins are only known to be on average 10%
productive from a spatial and geographical extent. Examples: The
Williston Basin (North America) is 8%; and the Mandal-Ekofisk Basin
(North Sea) is 12%.
During the initial phase of developing a frontier basin, the prospects
containing the majority of the reserves are usually discovered first and
represent only 3% of the basin. Pilot’s goal is to survey the entire basin or play and make the best 3% its priority.
Gulf of America DEEPWATER PLAY
The key to a successful frontier exploration program is to avoid the hydrocarbon barren areas of the basin, find the productive 10% area, and then concentrate on the larger productive reserve base. The Deep Water Play is an excellent example that exhibits the larger productive reserve base, usually 3% of the total survey area.