Grapevine

Judy Adams Promoted to General Manager of North America Data Processing

Judy Adams has been promoted to general manager of Western Geophysical's North America data processing. She is based in Western's Houston headquarters.

Adams began her career with Western Geophysical in 1978 as a geophysical technician and since then has advanced through the ranks of analyst, supervisor, and manager. Most recently, she served as manager for land and marine processing and computer support services in Houston, New Orleans and Midland.

Pulsonic Corporation Purchases Silicon Graphics Servers

Burnt Sand Solutions Inc. of Calgary is pleased to announce that Calgary based Pulsonic Corporation has taken delivery of two Silicon Graphics Power Challenge XL Super Computers valued in excess of $ 1 million. Both systems will be used for seismic data processing, including pre-stack imaging services. This delivery represents the largest single shipment of Silicon Graphics Computers into the Canadian seismic processing industry to date. With this latest success of implementing another SGI solution, we can see companies embracing the benefits of 3D technology in all areas of the oil and gas industry, said David Edmonds, president of Burnt Sand Solutions Inc.

Professional Development Courses Available at ASET Annual General Meeting

Again in 1996 ASET is offering a selection of top-quality professional development courses at its spring Annual General Meeting. This year's event is planned for May I to 4 in Calgary, with all courses offered at the Edmonton Inn.

New Office Tower Springs Up Overnight

A new office tower has materialized in downtown Calgary almost overnight. And it's already over 25 per cent occupied. Much of the balance of the 24-floor building will be filled by March 1, 1996, according to Peter Merchant, President of Enernet Technologies Inc., the site developer.

The tower? It's a virtual space on the World Wide Web known as the Enernet Tower, found at www.enernet.com. Enernet was founded in April of 1995 and moved into its current (and non-virtual) offices in Gulf Canada Square in November. The company, aside from its energy site, also offers a complete range of Internet access options and related services targeted at the business community.

LogPlot: Powerful Strip Log Plotting for Windows

RockWare, Inc., a Golden-based software company, has released LogPlot, a full featured log plotting software package for Windows. The program reads user-created text files and plots the log information based on customizable keyword and lithologic pattern files. A free-form text editor is included, and features true Windows text editing capabilities such as cut, copy, paste, auto-scrolling, and copying between applications.

Logs can be plotted at any scale on the screen, and printed at full printer resolution. The log can be paneled over many pages, and header information can be included on subsequent pages. Logs can be saved in WMF graphics format foe export to other applications.

Photon Offers Three New Software Modules

In conjunction with the release of SeisX 3.1, Photon has released three new product modules to substantially increase client functionality and productivity. For a limited time all existing SeisX 3.1 clients will receive a special free evaluation of the following products:

1. Blaster - Interactive parameter-controlled 3D flood-filled Auto Picker; Progressively extend picks from areas of good quality data to areas of poor quality data; Auto pick multiple horizons in pseudo batch mode.
2. SynLOG - A log module that provides comprehensive log curve display and formation top interpretation, including graphical stretch and squeeze; correlate seismic events to synthetic seismograms and apply those corrections to stretch/squeeze the synthetic.
3. Time/Depth Conversion - Quickly calculate average interval velocity surfaces from well and seismic control; Convert time horizons to depth.

Indonesian Upstream Petroleum & Geothermal Sectors Seminar to be Held in Calgary

Officials from the Indonesian State Oil & Gas Company PERTAMINA will discuss exploration & production opportunities and current terms & conditions for foreign participation, on May 15, 1996 at the Palliser Hotel, Calgary.

Pulsonic Adds Marine Expert

Pulsonic Corporation welcomes Ron Weedmark as a new member of their team. Ron's new position with Pulsonic is Senior Geophysicist. Ron's academic qualifications (M.Sc. Geophysics, M.Sc. Applied Mathematics) combined with his fifteen years of practical experience in both processing contractor and oil company positions give Pulsonic significant additional expertise. Ron's marine experience is geographically varied and includes the Canadian frontiers and the North Sea.

Pulsonic will be exercising Ron Weedmark's skills in the creation of new QC procedures and technical testing. His developments should assist in maintaining and measuring high calibre production standards. Ron will also be actively involved with Pulsonic's clientele. He applies a unique "user standpoint" perspective to communicating correct usage of technologies.

CAODC Revised Forecast

To coincide with their 46th Annual Meeting and Luncheon, the Canadian Association of Oil well Drilling Contractors (CAODC) has recently released a revised forecast of drilling activity for 1996. John Inverarity, of Kinnell Drilling Ltd., and the new CAODC President, reported:

"As a result of better commodity pricing and higher than anticipated investment, our customers have been contracting equipment through break-up, as well as the summer months. In October, 1995, we suggested that drilling activity would be down by about 1,100 wells, or 10%. However, we now believe that drilling activity will actually increase in 1996, compared with last year.

The CAODC anticipates about 11,300 wells will be drilled in Western Canada, and 200 more than last year and more than 1,300 over our previous 1996 forecast.

The average number of rigs drilling will be 284, up from 274 in 1995, and utilization will rise to 61%from 59% last year".

Jason Geosystems Releases New Software Product for Geostatistics

Jason Geosystems BV, The Netherlands, recently announced the release of StatMod™, a new software product for Geostatistics.

Jason designed and packaged StatMod to operate in the integrated software environment, "The Jason Geoscience Workbench (JGW)™." The JGW offers a variety of applications for lithology and reservoir modeling, supporting a range of solutions for workflows used daily in exploration and production activities.

StatMod offers a complete range of functionality, allowing its user to analyze and model any continuous variables and litho types. StatMod allows running stochastic simulation, using geostatistical algorithms supplied by BP Exploration Operating Company Ltd. on any geological model and/or model obtained from seismic trace-based inversion or parametric model-based inversion.

Robertson Management Buyout Announced

The Management of Robertson Research International Limited (formerly Simon Petroleum Technology Limited) are pleased to announce that they have signed an agreement with Simon Engineering pic to acquire the shares of the companies trading under the SPT and Robertson name.

Robertson works for international oil companies, national oil companies, other government and aid agencies in petroleum new ventures, exploration, appraisal, development and production projects all over the world. Its principal businesses are: integrated subsurface studies (incorporating petroleum and structural geology, geophysics, petrophysics and engineering); technical services (biostratigraphy, geochemistry, reservoir geology, core analysis); geophysical data processing; petroleum data management; non-exclusive surveys, reports, data and digital datasets; and petroleum technology training.

The Petroleum Society 47th Annual Technical Meeting

The Petroleum Society of CIM invites your attendance and participation at our 47th Annual Technical Meeting, Creating Value: Advances in Resource Development, May at the Calgary Convention Centre, June 1012, 1996 and the simultaneous exhibition of the National Petroleum Show, at Stampede Park, June 11-13, 1996.

Gas Sales Contracts Conference to be Held in Calgary

Insight Information Inc. and The Globe and Mail present a one day conference on Gas Sales Contracts at the Westin Hotel, Calgary, May 23, 1996. Find out how gas sales contracts have responded to the fundamental changes which are shaping the North American natural gas markets - key provisions of gas sales contracts; when the Force Majeure Clause can be invoked; factors to consider when assigning contracts; ensuring contract performance; managing your transportation portfolio; storage and market hub strategies; new opportunities in core gas markets; effect of electricity deregulation on gas purchases.

For further information contact Insight Information Inc. at (416) 777-1242 or fax: (416) 777-1292.

Data Modeling Inc. Formed to Provide Superior Imaging of the Earth's Subsurface

The partners of Data Modeling Inc. (DMI) are pleased to announce the formation of this new company which is dedicated to solving significant geophysical problems through the development and sale of sophisticated and reliable, user-friendly software algorithms. Due to recent hardware technology advances, DMI believes that seismic data should now be modeled, not processed, thereby yielding a superior image of the earth's subsurface. DMI ultimately intends to sell a comprehensive parameterless seismic data processing system which will operate without user intervention or bias.

Also under development is pres tack elastic inversion, aimed directly at building a better earth model. Better modeling enhances the oil and gas industry's ability to find hydrocarbons. The company's current product base, which has been pioneered by Atlantis Ventures over the past year, includes the following stand-alone modules: Prestack Time Migration without a priori velocity information (available April 1996); Surface Related Multiple Elimination for land and marine data (available July 1996); and Residual Statics Estimation without the need for normal moveout correction (available September 1996). All DMI software receives rigorous testing at Integra Geoservices Inc.' s facility. Initially the software will operate on a stand-alone basis from SEG-Y input, thereby offering compatibility with current user tools.

The partners in DMI include: Dr. Shlomo Levy and Kerry Stinson, geoscientists previously active in Atlantis Ventures, Landmark/ITA Ltd., and founders of ITA Inverse Theory & Applications, Inc. They have been successfully developing and marketing geophysical software for 15 years; Dr. Ed Crase, a geoscientist previously with Advance Geophysical Corporation, Landmark Graphics Corporations, and Landmark/ITA Ltd.; and Wai-Kin Chan, a geoscientist previously with Integra Geoservices Inc., Landmark Graphics Corporation, and Landmark/ITA Ltd. He is currently completing doctoral studies at the University of Calgary.