Strategic Value of Basin Analysis Teams in Exploration – Applications in Ukraine

Abstract

A proven approach in exploration management is to establish multi-disciplinary Basin Analysis (BA) Teams that follow industry best practices and standardized procedures to deliver geologic risk assessments to both management and asset teams. Team members have the ability to provide a combination of specific technical expertise that is used to develop long-term foundation knowledge of basins and plays, but at the same time enables them to react to management and asset team requests for rapid assessments such as block and prospect risking/ranking and investigations of specific geologic challenges. In this paper, we review requirements for the establishment of successful Basin Analysis (BA) teams and provide examples of methodologies, strategies and technical workflows that are being applied to address exploration challenges in the three main exploration target areas in Ukraine, the Western Black Sea (WBS), the Dieper-Donets Basin (DDB) and the Carpathians are in Western Ukraine. For each of these target areas, we provide an example of a BA Team strategy that is followed to address specific exploration challenges. The application of industry standard best practices in exploration by a dedicated expert team and close cooperation with asset and technical teams within the organisation ensures that these engagements will make an important contribution to improve the efficiency and success rates of exploration activities in Ukraine.