Quantitative seismic interpretation integrated with well-test analysis in turbidite and presalt reservoirs

Abstract

Advances in acquisition techniques and in processing workflows have made seismic amplitude more reliable, and, consequently, the quantitative information has become more trustworthy. Rock physics and seismic inversion are essential tools for reservoir characterization. Rock physics improves our knowledge about how the variations of reservoir properties affect the seismic response. Seismic inversion is a tool to obtain 3D volume of elastic properties. Combining the static information from seismic and well data is the first approach for reservoir characterization. Data from core, well log, and laboratory tests help to mitigate the risk associated with seismic interpretation. Additionally, geophysicists may rely on dynamic data such as pressure, production rates, saturation, temperature, and fluid properties whenever available. The pressure transient analysis obtained from well tests brings deeper reservoir insights. Estimations of the permeability profile, flow barrier character, and hydraulic compartmentation are some of the possible outcomes. Although the seismic signal and well test have different responses from the reservoir behavior, both can be combined to reduce the ambiguity in seismic interpretation and to evaluate different reservoir scenarios. Assessments among different facies and pore-volume scenarios are also compatible with the dynamic and static data. Turbidite and presalt reservoirs are presented as evidence of how joining geophysical, geologic, and reservoir engineering information, from static and dynamic sources, reduces the risk in quantitative seismic interpretation, thereby leading to more reliable reservoir production forecasting.