Introduction to this special section:
Business impact of 4D seismic
J. P. Blangy1 and Jean-Paul van Gestel2
S ince its introduction as a new technology in the mid-1980s, the
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adoption and deployment of 4D seismic methods has been
phenomenal. 4D seismic was developed initially as a geophysical
technology to answer key questions related to reservoir development
and recovery methods in the North Sea, but early successes resulted
in expanding the “customer base” from geoscientists to reservoir,
production, drilling, and project engineers as well as management.
Today, high-quality 4D interpretations are used to constrain and
improve subsurface simulation models, which include both the
reservoir and the overburden. In turn, 4D has become an integral
part of key business decisions that optimize both selection of new
well targets and the overall reservoir management strategy.
In the mid-2000s, the need for speed was recognized because
the additional information gleaned from 4D adds value only if it
arrives in time to affect both field development and reservoir
management decisions. Automated fast-track processing workflows
were implemented, which as a result reduced the cycle time from
processing to interpretation to just a few weeks instead of months.
At the same time, end users recognized the need to better honor
the earth’s complexity through complete 4D seismic processing
workflows coupled with more sophisticated and accurate petro-
elastic/geomechanical reservoir characterization techniques. This
is important as those techniques give us the ability to differentiate
reservoir pressure effects from saturation effects and provide a
complex description of the overburden and in-situ stresses. Given
the recent leaps in computer performance and the use of big data,
both speed and accuracy can be achieved simultaneously today.
This results in more quantitative and integrated approaches to
reservoir characterization than were possible before.
The most recent advancements have been on the seismic
acquisition side, with increased resolution achieved through
broadband, wavefield separation, and prestack elastic inversion.
The introductions of nodal, multicomponent, and broadband
seismic monitor surveys have created challenges to match these
data with legacy seismic surveys. Higher-fidelity 4D processing
workflows are needed that increase the signal-to-noise ratio
necessary to extract the 4D information. Fully integrating 4D
seismic data with well and production data for history matching,
or “closing the loop,” is now feasible in pertinent time and is
used in conjunction with other disciplines to impact key field-
management decisions.
This special section assembled six papers presenting various
perspectives and addressing the business impact of 4D.
Jack provides a perspective of approximately 30 years of experi-
ence in 4D and presents a summary of current trends as well as
the challenges ahead. By using examples from a range of compa-
nies, he shows that over the years consistent value has been derived
from time-lapse surveys. From these case studies, a net present
value can be shown to be eight times the cost of the 4D seismic
1
Hess Corporation, now at BHP Billiton.
2
BP.
384 THE LEADING EDGE May 2017
work. The most powerful examples of value are from a series of
business decisions that were made over the years from the integra-
tion of 4D data into the overall reservoir management plan.
Challenges remain for the future, including 4D on land, hard
rock reservoirs, pressure response detection, gas fields, and the
incorporation of geomechanical models. On the other hand, there
are also new opportunities in the usage of broadband data via
several new acquisition technologies, distributed acoustic sensing,
integration of gravity, magnetic and subsidence data, and shear-
wave data.
Nasser et al. discuss value in a case history that illustrates
how joint rock physics and AVO inversion-based methods are
incorporated into a close-the-loop workflow to enable a reservoir
model consistent with well and seismic data. In this case study,
such a workflow has helped refine existing mental sweep models
based on historic field performance and available tracer data.
Previous models largely matched the production data but used
some undesirable manual edits in the simulation model. The
3D and 4D close-the-loop workflows have allowed for more
geologically sound model adjustments, especially to the water-
injection strategy, which obtained promising results and gener-
ated significant value.
Hodgson et al. provide an overview of BP’s time-lapse activity,
which encompasses more than 20 years and more than 100 surveys
in the contrasting settings of the North Sea and the Gulf of
Mexico. The continuous usage of these surveys clearly demonstrates
the recognized value for better reservoir management decisions
and improved ultimate recovery. The current challenge is to further
improve the integration of time-lapse data and maximize their
value. This is being enabled by building fit-for-purpose and rapid-
turnaround workflows, for example for 4D-assisted history match-
ing and 4D geomechanics. The impact of these workflows is shown
in case studies for two fields that actively utilize time-lapse data.
Blangy et al. present a systematic overview of the value of 4D
as it is created during the four phases of development of a typical
field. They show examples from various fields and then discuss a
workflow to calculate the incremental monetary value that can
be assigned to 4D. It is by combining the 4D with the actions
that follow from it in the field that the full business value of the
technology can best be realized. Perhaps the biggest source of
value from 4D arises from its ability to monitor changes between
wells, which increases the reliability of models that predict future
reservoir performance. Due to their data-driven nature, integrated
4D workflows reveal production and recovery scenarios that are
not yet captured by subsurface models, and as a result, they allow
for corrective action to be taken.
Floricich et al. present a case history from Borneo. The regional
structural complications associated with thin-stacked sands and
faulting pose interpretation challenges that have been solved using
http://dx.doi.org/10.1190/tle36050384.1.
Special Section: Business impact of 4D seismic
 fit-for-purpose integration workflows. Dependent on reservoir complexity and
importance, these workflows vary from relatively straightforward pseudoimped-
ance differences to full forward modeling and finally to integrated close-the-loop
exercises. These workflows are illustrated by four case studies from varying
subsurface problems as 4D signals related to pressure changes, gas-cap expan-
sion, water sweep, and dynamic model updates. The key to the success of this
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work in one word is “integration,” and the use of subsurface review sessions
where all data are presented in a consistent matter.
Røste and Ke discuss the value of investigating 4D time shifts in the
overburden to effectively characterize primary depletion as well as compart-
mentalization within the reservoir. They show case studies from three different
fields, indicating that production-induced time shifts might be expected in the
overburden for many fields, not only chalk and high-pressure high-temperature
reservoirs. They combine overburden time shifts and geomechanical models to
supplement traditional surveillance techniques. One of their key observations
is that the “dilation” factor R appears to have a strong vertical variation, depend-
ing on the geologic properties of the various layers in the overburden.
4D seismic is a mature technology today and, as discussed by the authors
of this special section, it will continue to impact field economics. It will play
an important role in integrated subsurface characterization and act as a key
tool of integrated surveillance toward the optimization of field development
and field management. As we expect to see an increased focus on improving
reservoir recovery and extracting more oil out of existing fields, these tools
will become more important. Field management of the future will demand
increased reliability in reservoir models, and that will place further emphasis
on data-driven methods that integrate with 4D technology. To that end, 4D
workflows will need to be fully integrated and operated in real time with
increased hardware requirements.

Special Section: Business impact of 4D seismic May 2017 THE LEADING EDGE 385