Advances in Oil and Gas Reservoir Appraisal

Abstract

Significant variation in reserves during the life of a field from initial discovery through production and decline to abandonment, has long been recognized as a fact of life in the oil industry. As a fundamental asset of an oil company, there is a global desire to limit inaccuracies and present not only a consistent, but also an accurate view of reserves. Discussed here are the stages of a field's development and how these relate to reserves growth and decline. The impossibility of exact prediction from an inaccurate science in a changing world is acknowledged. Statistical information gathered on British Petroleum's fields has been analysed to illustrate historical movement and trends in reserves. The application and effect of recent advances in the techniques used in reservoir appraisal and reserves estimation is briefly reviewed.