The exploration phase of the petroleum field life cycle closely links with the next stage which is known as the appraisal phase.
Once an exploration well has found hydrocarbons, considerable effort will still be required to accurately assess the potential of the discovery and the role of appraisal is to provide cost-effective information that will be used for subsequent decisions (development).
During appraisal, more wells are drilled to collect information and samples from the reservoir and other seismic survey might also be acquired in order to better delineate the reservoir.
This phase of the E& P process aims to
Goals of the appraisal phase
Having defined and gathered data adequate for an initial reserves estimation, the next step is to look at the various options to develop the field.
During the appraisal phase, reservoir engineering increases its contribute in reaching the technical and economic targets.
Reservoir Engineering is a branch of petroleum engineering that applies scientific principles to the exploitation of oil and gas reservoir to obtain a high economic recovery
Reservoir Engineering analyzes the production potential of the reservoir and determine the technical ways and means that should be used to optimize oil or gas recovery.
Reservoir engineers makes description of the reservoir from the available data and refine these data by applying the laws of physics to forecast reservoir behavior during production and depletion.
A reservoir model and wells locations
Reservoir engineers work out development scenarios along with precise recommendations for the number and positioning of the wells, the drilling schedule, the production profile, etc.
Activities of the appraisal phase include:
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