CGG Veritas to shoot multi-client 3-D

CGG Veritas is planning to conduct a large 3-D seismic program this coming winter in what’s known as the “billion-dollar fairway,” a long, north-south trending rectangle between the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska to the west and the Kuparuk and Tarn oil fields to the east. The fairway stretches from the nearshore Beaufort Sea to several miles south of Tarn, and includes the Alpine oil field and its satellites.

CGG’s Tabasco 3-D survey will cover an area between the Colville River unit and the western boundary of Kuparuk, from the nearshore Beaufort on the north to Tarn on south. Kent Milani, vice president of multi-client opportunities for CGG in Alaska, said the program will encompass an area of approximately 200 square miles.

The company will be using its proprietary HPVA — high productivity vibratory acquisition — technology. “It’s a technology that CGG Veritas has been using in the Middle East for several years. This will be the first time on tundra,” Milani said.

Why is using HPVA desirable?

“By some measures, the productivity could double to triple — we’ll gather more data in less time,” he said.

The survey will likely start in January.

—Kay Cashman