Ocean Bottom Node Seismic Data Changes Occidental's Plan for Lucius Field in the Gulf of Mexico

Geological risks and uncertainties must be considered when evaluating and deciding whether to drill an offshore prospect. Recent technological advances in seismic data acquisition, processing and interpretation techniques have provided geoscientists cleaner data sets and new tools to help make such decisions. This paper will highlight the technological advances of deep-water seismic data at Lucius and the value gained through optimizing the field development plan. The advent and application of Ocean Bottom Node seismic acquisition has greatly improved subsurface imaging and helped geoscientists reduce geological risks and better quantify subsurface uncertainties. Occidental has recognized the value of OBN seismic surveys, having employed it recently with immense success across multiple Gulf of Mexico assets. These new surveys, along with innovative processing tools such as Least Squares RTM, Full Waveform Inversion, and attribute analyses, have greatly improved how geoscientists measure the risk and uncertainty of prospects. Learnings from the OBN survey at the Lucius field in the deep water GOM have helped Occidental optimize the field development plan by shedding light on the structural complexity of new fault blocks, better defining the salt/sediment boundary, and improving reservoir characterization. These learnings drove changes in and additions to future drilling locations and identifying possible stranded hydrocarbons. Investing in seismic technology is often overlooked in mature assets, but at Lucius, the OBN data set has led to more integrated and robust interpretations and has already delivered to co-owners over four times the return on investment. OBN implementation has provided a step change in subsurface understanding.