July/August Reservoir 2017

Issue Contents:

Recognition of wave-influenceddeltaic and bay-margin sedimentation, Bluesky Formation, Alberta

S.E.Botterill,S.G.Campbell,E.R.TimmerandM.K.Gingras

Sedimentology, ichnology and sequence stratigraphy of the UpperDevonian –Lower Mississippian BakkenFormation in easternSaskatchewan L.ZhangandL.A.Buatois

Evolution of Li-enriched oilfield brines in Devonian carbonates of the south -central Alberta Basin,Canada

G.F.Huff

Regional T-R sequence stratigraphyand lithostratigraphy of the BearpawFormation (UpperCampanian), west-central and southwestern Alberta plains B.Hathway

Maximumage of the basalCretaceous Chinkeh Formation sandstones, Maxhamish Lake area, Liard Basin, British Columbia M.McMechan,W.Matthews,F.FerriandB.Guest

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The RESERVOIR is published 6 times per year by the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists. The purpose of the RESERVOIR is to publicize the Society’s many activities and to promote the geosciences.We look for both technical and non-technical material to publish.

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Technical Editor for the CSPG Reservoir Sr. Geologist atAthabasca Oil Corporation

Jason Frank is a Professional Geologist who holds a B.Sc. and M.Sc. from the University ofAlberta. He has over 16 years of experience in oil and gas including technical and leadership positions in exploration and development both on and offshore. Past experience includes Shell Canada Ltd., Burlington Resources Ltd., ConocoPhillips Canada Ltd., andTalisman Energy Inc. Jason has volunteered for the Society in the past, most recently chairing the Duvernay session at the Society’s annual convention (2014) and the Honourary AddressCommittee.

Travis Hobbs

Technical Editor for the Reservoir Professional Geologist at Encana

Travis Hobbs is an undergraduate from University of Calgary with a graduates degree from Simon Fraser University in Geology. Professionally has worked both domestically and internationally for 19 years in the Oil & Gas industry, and is currently celebrating 15 years with Encana. Industry roles have included development, exploration, management and business development. Prior to the Reservoir,Travis has held previous roles on convention committees and six years as the Chair of Continuing Education. As free time permitsTravis enjoys cycling, cross-country skiing and teaching his two daughters violin.

ROCKPROPERTIES AND TESTING ISSUE

The editors hope that all our readers are enjoying the bimonthly format of the Reservoir and the themes that have run so far. It is mandate of the Reservoir to keep content level high, and relevant - this edition is no exception! Various industry labshavebeeninvitedtoshowcasesomeof their analytical talents and specialties with application to understanding reservoirs and fluids critical to our industry. While it may be true that working drill rig numbers areon thedecline,there isstill alot ofhigh caliber science and analytics happening. On recent visits to the AER core storage facility,I’ve beenamazed how difficultit has been to get a table reserved – not to mentionit’snearlyimpossibletogetatable on a Friday!

Our “Talking with Architects” interview this month is with Lou Monahan from Core Laboratories. Lou is well known and respectedinourindustry.Hiscareerspans over 30 years with Core Laboratories, and his knowledge base on routine and nonroutine core analysis is remarkable. It was an absolute pleasure to interview Lou, to get to know his perspective not just through the ups and downs of the industry, but also on the shifting focus of our industry.

In this edition, we have assembled technical papers that deal with non-routine permeabilitymeasurements,digitalcore analysis, micro computed tomography, and a spotlight on integrated laboratory services. In this day in age where we are continually underpressure to drill thebest wells for the lowest cost, we wanted to shed some light onto these new and emerging technologies. Understandingreservoirs are becoming more and more challenging as exploitation trends towards tighter media. Laboratory methods are having to keep pace with these increasing challenges. We hope you’ll find value in learning about these techniques, and perhaps apply it to existingreservoirsorutilizethesemethods to find the next “Big Play”.

As mentioned last edition, we are continually on the hunt for timely and applicable papers. Please don’t hesitate to reach out and contact us for your ideas on a paper or a theme that you would like to see published. We realize that everyone’s time is valuable, and such we want to keep the Reservoir applicable, enjoyable and in your hands. Have a great summer!

Jason Frank

TALKINGWITH ARCHITECTS

Interview with Lou Monahan

By Jason Frank

Lou Monahan is the Senior Technical Specialist for Core Laboratories Rock Properties Group. Lou graduated from St. Francis Xavier University in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science Degree. Lou has over 30 years’ experience working in the Rock Properties department at Core Laboratories andhas held positions all overCanada. Lou understands more than just the theory of core analysis; he has significant experience working hands-on in all aspects of conventional core analysis. In the late 1990’s Lou was responsible for setting up and operating core analysis labs on Canada’s EastCoastto serveour offshoreoil and gas industry.

Presently, Lou is involved in the analysis of shales and other low permeability “unconventional” rocks including offering technical guidance to Operators requiring unconventional analysis and helping to explain the results.

Questions more on a technical background:

1)Working for 30 years at one company, is almost unheard of in this industry –congratulations! I’m assuming that it was a job prospect that brought you to Calgary – describe the move ‘out west’ and some of the impressions that you first had coming to Calgary.

After graduating from St. FX, my buddy and I drove to Calgary in my VW Bug. Since workwasscarceintheMaritimes,wecame to Calgary where the streets were paved withgold,tofindfameandfortune…orat least get a job. I had previously not been west of Edmundston NB, and driving across Canada for the first time was an eye opener. As is typical of many Maritimers coming to Alberta, we stayed on friends and relatives couches until we found work.

2)Just curious, as to what you feel are of the most noticeable changes in the industry over this time period? It would be neat to hear your thoughts on seeing

a play like the Montney go from a zone thatwasjustdrilledthroughtooneof the hottest plays in North America.

The most notable change I’ve noticed is the steady progressioninto tighter rocks.The first Montney I saw was a CanHunter well from the Ring/Border field and the rock was quite permeable and porous. Then a Montney core arrived that was very fine grained and, for the time, had very low permeability. I questioned the play geologist working the area asking if they had missed core point, implying that this wasn’t the Montney I was used to seeing. With Operators exploring in tighter and tighter reservoirs, service companies, like Core Laboratories, have had to design new equipment to analyze such rock.

3)Being at the very front end of rock analysis is very exciting – the first to look at the core, first to get analysis back from the core. In your opinion, what are the most important aspects in analyzing a rock? Has this changed over time?

Yes, Core Analysts are sometimes the first to see the rock, especially when the core istakeninasleeve.Wegettobethefirst to enjoy the aroma of crude oil, the first to touch the rock and see it under Ultra Violet light. We usually have a pretty good idea of reservoir quality before the play geologist even views it.

I think the most important aspect of Core Analysis is for the data user to understand how the data is generated and thus how to use it or not to use it. The classic example is Residual Fluid saturations from core. Those values are only reservoir quality in special cases but when a data user sees those numbers, they are considered “Gospel”. AlthoughCoreLaboffersshortcourses onmostaspectsofCoreAnalysis,Ithink manydatausersstilldonotknowwherethe numbers come from.

4)When you think about your history

working with Geologists, and their plays – is there one particular memory that stands out in your mind? Be it for atechnical“Eureka”moment,orthe characters involved?

In the early 90’s, Core Labs was contracted by Canadian Hunter to go to their Brassey fieldinBCtopickupacorefromtheArtex formationandI waschosentoperformthe job.ThiswasthefirstcoretakenintheArtex formation after the previous rig experienced a blowout and burned down. Whenthe core arrived at surface, CanHunter wellsite Geologists from several nearby CanHunter rigswereontherigfloortoseetherockthat caused the problems. Artex turned out to be the most prolific oil play in BC. I thought it was a very cool experience to be involved in such a record breaking play.

Questions focused on career development:

1)Having worked from coast to coast here inCanada,whatskillsetdoyoufeelis most important and transferrable?

I think communication is the key when individuals from various disciplines are brought together to solve problems. I’ve met and gone to school with many very

intelligent people who really know their stuff but struggle to get their point across. I’m sure we’ve all read technical papers where the simple omission of a comma or the accidental addition of a word (like not) completely changes the meaning. Scientists haveseemedtodisregardgrammarand spelling and punctuation. If you are trying tomakeapoint,thesethingsbecomequite important.

2)Throughout your career lab analytics has changed a lot – how have you been able to stay on top of current trends? Are there some analytical techniques that you wish were run more often but aren’t?

I’ve been lucky enough to work for a company that is a leader in the industry. Core Labs designs and manufactures its own equipment in response to changing requirements in the industry. Technical Conventions (like our GeoConvention) are indispensable in sharing new technical ideas with Geoscientists from various countries and backgrounds. If there was one analytical technique I would always recommend it would be X-Ray Diffraction to investigate mineralogy. Mineralogy plays a very important part in determining how todevelopaplayandcanbeveryinsightful

for a wide variety of issues, like formation damage.

3)Are there any “pearls of wisdom” that you’d like to share to individuals just starting their careers in oil and gas?

I would encourage young geoscientists starting out to not rule out service companies. A young geologist could have an opportunity to see many cores from many different rock types and reservoir quality from all over the world. Although my own experience of working for the same company might not be typical, I estimate that I’ve probably looked at 10,000 or more cores totalling about 18,000 metres. A service company could offer the opportunity for a geologist to get their feet wet inspecting many different rocks as opposed to working at an oil company where a geologist might be working one or two formations for years.

Questions centered on more general / personal items:

1)What are your interests outside of the lab? What do you like to do in your spare time?

My wife Barb and I enjoy curling in the winter and Disc Golf in the summer. Our granddaughter also keeps us busy.

2)Certainly a 30 year career is something to be very proud of – Are there certain things that you would like to do in the next couple of years? Both work related or outside of work?

MywifeandIhaveattendedballgamesat16 different MLB parks. We hope to take at least one more baseball road trip where we would attend a ballgame at each of the 30 MLB parks. I just need to convince my wife.

MICRO-CT IMAGING -A POWERFUL TOOL FOR SCREENINGAND RAPID QUANTIFICATION OF ROCK PROPERTIES

ByAJ Kumar, Zheng Gan, Lucien Morales,Ted Griffin, and John Dacy, Core Laboratories, 6316Windfern, Houston,TX, 77040, USA

The micro-CT is a powerful petrophysical tool which uses high intensity X-rays to create closely-spaced high-resolution images. In core petrophysics micro-CT imaging is used for multiple purposes, from screening plug samples for specialized testing to assessment of reservoir quality by modeling certain rock properties.

Depending on the objectives, images can be acquired at various resolutions, ranging from 20 to 0.3 microns. Resolution is a function ofsource-detectorspacing,scantime,and proximity of the sample to X-ray source. In general, the highest resolution imaging necessitates smaller sample size. For example, a typical core analysis plug sample can be scanned at a 20 micron resolution whereas micro-plugs, which are 5mm in diameter, can be scanned at a 0.5 micron resolution. Figures 1 and 2 provide illustrations of sample sizes and corresponding images acquired using a micro-CT.

On plug samples, excellent visualization of geologic features and drilling induced anomalies are achieved with a 20 micron resolution scan. High resolution imaging data, when viewed interactively on slice-byslice basis, assists in the sample selection process and screening for sophisticated, reservoir-condition flow studies and geomechanicaltesting.Thishigh-resolution, three-dimensional imaging of core plugs helps geoscientists better understand variations in the pore system properties that may impact both laboratory analysis and reservoir performance. Figure 3 highlights the heterogeneity in a plugsample and why it should not be chosen for a core flood test. At this resolution, quantification of vug porosity, fracture porosity, fracture aperture, etc. can also be performed.

Micro-CTscansathigherporescale resolutions help resolve features as small as 0.3 micron. Image acquisition and

segmentation at such resolutions aid in grain and pore system characterization. This operator independent characterization results in a host of image-derived data with

help of industry standard segmentation software.Whenconsolidatedwith appropriate physical measurementbased models, petrophysical data such

Figure 1: 1-inch diameter plug sample scanned at 20 micron resolution

Figure 2: A 4mm diameter plug sample scanned at 1.5 micron resolution

as permeability, capillary pressure, and electrical properties can be quantified. Since thesemodelsareconstrainedbyphysical measurements, the modeling confidence level is improved. Figures 4, 5, 6, and 7 illustrate comparisons between physical measurements and micro-CT modeled properties. These scans and property quantifications are also ideal for friable to unconsolidated samples, large sized drill cuttings, or in cases when core recovery is poor. The rock-based, digital, physicallyconstrained models provide data which relate well to conventional core analyses.

Acquisition and segmentation of a single set

of images are needed for sample analysis. Overall turn-around-time is reduced for quantification of properties, given the efficiency of these rock-based physicallyconstrainedmodelsonmoderately powerful computers. Rapid access to key petrophysical properties helps operators make time-dependent critical decisions.

This presentation will demonstrate what micro-CTs are capable of, from a core plug level scanning and screening to ultra-high resolution scans of small samples, leading to quantification of routine and special properties.

Figure 3: 20 micron resolution scan of a plug; high heterogeneity in this plug makes it unsuitable for core flood tests

Figure 4: Comparison of permeability data: physical measurement vs microCT physically-constrained models

Figure 5: Comparison of capillary pressure drainage curves: physical measurement vs micro-CT physically-constrained models for a high permeability rock sample

Figure 6: Comparison of capillary pressure drainage curves: physical measurement vs micro-CT physically-constrained models for a low permeability rock sample

Figure 7: Comparison of cementation exponent, m: physical measurement vs micro-CT physically-constrained models

MONTNEY CORE PERMEABILITY:A PRACTICAL WORKFLOWTOAVOID COMMON PITFALLS

By Joe Ramoin, John Dacy,AuthorAffiliation: Core Laboratories Canada Ltd.

Discussion and debate continues regarding best methods and workflows for measuring permeability and other routine core analysis parameters in tight unconventional reservoirs. In this article, we describe a recommended, quickevaluationworkflow for measuring unfractured, slip-corrected (Klinkenberg) permeability in the Montney Formation, without synthetic alteration of the rock matrix.

A primary objectivefor almost every core analysis program is to gain a thorough understanding of permeability and porosity relationships and rock type variability to build an accurate core-to-log calibration model for asset development, reservoir simulation, and economic expectation.

Fundamental to these building blocks is attaining high-quality routine permeability measurements that are not skewed by anomalies (fractures) or laboratory variables (slippage). Core Laboratories has worked on hundreds of Montney cores and received feedback from our clients on best methods and workflows to achieve desired results in the Montney Formation. A brief summary is discussedbelow,butfirstsomebackground on a major inherent laboratory permeability artifact in tight rocks and how to account for

it.

Many factors affect routine laboratory permeability measurements. Proper cleaning, drying, sample preparation, and net stress effects are some well-known variables that must be accounted for and controlled as a potential source of error. Anotherlessrecognizedvariableandsource of error that can have a dramatic impact on routine permeability measurements is slippage. Slippage has a dramatic impact onpermeabilityinmicrotonanodarcy rock, such as the Montney, and needs to be understood and accounted for in proper reservoircharacterization. For reference, permeability to air (with slippage) in the microdarcy to 100 nd range may be optimisticby1to2ordersofmagnitude compared to slip-free values.

Slippage is a phenomenon related to the mean free path of gas molecules. As the mean free path varies with temperature, pressure, and gas composition, slippage and apparent permeability will vary. The effect of slippage ranges from insignificant in high permeability mediatoofgreat consequence in low permeability media, e.g., Montney. Gas at reservoir pressure is nearly equivalent

to a non-reactive liquid (low mean free path) and apparent permeability is essentially slip-free (Klinkenberg or Kinf ). Oil and gas wells flow liquids or gas at high pressure, neither of which are affected by slippage. For efficiency and convenience, core absolute permeability is often determined using gas at low pressure and slippage can make computed permeability optimistic compared to observations from formations that are controlled bythe absolute, slip-free permeability. Core perms-to-gas (e.g., air) are due corrections for slippage (among other corrections) to be representative of reservoirabsolutepermeability.Thedegree of correction varies with rock type, level ofabsolute perm, and testconditions (gas type, mean flowing pressure). A ‘slip-free’ absolute permeability is the intrinsic value, equivalent to flow of non-reactive liquid and affected by neither gas composition nor mean flowing pressure.

Accounting for slippage and provision of Klinkenberg permeability in core data is usually accomplished by one of two methods. The ideal method is to directly determine enough flow data on a specific sample to “measure” both the Klinkenberg permeability and the slip factor, b, for that

Figure 1.Visual fracture inspection after plug cleaning and drying.

Figure 2. Example of helical CT on plug that passed visual examination.This figure shows presenceofinternalfracturesonmultipleaxesin our 3D browser.

Figure 3. Example of helical CT on plug that passed visual examination.This figure shows presenceofinternalfracturesonmultipleaxesin our 3D browser.

sample. This is accomplished either by multiplesteady-stateflowtestsatvarying mean flowing pressures or by a single unsteady-state pressure falloff test. A less idealalternateapproachistomeasure a single steady-state air permeability at a mean flowing pressure and use a slipfactor correlation to compute the slip-free permeability. Using the variation seen in slip-factor correlation data, for example, a correlation-derived kinf of 150 nd may be as high as 320 nd or as low as 80 nd. This variation will be greater when one considers the variety of a more global data set. Slippage isaccountedforin asample-specific manner in the work-flow described below by use of devices that employ the unsteadystate pressure falloff method (CMS-300™ and PDPK-400™).

In addition to accounting for slippage, avoidance of induced fractures in permeability assessments is also paramount to a proper reservoir characterization study. Once plug samples have been cleaned and dried, each plug is visually inspected for fractures or microfractures (Figure 1). Any samples that do not pass the visual inspection are removed from the primary workflow. Plugsamplesthatpassvisualinspection are CTscannedbyhigh-frequencyhelical CT (Figures 2 and 3) or micro-CT (Figure 4) down to 20 micron resolution for evaluation of internal or surface fractures not seen during visual inspection. Samples with fractures observed by high-frequency 3D

CT are removed from the workflow and the rest undergo Klinkenberg permeability measurementsintheCMS-300™atminimal, reservoir-condition,andseveraldepletion condition net stresses up to 52,000 kPa. Permeability-porosity cross plots are examined. For samples that deviate from the general trend, visual inspection steps above are repeated, as some fractures may have been missed or subsequently developed duringpermeabilitymeasurements at stress conditions. To improve assurance of fracture avoidance, post-test CT or micro-CT imaging has been preferred by some operators. Samples that do not pass original or subsequent visual inspection and CT screening may undergo Klinkenberg probe measurements by Pressure Decay Profile Permeameter (PDPK-400™) on unfractured sections (Figure 5). These probe permeabilities can be stress-corrected based on the stress response seen in plugs.

In summary, if proper screening steps and permeability techniques are utilized, the result is a high-quality routine core analysis data set that that can be used with confidence for core-log calibration, evaluation, and input to reservoir simulation (Figure 6).

This paper has shown what micro-CTs are capable of, from a core plug level scanning and screening to ultra-high resolution scans of small samples, leading to quantification of routine and special properties.

Figure 4. Plug mirco-CT inspection at 20 micron resolution identifying micro-fractures not seen by other methods.

Figure 5. PDPK-400™ measuring slip-corrected permeability on cleaned slabs.

Figure 6. Example k-phi data set employing examination methods set out in this article.

DETERMINING PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF POROUS MEDIA USING DIGITAL CORE PHYSICS/ANALYSIS

Shahin Ghomeshi1, Jonathan L. Bryan1,2, Peyman Mohammadmoradi1, Farzad Bashtani1,Saeed Taheri1, Meysam Rahmanian Shahri1 andApostolos Kantzas1,2

1: Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Calgary

2: PERM Inc. Calgary

Introduction

The ability to measure or characterize thepropertiesofporousmediaiskeyto the successful recovery of hydrocarbons. Reservoir petrophysics and log/core analysis have long been the major methods used for interpreting and modeling these reservoir properties. Such characterization is especially important in unconventional oil systems, but it is in these systems in particular that many of the “routine” measurement procedures developed cannot beused easily orreliably. It iswell knownthatthepore sizeisafundamental scale in understanding the displacement processes and estimating global transport properties of porous media. In recent years pore level imaging and modeling has advanced into a predictive tool for the oil and gas industry, and carries with it several names such as digital core analysis (DCA), digital rock physics (DRP), or computational rock physics (CRP). Although it is scientifically challenging task, DCA has the potential to predict the behavior of porous media by directly observing its structural properties without the need for expensive experiments. The workflow involved in DCA is composed of the primary steps: (a) digital imaging from high resolution 2D and 3D scans that can resolve the pore level features of the rocks, (b) performing image analysis in order to process the raw images where pores and the different minerals are identified and segmented based on their gray scale, (c) using numerical simulation algorithms to solve the governing equations of flow within the porous structure (micro or submicron) in order to predict its physical properties. The level of sophistication inthesestepsdeterminesthe predictive power of DCA. This paper addresses the advances made within our group over the past few years. Some illustrative examples are included.

Some physical properties of porous media that are of primary interest including both the single and multiphase flow properties, are the total and effective porosities, absoluteandrelativepermeabilities, electrical resistivity, formation factor, and thermal conductivity. It is important that the numerical algorithms used, correctly approximate these outputs of interest within the porous media domain so that they can be used as a predictive tool for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). However, with the exception of total porosity, these physical properties become relevant only in the presence of a continuous field of hydraulics going through the pore structure connecting the inlet to the outlet, such as for example the hydraulic permeability. Any quantitative information must be at the resolution corresponding to the size of the structural units (i.e. the pores and throats) in order for the image processing software to threshold the different gray scales of the image, identifying the connections between the pores and throats. Therefore, properly capturing the pore structure and its interconnected structural units through high resolution imaging and image processing are vital prior to any computational modeling.

Pore-throats form a continuum in siliclastic rocks and range from submillimeter to the nanometer scale1. There has been significant progress in 3D tomographic imaging techniques to directly image the structure of rocks across a variety of different length scales2. In conventional reservoir rocks, the diameters in the porethroat sizes are typically greater than 2μm and so micro-CT scans can produce good images from rock samples. However, hydrocarbon extraction from poor quality rocks is becoming more common and so in tight sandstones the sizes range from 2 to 0.03 μm, and from 0.1 to 0.005 μm in

shales1. For these sub-micron sizes, the imaging technique required combines a focused ion beam (FIB) with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to obtain information about their internal structure at this much higher resolution.

Imaging and Image Reconstruction

The main limitation in the imaging stage isthathighresolutionimagesoftherock are not always available or we have only an inadequate number of 2D cross-sectional image samples of the rock. If 3D images are available (e.g. from micro-CT), then accurate representations of the medium under investigation can easily be created2. With limited 2D images it is challenging to construct a 3D representation of the rock that properly captures the physical connectivity and arrangement of pores in space. In this case, other methods may be used to construct three-dimensional representations of the pore space for different types of rocks. These are the physics based modeling3, and the statistical reconstruction approach4,5,6. In physics based modeling, one can use the large available inventory of particle (grain) size distribution (PSD)data in orderto mathematically construct porous media thatwillrepresentpackingofregular/ irregular grains3. Figure 1 is an example of a porous medium generated from an input PSD. A virtual porous medium is generated based on cubic packing of spheres with various size distributions to mimic unconsolidated and partially consolidated sands. However for loose packing of spheres typically the porosity andpermeabilityarehigher.Therefore, anotherapproachisdevelopedsuchthat the shape, orientation and structure of the grain can be readily controlled. This approach enables irregular shaped grain packing that can mimic consolidated sands and tight formations based on the PSD7.

Figure1:(a)depictsgrainssizedistribution obtain from oil sands data. (b) depicts regular grainpackinggeneratedfromthedistribution data in order to mimic unconsolidated sand packs (c) depicts packing of irregular grains basedonthegrainsizedistributionwhereonly the sphericity of the grains are changed.3

In the case when there are only a limited number of 2D cross-sectional images available, statistical reconstruction can be invoked in order to generate more 2D cross sections from a single or limited few samples thereby preserving connectivity and obtaining a geologically representative porespace5.3Dreconstructionisthen performed from the generated 2D crosssections.

Prediction of properties

When a 3D image reconstruction is created,thecalculationofpropertiescan be obtained through one of the following methods:

Pore NetworkModelling: This approach goes back in the traditional work of Fatt8 and through numerous reincarnations leads to the work presented by Blunt among others2. The 3D structure is transformed into a network of nodes and bods with predefined geometries. Quasistatic displacements are mimicked and all petrophysical properties are predicted. The method is very fast to use but the pore geometries are unrealistic. If capillary pressure data are available then the predictions of relative permeability and resistivity index curves are reasonably accurate. Otherwise there are multiple solutionsthatcanbegeneratedfrom networks that match given porosity and permeability.

Pore Morphology Approach: In this approach9 the actual images are transformed into a 3D grid and properties are directly calculated using single phase transport equations and multiphase quasistatic displacements. The accuracy is increased since the actual images are used (withintheresolutionlimits).However, computational intensity is also increased.

DirectNumericalModelingApproach:

Here true multiphase flow equations10,11 are implemented throughout all computations. The computational intensity increases multiple orders of magnitude. Also numerical instabilities hamper conversion thus making this approach still a future goal rather than an everyday tool.

The most widely used direct numerical simulation techniques for solving the single and multiphase flow equations are the Lattice Boltzmann method, or the Finite Element and Finite Volume methods. The Lattice Boltzmann method is a particle based technique used in simulating the motion and collision of particles on a grid; and is supposed to be an approximation to the molecular model of flow governed by the Boltzmann equation. In our work we model the flow as a continuum governed by the Navier-Stokes equations. At the pore-level, we are often in the presence of creeping flow regime where inertial forces are much less than viscous forces. In this case for the single phase flow calculations, the Stokes’ equation become a good model and is invoked instead. This can reduce the computational complexity due to the fact that the Stokes equation is linear. For single phase flow calculations we implement the Finite Element method due to the fact that it can readily handle complexgeometriesandalsohigherorder accuracy can be obtained.

For two phase flow calculations an interface advection term is added to the set of governing equations, and we discretize the flow equation using the Finite Volume discretization for the Navier-Stokes equations, and the Volume of Fluid (VoF) method for interface capturing. ThisVoF method is chosen particularly because of it has intrinsic mass conservation properties, whereas other popular implicit interface capturing techniques such as the level set methods are not mass conservative10,11

It must be noted that contrary to reservoir simulationwhere petrophysicalproperties are input, in the aforementioned methodologies the petrophysical properties are output. Inthe following section, some illustrative examples are presented to demonstrate the capabilities of different methods. Details of the

different methodologies can be found in the cited references.

Examples

Some Numerical Results for Physics Based Models

From spherical packings, we have the advantage that we can verify the numerical simulation for permeability for equal sized (homogeneous) porous media using the Kozeny-Carmen relation. The simulation result for a 1500 grain packing is shown in Figure 2 where velocity profile is computed by solving the Navier-Stokes equation and continuity equation in the domain with non-slip boundary conditions and the grain walls, and the absolute permeability is calculated through Darcy’s equation

k= uμL/∆p,

where L is the medium length in the direction of flow (m), u is the Darcian velocity(m/s)throughthe inlet face, μ is the fluid viscosity (cp), and ∆p = is the pressure drop (Pa), and k is the permeability (D). Comparison of the numerical permeability with that predicted by the Kozeny-Carmen equation for different grain diameters is then shown in Figure 3.

Figure 2: (a) Generated regular cubical packing of uniform spheres, (b) velocity profile as a result of sub-pore scale computations.3

Figure 3: Permeability predictions using Kozeny-Carmen equations and sub-pore scale computations.3

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Amoredetailedreviewof permeability calculations in unconsolidated homogeneous sands is given elsewhere4

Construction of the irregular shaped packing is inspired by the crystallization process where the size andshape of the grains is controlled by altering the sphericityof the packings. In Figure 4 we showsomenumericalcalculationsforthe irregularpackingofresolution5 microns and 200×200×200 grains where for the different sphericities, the porosity the permeability (k) and the formation factor (FF) are given Figure 4:

Some Numerical Results for 2D Reconstructed Models

up-scaled core plug. We then assume thepermeabilityobtainedfromthe porelevel simulations within the smallest rocks seen in Figure 6(e), and invoke an average procedure to estimate permeability for the core. The 3D recreated geometry is shown in Figure 6(f). The details of the averaging procedure are given elsewhere4

Forthepurposesofunderstandingthe pore-level mechanisms associated with the displacement process by properly predicting residual oil trapping, snap off, Haines’ jumps and ganglia mobilization, mass conservation within the numerical algorithmiscrucial.Unfortunately, the slow computation times for these calculations, especially for real 3D problems is the main delimiting factor. In order to mimic the recovery process we numerical simulate the primary drainage, and once breakthrough is reached, we perform a secondary imbibition process. The computational times for numerically simulating a primary drainage process in a 3D porous media consisting of 1600 grains and only 2mm in length will take nearly 2 months of run time on a 128 processors. In Figure 5 we perform direct two phase flow computationsusinga200 grainpacking where in (b) we show primary drainage process and in (c) secondary imbibition takes place where residual oil entrapment by snap-off can be observed.

Figure 6(a) depicts a 3D reconstruction procedure where only three SEM samples of Nordegg are available. The SEM images are 5120 × 3828 pixels (~ 637 × 476 microns) and are highly heterogeneous with large range of grain sizes. We provide a given tolerance for the different grain sizes into small, medium, and large. The images arethendecomposedinto permeable and impermeabledomains.The permeable domains are at sub-pore scales where we extract several (33 images) statistically similarimagesthatare256×256pixels (~32×32microns)fromthethreeimages and perform spline interpolation between the gray scale of each 2D cropped image. After the 3D reconstruction of the small scale pores as in Figure 6(b), we employ pore level numerical simulation to obtain the permeability and electrical resistivity within the small pores in which the results are depicted in Table 1. For the two phase flow properties within the small grain sizes we use the Pore Network Modeling technique because it is faster, especially for porous media of such complex topology. The capillary pressure curves based on the Network models are depicted below.

In any DCA, once pore-level numerical simulation results are obtained, procedures to upscale the pore scale data are invoked yielding volume averaged quantities that have the desired practical applications. Here we use an early upscaling approach where from the small sample where permeability is computed through the smallest grains, we use andaveragingprocedureto predict the propertiesfortheentireSEMsample.For theimpenetrableparts (i.e.mediumand large grains), we then map out the large and medium sized grains from the original imagesasinFigure6(c)anduseanerosion/ dilation approach in order to recreate the

along with those derived from interpolation; (c) shows the mapping out of the large impermeable; (d) represents how the medium grains and large grains are merged together after they are mapped out; (e) highlights the zone where the permeability calculations are applied and (f) depicts the reconstructed domain4

Some Numerical Results and Approaches forTight Formations

In this case, we are given 600 2D FIB-SEM images of a tight formation. During the image segmentation (or thresholding) procedure, we can binarize the 2D crosssections into pore space and grains, and only discretize the pore spaces using a Cartesiangrid.Thisiscomputationally less expensive then discretizing the entire domain,anditisacommonapproachfor solving the equations of fluid flow such astheNavier-Stokes’withinthepores with appropriate boundary conditions at the pore walls. However sometimes

Figure4:Differentsinglephaseflowproperties for packings of irregular shaped grains based by varying their sphericity.7

Figure 5: (a) 200 grain sand pack; (b) oil occupancyprofileattheendofdrainage(b) and imbibition (c); (c) shows trapped oil due to snap-off.

Figure 6: (a) represents the different samples containing small grains cropped from the 3 SEM images and (b) the 3D reconstruction of the images cropped

Table 1:Tabulated results from the pore-scale simulations

it is necessary to discretize the entire geometry.Thisis trueforexample,when computing the flow of ions within the porous media. Grains can have almost negligible electrical conductivity, however porestructuresconsist ofmanydifferent minerals. Some of the most common, such as pyrite may be present and their electrical conductivity should be taken into consideration and incorporated into the model. Figure 7 is an example of a tight formation consisting of different minerals. Proper segmentation of the pore space and minerology can greatly impact the numerical results. In Figure 8, we take one quarter of the sample in Figure 7 and threshold it by considering only the pore space as in Figure 8(b), or retaining the different minerals as in Figure 8(c). Figure 8(a) depicts the Pore Network Model of the same sample consisting of a simplified representation of the pores and throats.

Conclusion

Different approaches for Digital Core Analysis within natural porous media patterns have been presented and some of the challenges have been highlighted. The use of high resolution images and/or reconstructedimagesofreal porousmedia coupled with numerical algorithms of flow calculationsshows promisingtechnology as a predictive tool for petrophysical properties currently and EOR in the future.

References

1: Nelson, P.H., 2009. Pore-throat sizes in sandstones, tight sandstones, and shales. AAPG Bull. 93, 329-340.

2:BluntMJ,BijeljicB,DongH,GharbiO,IglauerS, Mostaghomi P, Paluszny A, Pentland C, 2013. PoreScaleimagingandmodelling.AdvancesinWater Resources, 51, 197-216.

Inordertocapturethephysicsofthe flow in the narrow pathways, the voxel (mesh)sizemustbesmallerthanthepore and throat sizes. In the case of shale, for example, just to be ableto investigate methaneadsorptioninnanoporous Kerogen the size of the mesh can cause the computationalrequirementstobecome prohibitively expensive. One way around this is to crop smaller samples and/or use adaptive mesh refinement where needed inordertomaketheproblem amenableto computational physics approach. Figure 10 represents a cross-section in the y-z plane of the tight rock sample from Figure 7. This sample consists of organic Kerogen and in order to simulate flow, we cropped a tiny sample which is representative volumeofthesampleandwestudyits properties. The resolution of the tight rock image is 15 nm/pixel, however higher resolution is required to properly segment the pores within the organic material. Therefore,stochasticreconstructionof the pore space performed with 5nm.pixel resolution.

The absolute permeability is computed in the different directions and the results are giveninTable2, and the capillarypressure curvesarederivedfrom employingquasistatic pore morphology approach9.

3: Taheri, S., Ghomeshi, S., Kantzas, A., Permeability Calculations in Unconsolidated Homogeneous Sands. J. Powder Technology, submitted.

4: Ghomeshi, S., Taheri, S., Skripkin, E., Kryuchkov, S., Kantzas, A., Determining of Physical Properties of Tight Porous Media using Digital Core Physics/ Analysis, SCA2015-052.

5: Oren, P.E., Bakke, S., 2002. Process base reconstructionof sandstonesand predictionof transport properties. Transp. Porous Media 46 (2-3): 311-343.

6: Oren, P.E., Bakke S., 2003. Reconstruction of Berea sandstone and pore-scale modelling of wettability effects. J. Petroleum Sci., and Eng. 39 (3): 177-199.

7: Rahmanian, Shahri, M., Taheri, S., Mohammadmoradi, P. and Kantzas, A., “Stochastic Generation of Virtual Porous Media Using a PseudoCrystallization Approach”, submitted, Energy and Fuels, 2017.

8: Fatt I. 1956. The network model of porous media I. Capillary pressure characteristics. Trans AIME 207: 144-159

9: Mohammadmoradi, P., Kantzas, A., 2016. Petrophysical characterization of porous media starting from micro-tomographic images, Advances in Water Resources, 94:200-216.

10: Santiago, C., Ghomeshi, S., Kryuchkov, S., Kantzas, A., Pore level modelingof imbibition in heavyoil saturated media. 2016. J. Petroleum Sci., and Eng. 140: 108-118.

11:Raeini,A.,Blunt,MJ.,Bijeljic,B.,2012.Modelling Two-PhaseFlowinPorousMediaatthePoreSale using Volume-of-Fluid Methode. J. Comp. Phys, 231: 5653-5668.

Figure 7 (a) represents a cross-section of a tight formation having 15 nm resolution consisting of many different minerals. (b) is the 3D reconstruction obtained from 600 images, one of which is (a).

Figure 8: (b) represents the pore space, whereas in (c) we have identified the different minerals whicharethresholdedandareincorporatedinto the model in solving both electrical and thermal conductivity. (a) is the corresponding Pore Network Model simplification.

Table 2:Tabulated results from the tight formation tests

Figure 9:Capillary pressure curves for the tight formation sample in the different directions using quasi-static displacement from poremorphological approach.

Figure 10: (a) is a y-z plane cross section of the tight rock image containing Kerogen. (b) is the stochastic reconstruction of pore space insidetheorganicmaterial(Kerogen),and the resolution is (5nm/pixel)

TRICAN GEOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS,AN INTEGRATED LABORATORY WITHAN INNOVATIVE SCIENCEAPPROACH

INTRODUCTION

Trican Geological Solutions (TGS), an Alberta, Canada, corporation, was founded in 2000 (formerly CBM Solutions Ltd.) to evaluate coalbed methane projects throughout Canada and the United States. Advances in technical research within the group led to the company’s evolution into a multifaceted, full service lab, with applications in routine and special core analyses, caprock analysis, unconventional fracturing optimization, wellbore stability analysisandgeotechnicalrocktesting.As part of Canada’s largest pressure pumping services company, Trican Well Service Ltd., the TGS team delivers evaluation and data instrumental in enhancing well completion services, with a focus on unconventional reservoirs.

With the recent economic downturn in the oiland gas industry, geological investigations have shifted to generating moredatafromlimitedsamplematerial as well as to optimize completiondesign and well stimulations (including fluid or production damages). To facilitate these changes, TGS has invested significantly in developing methodological and testing procedures as well as increasing computer model and simulation applications geared towards improved understanding of unconventional reservoirs and optimizing conventionalreservoirs.Currently,TGS has capabilities to complete an array oflaboratoryanalyticalcapabilities including local and regional geological/ geotechnicalstudies,projectevaluations and consultancies for shale, tight-rock, SAGD, coalbed methane reservoirs and conventional reservoirs.

With marginal economics and increasingly challenging reservoir evaluations, geoscience of core analyses has become more rock- and formation-specific. Research and studies over the last 10 years have demonstrated that applications of conventional techniques to evaluate unconventional or tight oil-gas plays no longer provides the level of detail or

accuracy needed. Thus, more complex and more technical advanced analyses are performed. Analytical programs now commonly include a combination of geochemistry, rock mechanics, routine and special core analysis, gas-in-place and oilin-place modeling, natural gas liquids yield modeling, petrophysical modeling and petrographic, SEM and CT imaging.

Trican Geological Solutions has assembled a team of experienced professionals dedicated to carrying out the unique services required to evaluate complex reservoirs around the globe. To date, TGS has completed evaluation projects and studies throughout Canada, the United States, India, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, England, Turkey and Australia for approximately 200 individual clients. Several hundred evaluations and studies, involvingin-housetestingofovera thousand wells, have been completed in North America alone.

Tobetterunderstandreservoirsinthe modern age, TGS has focused on a number of areas for developing new approaches of growing concern:

•methods to better characterize and understandroutinerockproperties including porosity, which markedly influences common resource in-place evaluations

•methods and approaches to utilize cuttingsmaterialtoeitherreplaceor supplement core and other analytical data while minimizing expenses for E&P companies

•analytical programs and methods for improving caprock integrity testing processes

GETTINGA BETTER HANDLE ON POROSITY

In the world of conventional reservoirs, porosity measurements are routine with extremely quick turnaround time on

testing. As unconventional exploration rapidly evolved, testing practices from conventional reservoirs were adapted with little to no consideration for the complex nature of pore systems in tight and unconventional reservoirs. In other words, the fast-paced nature of the oil and gas industry had little patience for the development of an appropriate method for unconventional plays, let alone the time to wait for long testing schedules. As a result, much data is considered inaccurate but industry was willing to accept that data as “close enough”. Detailed research on this issue in our laboratory over the last 5 years has demonstrated that this approach results in inaccuracies of as much as 20 to 25 percent or more in some cases. Resource calculations, recovery factors and productionschedules areall impactedin a critical and significant way.

If the recent downturn has a silver lining, it may be in that it has allowed companies to refocus and re-evaluate. With access to unevaluated data and laboratory capacities for research and evaluations of methods, a disconnect between measured reservoir volume (porosity) and production volumes has been identified. Reevaluations on archived core consistently showed that porosity and saturations are underestimated. The fundamental issue that produced such inaccuracies of these methods:time.Conventionaltesting standards do not allow the time required to clean/extract an unconventional or tight rock samplegiven the tightnature and tortuous flow paths found in such plays. Low permeability rocks, less than 0.1 mD, are notoriously “under evaluated” and show high concentrations of residual hydrocarbons and retained solvent from the extraction process.

Understanding the limitations of current testing procedures led to the development of a modified extraction process which allows for more complete measurement of both saturationsandporosityandhaveshown tightercorrelationto logderived porosity

simple example, the measurement of bulk density makes up half of the equation when determining porosity:

Ø=1-(Density_bulk)/(Density_skeletal )

Bulkdensityisroutinelymeasured in two ways: 1) immersion in mercury and 2) caliper measurements. A study presented by the Society of Core Analysts in 2014looked atthe impactofbulk density measurements using chalk samples. The findings, which are consistent with those of TGS, show that mercury immersion has a relative volume error of +/- 0.01 cc while caliper measurements show a relative volume error of +/- 0.15 cc. Figure 1-2 shows the impact on porosity resulting from error associated with both mercury immersion and caliper measurement techniques. In very low porosity systems, the associated error with measurement technique alone can be extremely significant.

At Trican Geological Solutions, we have developed a novel approach to determining both saturations and porosity. Historically, the methodology has relied on a predetermined timeframe to extract the samples. The new methodology relies on an iterativeapproachtoextract,evaluateand repeatthe process untila endpoint canbe measured.

GOINGBACK TO THECUTTINGS

values. The underlying premise being that a samplebeingtestedforporositywithretained hydrocarbonsandsolventwillcertainlygive an underestimation of porosity.

In conventional rocks with 15 percent porosity or more, small amounts of retained fluidsprior to porosity analysis,does not make a significant difference in the final

data. However, in tight rocks, micro- to nano-scale pore space can markedly influencefinal porosityvalues andresults in a significant differenceor anuplift of20 to 25 percent or more in resource calculations. Time is well spent in understanding the processes involved in deriving a porosity value and determining a comfort level in the steps to achieve that value. As a

In a world hyper-focused on cost and overall returns (benefits), the value of well cuttings material for providing important data for geological or well completion decisions must be highlighted. For years, operators have been saving small vials of cuttings material, usually as an obligation to satisfy government regulations. Literally tonnes of sample material are disposed of every year without a second thought as to their potential values. Retaining bulk wellsite cuttings is a low-cost piece of insurance to allow for future testing. Granted, cuttings arenot allequal andqualityis onlyas good as the person collecting them, but if collected properly, they hold an incredible wealth of information. Hence, cuttings data canhold an tremendous valuefor improving both reservoir completion as well as production understanding.

In a time when long-reaching horizontal

Figure 1 1: Chromatogram showing the distribution of hydrocarbons of a previously cleaned core plug (red line) and the same sample after a modified extraction process designed for tight rocks (blue line).

Figure 1 2: Error in porosity measurement associatedwith mercury immersion and calipertechniques for determining bulk density.

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good fit

andTrican’s HHXRF.Thesecondset ofdata was provided by another lab but shows a poor correlation,overestimatingSiasaresultofapoor calibration. Considering that geochemical data is used to model rock properties and mineral compositions, poor calibrations can lead to marked errors in model outputs.

wells (1000-3500 m) are the norm, we typically have a limited view of geological changes happening along the wellbore. Is a 50 m sampling frequency and brief geological description enough when your stage spacing is 40 m? Considering that a core was available forlog calibrations, with long lateral wells, the toe of the well can be >3000 m away from the control section.Howwell does coredata correlate now? Advances in geochemistry, imaging and basic rock property testing allow us to examine the cuttings more closely and extract more information than we ever have in the past.

The emergence of high resolution handheld XRF geochemical units that allow the measurement of elements from Na to U, is an example of technology being applied to economically collect highresolution data in a single wellbore and to correlate data across multiple vertical and horizontal wellbores in a field. As with all instrumentation, understanding the limitations of such instruments is key to getting the most out of it. In the case of XRF geochemistry, formation-specific calibrations are an absolute must to achieving accurate and meaningful results. Whiledatacanbeextremelyvaluable, laboratorycomparisonshavedemonstrated that poor calibrations or precision have led to inaccurate data output (i.e. “garbage in equals garbage out”) (Fig. 1-3). Figure 1-3 provides an example of a calibrated and an uncalibrated silica (Si) profile from the Montney Formation.

At Trican Geological Solutions, to effectivelyuse handheldXRF(HHXRF),a robust calibration is established for every formation investigated using a full-scale wavelengthdispersiveXRF(WDXRF). Reference material from NIST and the USGS are routinely analysed to determine precisionand potential drifts of data. For example, the Montney Formation In AB/BC is based on over 250 calibration samples,

while other formations have calibration samples between 20-50 (e.g. Fig. 1-4) and is then used to identify the elemental relationships between WDXRF and HHXRF to calibrate the HHXRF. Geochemical sample analysis with the HHXRF is a faster and cheaper means of collecting data.

The chemical elemental (XRF) and mineralogical(XRD)compositionsand total organic carbon (TOC) determined fromhighfrequencyanalyses ofwell cuttings, combined with mechanical properties determined with novel instrumented indentation tests on cuttings and rigorous modeling of reservoir and mechanical properties based on XRF and XRD data and pre-acquired core database can lead to a much better understanding on the lateralvariations withina reservoir. The enriched information from cuttings enables geologists and engineers to design optimalstimulationandcompletion programs based on effective ‘engineering’ approaches instead of commonly-used but ineffective ‘geometrical’ approaches to maximize hydrocarbon recovery while with minimizing costs.

A FOCUS ON CAPROCK

Caprocks are non-permeable rock types overlying petroleum-bearing formations of various compositions. Caprocks are

Figure 1 3: Calibrated handheld XRF profile determinedbyTrican(orangelone)andselected WDXRF data points (Trican) in comparison with data collected by another laboratory demonstrating a

betweenWDXRF data

Figure14:CalibrationofhandheldXRFdataagainstawavelengthdispersiveXRFunitofaformationin Alberta with limited core tests.

concise, and organized manner.

expected to provide a seal for hydrocarbon migration during completions of the underlyingformations.Inshallow unconventional reservoirs, such as oil sands,mechanicalpropertiesofthecaprock are critical. Mechanical testing of caprock samples is challenging and regulations regarding the requisitetesting is not likely to become any more lenient anytime soon. Truly the question to be asked is “how do I get the knowledge I need to ensure that a stimulationprogram will not result in catastrophic failure”? We all want to get the most out of our projects without harming people, and the environment. Mechanical testing of caprock core can be plagued with pitfalls and projects can turn into money pits if not properly planned. Data can be misleading if not presented in a clear,

Trican Geological Solutions has developed a full suite of potential testing and core management that can be customized to manage the specific challenges inherent in the world of caprock testing. The TGS advantage starts directly at the wellsite, with experienced geologists utilizing our custom-builtairsuspensiontransport system to ensure that core material arrivesat itsdestinationinasafe,timely and organized manner. Once the core material has arrived at the laboratory, full diameter scout scan CT can be performed. Computedtomography(CT)scanning and core imaging provide an invaluable tool for better understanding laboratory data and for the screening of samples prior to testing. Sample selection plays a particularly significant role in the testing of caprock integrity, where microfractures and rock fabric are of critical importance in these highly heterogenous deposits. For minimal investment, a CT scout scan can be used to investigate the suitability of an interval for mechanical testing and allow for qualitative analysis of the core prior to removing it from the liner.

Once samples have been selected from CT images and discussed with geological and engineering teams, preparation begins. The preparationoffulldiametercoresamples has a significantly higher rate of success on

caprock cores when compared to plugging procedures, as less disturbance is induced and there is no need for the introduction of fluids which could potentially damage sensitive clays.

With a full suite of geomechanical testing, Trican works closely with their clients to ensure most applicable data possible fortheir testingbudget.Triaxialtesting is generally a large part of the requisite testing, obtaining Young’s Modulus, Poison’s ratio, and compressive strength under varying stress states, temperatures, andpreconditioningcycles.This information can be used to build MohrCoulomb envelopes, in-situ stress models, and determine changes in strength with changes in temperature. Direct Shear testing can be used on various sample sizes and shapes, which can allow for mechanical testing of zones that would not be suitable for triaxial testing. Direct shear testing measuresshearstrengthandmodulusas a function of normal stress and canalso be used for the definition of failure envelopes.

Every caprock is unique and requires a thoughtful approach to designing a testing program. Whether the goal is to increase production, comply with AER regulation, or simply understand the rock physics of your reservoir our committed team of experienced geoscientists will consult with each operator to develop a program

Figure 1 5: CT scanning used to select homogenous caprock samples (glauconitic sand unit) for triaxial testing. Features to note: using preliminary CT scanning helps avoid low angle fractures (red arrow), and irregular bedding features (blue arrows)

Figure 1 6: Example of a Mohr-Coulomb failure envelope created from 4 triaxial tests from varying stress states.

(Continued from page 21...)

that matches the data needs. Ultimately, precious capital is being spent to evaluate the rock, and every operator deserves input andtransparencyintothe data being generated.

Figure17:Exampleofstresspathsoftriaxialsampleswithdifferentconfiningpressures.Thehigherthe confining pressure the larger the slope of the loading curve, demonstrating sample stiffness increase with respect to an increase in confining pressure.

Figure 1 8: Photographs of a clay rich caprock sample before and after triaxial testing. Material after triaxialtestingisstillviablefortestssuchasXRD,whichallowsforzonalidentificationandqualitycontrol.

October 16th - 20th, 2017| Calgary, AB

Instructor: David James

Course Overview

This five-day schoolhas been taughtto Calgary, Houston and internationally based geologists and geophysicistsforover 30 years and was initially designedas amandatory coursefor all junior staff. Over the years itbecameapparent thatmore senior G/G(and Engineers) couldgaingreat benefitfrom re-examiningthe advances madein faciesmodeling, tracesfossils,sequence stratigraphy and seismic geomorphology.Using a combination oflectures followed by core examination,all clasticdepositional settingsfrom theWestern Canadian basin that contain hydrocarbonsare discussed.

CSPG Member Rate $2400

Non-Member Rate $2600

Emphasis will be placed on coredescription,identifying sedimentary structures, recognizing reservoir facies, sequenceboundaries,flooding surfacesandmostimportantly,thinking geologically.Delegates will be exposed to a vastamountof core (600+ boxes) over 5 days.Theultimate product is the establishment ofa robuststratigraphically andfacies basedexplorationmodel to guidea drilling program.Core correlation and field basedexercises with data setsfrom the Alberta Basin and theinternationalarena willbe usedto reinforcethe concepts. The school concludeswith a lecture on the controls ofreservoir quality and how they relate to depositional setting and well productivity.

Meet the Instructor

David earned hisBSc and MSc from the University of Calgary during the 70’s and later,his doctorate from Oxford working underthe supervision of Harold Reading. He has 35+ years of Industry experience.The first14 years were spentat Esso/Exxon where he was introduced to sequencestratigraphy.It was atthis time he started a 25+ year collaboration with Henry Posamentier, MacJervey, Dale Leckie and more recently Andy Pulham.AfterEsso, David served in various roles such as ChiefGeologist, Chief GeoscientistorManagerof Internationalwith Wascana/Nexen, Renaissance/Husky and Anadarko.In addition tohis extensive experience in the WesternCanadian Basin, McKenzie Delta and East Coast, David has spentmany years in the Internationalarena, especially the Middle East and UK. He is the co-editorof CSPGMemoirs 15and 18on Sequence Stratigraphy and the Mannville Group respectively and has published many articles orabstracts on stratigraphy and sedimentology.As a consequence of his contributions, David has repeatedly beenselectedas a distinguished lecturerforthe CSPG in addition to beingrecognizedwith awards from the SEPMand AAPG.During his many years in industry, David has taughtexploration, clasticsfacies, sequence stratigraphy and ledfield trips forseveral generations of geologists and geophysicists.Well over1000G/G have attended his Clastics Exploration school taughtsince the early 1980’s and a similarnumberof delegateswith his Nautilus based Colorado Field trip, taughtwith Andy Pulham foroveradecade. David was a Directorand Vice Chairman of Geoscience BC,sat on several boards and lives in glorious retirementin Victoriawhere he plays golf very badly.

DavidhaschosentoteachthisclassforthelasttimeundertheauspicesoftheCSPGas athankyoutotheSocietyandtoIndustry.

2017 STUDENT INDUSTRY FIELDTRIP

By: Jesse Schoengut andVanessa Huey

The first Student Industry Field Trip was run 40 years ago by a group of geologists who believed that the best geologists are the ones who have seen the most rocks, and that students can learn more from being surrounded by rocks than bysittinginaclassroom.Eachyearsince then,studentsfromacrossCanadahave come to Calgary for a two week crash course inroleofapetroleumgeoscientistandthe geologyof Western Canada.While parts of the trip have changed quite substantially over the years, the core parts of SIFT have remained the same: to provide the students with a fundamental background of the petroleum industry; expose them to the geology of Western Canada; and provideanopportunitytonetworkwith other University students and industry professionals

This year, 32 students from different Universities across Canada partook in SIFT 2017 from April 30th to May 1st. Mirroring the changes to the program itself, the student demography this year was different than in the past: SIFTEE’s this year were a combination of second-, third-, and fourth-year students, among whom some identified as geophysicists and geological engineers! The students were kept extremely busy over the two weeks, beginning with the Icebreaker reception on the first night, and culminating with the ‘Wine & Cheese’ Awards ceremony on the last night. During the days, the students attended lectures taught by industry experts, with topics including petrophysical log interpretation, sequence stratigraphy, unconventional resources, and production technology, and core workshops overviewing the different play types in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. They also attended two field trips: a day trip to Dinosaur Provincial Park, and a four-day loop through the Rocky Mountains. Onthe four-day, our experienced technical leaders show the students various play types and producing formations within Western Canada by showing seismic lines, well logs, crosssections and mapping, and then turn to the mountains where world class outcrops

display these important geologic concepts. They also take a tour of a (learning) drilling rig at SAIT which gives exposure to the operational side of the industry.

All of the learning they do during the day is aimed at setting them up for their evening activity: the Exploration Game. In teams of four,thestudentsaregivenaninitialsum of ‘money’ and start their own oil and gas exploration companies. They work through developing and expanding their land base by bidding on land during land sales, drilling wells, making farm-in and other deals, andrecompletingwellsforbypassedpay. For most of the students, this is their first exposure to the industry, so things like well logs and the DLS land system are completely foreign to them. The exploration game is concluded by each team presenting their financial summary, company strategy and a geological overview to a panel of industry judges, who then award the Technical (Bill Ayrton) and Financial (Larry Strong) Awards to the teams. Mirroring industry today, we had the most number of farm in and land swap deals this year than we’ve have in years past! This year, the Technical Award went to Arin Kitchen (University of Regina), Katherine Lazaruk (UBC), Laura-

Pier Perron Desmeules (University of Quebec–Chicoutimi),andAdrianOberland (Laurentian),andtheFinancialAwardto Danielle Livingstone (University of Alberta), Dillon Langelaan (Acadia), Spencer Killins (Lakehead), and Kieran Tompkins (McGill). As seems to be the case with past years, the judging was extremely close, and the judges wanted to congratulate all the teams on a job well done!

Planning forSIFT begins well before the studentsarrive,andthelogisticsbehind keeping the students busy for two weeks is alargetask.Thankfully,SIFThasabarrage of willing volunteers – many of whom are previous SIFTEE’s, and a growing number of non-SIFTEE’s who never actually attended the trip. This year we were lucky enough to have over 30 people on the planning and organizing committee, and an additional 40 people who gave lectures, seminars, ran the field trips, and volunteered at the ExplorationGame. We can’tbegin tothank eachandeveryoneofthemenoughforall the hard work they put in.

SIFT owes a big part of its continual running to the financial and in-kind support of numerous companies and individuals.

SIFT students at theAER Core Lab after core seminar.

petroleum geoscience. Financial support from industry was strong this year, and sponsors included Imperial Oil, Progress Energy, Canbriam, Nexen, Murphy Oil, CNRL, Husky, and Saguaro. Industry also stepped up in another way, as two SIFT students were hired through the SIFT job program. The University of Calgary also generouslydonatedthelabspaceand meeting rooms that were used over the course of the Exploration Game.

Sands, Duvernay and Montney are more mainstream and conventional topics, while Cardium, Viking, and Leduc are moving into the unconventional realm. Future seminars may include things like geomodeling, fracturetechniques,anddirectional drilling, allofwhicharebecomingabigger and more influential part of our industry.

ThemajorityofSIFTissupportedbythe CSPG Foundation and its vision to support University Outreach programs which advance education and awareness of

As SIFT looks ahead to next year and beyond, it is important that the program adapts and changes along with industry in order to remain a relevant and desirable program for both students and industry. We have already started to see some of this in changes to the topics of the lectures and core workshops presented – Oil

The 2017 SIFT committee thanks its’ generous volunteers and sponsors, and congratulates each 2017 SIFTEE for another successful year. May the memories, knowledge and friendships forged during SIFT 2017 remain with you for the rest of your career, as it has with each SIFTEE in years past. We are already looking forwards to planning the 2018 program, and reaching out to each University across Canada once again.

GEOCONVENTION2017:FIELDTRIP FT2“PROGRESSAND CHALLENGES FOR CCUS INALBERTAAND CANADA”.

This field trip was held May 11, 2017. The trip included avisit to CMC Research Institutes’ Field Research Station in Newell County about 22 km southwest of Brooks. The trip discussed aspects of Climate Change Science and Mitigation Efforts related to capture and storage in geological media in Alberta, with an emphasis on two globally recognized facilities. Kirk Osadetz (CMC ResearchInstitutes)discussedtheir Newell County Field Research Station, a subsurface technology development and demonstration project that injects small volumes of CO2 from above to simulate apotentialleakagefromahypothetical repository below. The FRS is focused on the development and demonstration of repository conformance and containment of the inject fluids. It operates at a depth similar to in-situ bitumenoperations, ~300 m, and it is focused on subsurface imaging and detection that reduce storage, injection and extraction project risks while improving public and regulatory confidence in safe subsurface operations. The FRS operates as an industrial JIP. Luc Rock (Shell Canada Ltd) discussed the Shell Quest Carbon capture and storage project. QUEST captures more than one million

tonnesof CO2 peryear from the Scotford Upgrader located near Edmonton, Alberta, reducing the direct CO2 emissions from the Upgrader by up to 35%. Quest is a fully integrated CCS project, as it involves the capture / transport / injection / storage of CO2, and a measurement, monitoring and verification (MMV) program. The CO2 captured from the Upgrader is transported by pipeline ~65km to the injection wells where itisinjectedintotheBasalCambrian Sandstone (BCS), a saline aquifer located at a depth of about 2 km below ground surface. CO2 injection started in August 2015, and during its first year of operation the Quest project stored more than 1 million tonnes of CO2

Participants and encounters a local resident, from times gone by, at Dinosaur Provincial Park, where Dinosaur Park Fm. outcrops are similar to the uppermost bedrock succession in the subsurface at the FRS.

SIFT students getting a geology overview at the Mount Norquay overlook stop on the 4-day field trip from leader Peter Fermor.

Participants at the CMCRI FRS with Paul Cook (Lawrence Berkeley National Labs/United States Department of Energy) and Brian Mellor (Executive Director CMCRI).

2017 – 28th AnnualCSPGMixed Golf Tournament August25th, 2017

Markyourcalendars,andgetreadyforthe2017CSPGMixedGolftournamenton25thAugust atLynxRidgeGolfcourse.Thefour-golfer,best-balltournamentincludesaroundofgolf,meals,plenty ofhospitalityandgoodtimes,andachancetonetworkwithyourcolleaguesandindustrysponsors. ThisyearwetrustthatwereturntothetypicalAugustgolf,wherethecourseisatitsfinest, withtheinvitingfairways,smoothgreens,spectacularmountainsandtheever-beckoningwater hazardsandsandtrapstocaptureerrantgolfshots.

Thisisafuntournament,withbalancedteamsthatallowallgolferstocontributetotheteam score,whilehavingagreattimeenjoyingthedayandthefellowshipofgolfingasateam,and developingyournetworkofgeoscientists.

Pleasewatch forfurtherannouncements,registrationformsandinformationinthe CSPGReservoir,andmakesuretoregisteron-lineattheCSPGwebsite www.cspg.org. Registerearlytoavoiddisappointment!

Wethankourprevioussponsorsfrom2016andlookforwardtothereturnofmembers,guestsand sponsorstoenjoytheevent.Abigthankyoutoourcontinuingcommitteemembers,DarinBrazel, NormHopkins,JeffBoissoneault,andco-chairBrendaPearson.

YoucanaddressregistrationinquiriestoDavidMiddletonat403-296-8844(dmiddleton@suncor.com), ortoKristyCasebeer,CSPGCoordinatorat403-513-1233(kristy.casebeer@cspg.org).

Ifyouareinterestedinsponsoringthetournamentthisyear,pleasecontactDavidat dmiddleton@suncor.com orBrendaatbpearson@birchcliffenergy.com.

DavidMiddleton&BrendaPearson

Co-ChairsCSPGMixedGolfTournament

Permian Basin (Prototype Super Basin) and Other Superbasins: DiscoveryThinking, Innovation and Lessons

SPEAKER

Charles Sternbach, AAPG President 2017-2018

11:45 am

Fairmont Palliser Hotel, Crystal Ballroom

133 9Avenue SW, Calgary,Alberta T2P2M3

Please note: The cut-off date for ticket sales is 1:00 pm, five business days before event. September5, 2017. . CSPG MemberTicket Price: $45.00 including GST. Non-Member Ticket Price: $55.00 including GST.

Each CSPG Technical Luncheon is 1 APEGA PDHcredit.Ticketsmaybepurchased online at www.cspg.org

ABSTRACT

The Permian “SuperBasin” of Texas and New Mexico is comprised primarily of a thick sequence of Permian sediments deposited in the foreland of the Ouachita-Marathon Thrust Belt. It is a composite feature made up of the better-known Delaware Basin, the Central Basin Platform and the Midland Basin. Although a prolific hydrocarbon provincewithproductivewellsdatingback to 1921, its recent emergence has only been since 2008. Perhaps most remarkably and for a range of reasons, it has become virtually the only area of the United States thathasnotexperiencedadeclineofeither drilling or production in the midst of the industry’s current low price environment. It is “super” in more than just a geological sense.

Charles will enlighten on what makes this “superbasin” tick. He will include Discovery Thinking lessons from other superbasins and petroleum rich areas. The audience will be provided with geological and technological fodder that can be used in the rejuvenation of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, a sister “superbasin”.

Charles began his career with Shell Oil in a variety of assignments between 1984 and 1997. He managed an Exploration Office in

Houston for Tom Jordan 1997-2004. He is now the President of Star Creek Energy in Houston. He begins his terms as President of the AAPG in July 2017. He is perhaps best known for his organizational role in the establishment and continued success of the innovative “Discovery Thinking” sessions featured at each year’s AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition.

BIOGRAPHY

Charles A. Sternbach has explored for and discovered Energy in the US and around the globefor35years. HewasStaffGeologist for Shell Oil Company, Exploration ManagerforTomJordan(JordanOil and Gas), President of First Place Energy (International frontier exploration) and is currently President of Star Creek Energy. Charles has a PhD (and MS) in Geology from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a BA in geology from Columbia University. He isalso proudlya memberof AAPG and CSPG.

Charleshasfocusedhiseffortson ExplorationCreativity,studyinghow explorers and their teams have found giant fields. He created and leads the popular AAPG Discovery Thinking Forums which have been standing room only events at annual AAPG conventions in North America (ACE) and around the world (ICE). These impactful programs integrate geology, geophysics and engineering into case studies of business success.

There have been 18 Discovery Thinking Forums since 2008 with about 10,000 attendees. About 115 speakers have permitted their video presentations to be posted on the AAPG Search and Discovery Website with 40,000 viewings around the globe. In addition, Charles created the AAPG Playmaker program in 2012. These 1 day forums on exploration creativity have been presented 10 times in the US, Canada, and Europe. More than 1,500 professionals have attended and presentations have received 10,000 web views around the world. More of these forums are planned.

Charles believes case histories of successful

explorers and their discoveries is a short cut to wisdom. Every geologist around the globe raises thelevel of collective intelligencefor all by sharing information and techniques. Critical insights fall into patterns that can be recognized and anticipated. The legacy of exploration literature forms a syllabus for future explorers. Technology enables preservation and communication of critical knowledge via the internet through programs like Search and Discovery, Datapages, and GIS spatial related databases. He is a co-editor with Dr. Robert Merrill on the fifth installment of the AAPG memoir series Giant Fields of the Decade 2000-2010 (Memoir 113, in press).

Charles resides in Houston, Texas. His wife Linda is also a distinguished geophysical advisor. Charles is a leader in the global geological community: presidentelectAAPG,pastpresidentGulfCoast Association of Geological Societies, past presidentHoustonGeologicalSociety, and past president ofAAPG’s Divisionof Professional Affairs. He is an Honorary Member of AAPG, HGS, and DPA.

CSPG PRESIDENT’SAWARD 2016, BRAD HAYES

CSPGAwards Ceremony, 9 May 2017 LadiesandGentlemen,Iamverypleasedto announce the CSPG President’s Award for 2016, which goes to our Longtime, and New Honorary Member, Dr. Brad Hayes

Criteria for Award: The highest volunteer award presentedinayear.Itrecognizesa current CSPG Member who has contributed to the society through outstanding service, and is chosen by the CSPG President at the end of their operating year.

The award may reflect service overlapping the three year term centered on the Presidential year, as well as reflect the cumulative effects resulting from longterm and ongoing efforts.

You have already heard about the depth and breadth of Brad’s involvement with the CSPG from the Honorary Member citation, which is really impressive to hear when summarized in its entirety. So I will focus a little more closely on some of his volunteer contributions from the near term.

Brad has been impactful in a number of areas recently; this includes participating in the re-instatement of our Hydrogeology Division as a keynote Technical Luncheon speaker, by his involvement with the CSPG Ambassador Program including a number of campus visits (which I will describe inmoredetailbelow),alsobyactingasa liaison with affiliate Societies and agencies such as CSUR where he is Secretary and APEGA where he is a Councillor, also by sharing his experience with upcoming students whoare coming through onSIFT, and by being an advocate for the oil and gas industryon campusesand as panelist and expert witness in industry-related affairs; to this last point it is becoming increasingly important to have individuals who are willing and knowledgeable enough to speak-out on behalf of what we do and how we contribute to society.

For 2016 the CSPG Board was working on strategic initiatives including a Hydrogeology Division, as well as workshops in the areas of Carbon Capture

and alternate energy such as Geothermal. To kick of the Hydrogeology speaker series Brad teamed up with Division Chair Jamie Wills and they delivered theinaugural talk at the November 2015 Technical Luncheon, entitled “The New Hydrogeology: Renewed Importance of Water to the Petroleum Industry in the 21st Century”. This effectively kicked-off the Division, and a number talks werethen rolled out for2016. Wateruse in the industry has grown exponentially in recent years, and Brad is an Industry leader on this topic from his work as President of Petrel Robertson, and it was important to have a speaker of his calibre to start-up the Division.

Then for January and March of 2016 Brad set-up two very significant Ambassador ProgrameventsattheUniversityof Alberta. Note, individual Ambassadors are responsible for different sectors of the country, and Brad is the designated CSPG Ambassador to the Prairies. In January 2016, the UA Department hosted a visit by training personnel from geoLOGIC, for instruction on industry-standard oil and gas database/mapping tools. Many Departments around the country use geoSCOUT which is a portal into the oil & gas business for them. The event was very popular, so as a follow-up Brad and the Department decided on conducting a oneday classroom seminar for senior students later in the semester. Using his contacts Brad then teamed up with CSUR Executive Vice-President Dan Allen, and they put together a program on unconventional oil and gas plays. A campus lecture hall was bookedforanentireday,andtherewere 30-35 students in attendance, with other students and faculty circulating in and out. They were also joined by Mark Flint, CEO of APEGA, who spoke to the students about APEGA, professionalism, careers and ethics. Mr. Flint also stayed fora couple of hours to soak in some of the lectures on unconventional plays in Canada. So, this was a fully integrated event, we have as coordinated by our Prairie Ambassador, fivedifferentorganizationsinvolved, includingtheUA,CSPG,CSUR,APEGA, and geoLOGIC. This sort of collaboration

optimizes our resources and exposure, and alwaysleadstonewopportunities,and Brad is one of the few persons around who can bring such a diverse group together in this manner.

ShortlythereafterIreceived,as President of the Society emails from the Department Head, Professor Stephen Johnston, and from the Associate Chair of Undergraduate Studies Professor Murray Gingras; letters stating how useful the workshop was and that theyacknowledgethe effortsmadeby Brad and the others.

I should mention that another exercise theyconducted duringtheworkshopwas a discussion on contrasting film clips they watched from anti-development advocates and from pro-development advocates; asking the students to be objective in developing their views. So you can see that Brad is striving to bring some balance to the discussionsaboutresourcedevelopment, which in the popular media is not always fairlytreated–thestudentsneedabasis from which to develop rational views, and it takes someone with real experience to guide them and strike that balance. Also, Brad has been called as an expert witness

and has also served as a strategic advisor to the Premier of Alberta’s Competitiveness Review, to Provincial and Territorial regulatory agencies, and as a member of the Expert Panel on HydraulicFracturing in Nova Scotia.

Follow up to the UA event will include a Women in Geosciences lecture in September, and planning has begun for a 1-2 day core workshop at the University, and will look to invite participation with the Alberta Geological Survey.

More recently Brad has continued to carry the torch for the CSPG and for the industry. In February he travelled as CSPG Ambassador to Regina and to Manitoba. In Regina he met with geologists from the Saskatchewan Geological Survey to discuss theirrepresentationatGeoConvention and at CSPG Core Conference; he then met with faculty and students at the University of Regina, and delivered a talk entitled “Protecting the Environment while Developing Unconventional Oil and Gas: Because it’s2017” to asubstantial audience (~30) at a late afternoon seminar session; as you can see he continues to address both sides of the debate head-on, and strives to find a workable middleground.Thenon February16and17,he visited the University of Manitoba, and was enthusiastically hosted by Professors and students alike, some involved in petroleum-relatedresearch,hedelivered his talk, several meetings were arranged, and he spent a full and productive two days – that’s a big time commitment.

I have gone into some detail here on this, but it’s important for you to hear this so that you can truly appreciate how impactful and relevant these efforts can be. Back in 2001 when Brad was President of the Society he initiated University Outreach, and today we are hearing about some of the outgrowth from this action which is taking shape in different forms.

Brad, thank you for your dedication to the Ambassador program these last couple of years, and the workshop and talks you

gave on campuses in Edmonton, Regina, and Winnipeg. Your ongoing work with SIFT is important, and the Luncheon talk you gave to kick off the new Hydrogeology Division is appreciated. Thank you for helping to create a bridge between CSPG and CSUR, and between CSPG and APEGA. The improvement of communication is something we at the CSPG need to continue working on. Also noted is your willingness to be an advocate for the industry, which takes courage and conviction stemming from your true understanding of the issues at hand. Most of all, thank you for being a long-standing member and volunteer over many, many years, it takes time, effort, and real generosity to contribute at the level that you do. Your volunteer work has made an impact on the success of our society, on countless individuals and coleagues, and your efforts are admired by us all –CONGRATULATIONS!

H.M.HUNTER AWARD

Background

The H.M. Hunter Award was originally created to recognize CSPG members who have contributed long term distinguished service tothe Society.As suchthe focus was on volunteers more in the latter part of their careersandwholikelyhadservedinavariety of capacities. However distinguished service isnotlimitedtolong termservicemembers so the original concept has been modified to also recognize outstanding volunteer efforts of the Society's younger members. The H. M. Hunter Award now recognizes:

•a longer term CSPG member (20+years) who has contributed to the Society on an on-goingbasisinavolunteercapacity in a variety of portfolios and/or singular outstanding service. This would include anoutstandingindividualwhohasnot received a major service award recently and if they have been recognized in the past, have contributed to provide great service to theSociety sincethat time. Special consideration is given to those 'behind the scenes' i.e. 'unsung heroes' whose contributions have not been adequately recognized.Suchlonger-termmembers have gone above and beyond and by doing so have promoted our profession and the Society.

•a shorter term CSPG member (10-20 years) for exceptional performance, who has gone above and beyond, a rising

starasavolunteertotheSociety,and who has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to the CSPG.

Both awards are of equal merit and recognize exceptional volunteer commitment to the Society. The CSPG is built on a legacy of service by members and so strives to recognize and encourage such recipients. There is no restriction as to the number of times an individual may win this award. Nor does this award have to be awarded in either category each year or at all in the unlikely situation of no worthy nominees in a given year.

The portal for nominations from the membership is the Society's website. Besidesfillingouttheonlinenomination form, a letter of recommendation along with a citation of volunteer history is required with a nomination.

History of the H.M. HunterAward

First awarded in 2004, this award is named after Mr. H. (Harry) M. Hunter who was a founding member of the Alberta Society of Petroleum Geologists. He had one of the longest volunteer careers of the founding members.HarryHunterservedasASPG Secretary-Treasurer in 1929, as Business Manager in 1935 and 1937, and as President in 1939. Harry Hunter was the only founding member present at the final meeting of the ASPGwheretheyoverwhelminglyagreed to

change their name to the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists. This award is named in honour of Mr. Hunter's work in the early days of the Society, on the Executive and his subsequent volunteerism. The award is a wall clock chosen to represent the time members have given to the Society. The originator of the award, Astrid Arts, designed the original clock along with the company Slateworks who made them. The current version of the award is a plaque-style, slate, wall clock with the CSPG logo in the center and the name of the winner on a brass plate.

Winners of the H.M. HunterAward

2016 - Dawn Hodgins and Gordon Stabb

2015 - Astrid Arts and Kevin Root

2014 - Norbert Alwast

2013 - Ben McKenzie

2012 - Lisa Griffith

2011 - Timothy Bird and Graeme Bloy

2010 - No award granted

2009 - Peter Harrington and Peter Hay

2008 - Gerry Reinson and Kirk Osadetz

2007 - Bill Ayrton and Memory Marshall

2006 - Jack Porter and Ian McIlreath

2005-Vittorio (Vic) Panei and Ashton Embry

2004 - Leslie Eliuk and Clinton R. Tippett

Our 2016 HunterAward Recipients are:

Gordon Stabb and Dawn Hodgins

Gordan Stabb

GordonStabbisaconsultantPetroleum Geologist with a 35 year professional background in Western Canadian oil and gas exploration, development, and production. Gordon holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology from the University of Toronto (1981), and is a practicing member of APEGA; the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta.

Gord joined the CSPG in 1981 and began volunteer service to the society in 1982. The CSPG committees to which he has contributed include:

•The Publication Indexing Committee: (1982 to 2004)

•The Basin Analysis & Sequence Stratigraphy Division: (2002 to 2012)

•The Board of Directors Executive, Director of Finance: (2013 to 2014)

These contributions represent 32 years (and counting) of continuous volunteer service to the CSPG. In addition Gord has authored or co-authored numerous technical presentations and publications as well as representing our profession in the Canadian Heavy Oil Association. Gord is truly an unsungvolunteerwho hasworkedtirelessly for decades in furthering a variety of endeavors that advanced the society.

Dawn Hodgins

Dawn graduated from University of Calgary in 2001, with a B.Sc. in Geoscience and in

2006 with a M.Sc. in Structural Geology. She started in the oil and gas industry in 1998 working for a small junior oil and gas company as a technologist while completing her undergrad. Throughout her grad years, she worked for mid-size and smaller O&G companies before starting with ExxonMobil Canada West in 2002 and Imperial Oil in 2005. Throughout the years, she has worked on many projects across Alberta, Arctic Canada and East Coast, as well as continuously volunteering for the society.

A crucial program that the CSPG makes possibleevery yearthroughtheEducational Trust Fund is the Student Industry Field Trip (SIFT). As an early attendee, SIFT gave her a first glimpse into the world of oil and gasanditsetherontoasuccessfulcareer path. She promotes the idea that SIFT positively enhances student’s perceptions of the oil and gas industry and that it attracts amazing talent to our industry and society. Embracingthetruespiritofvolunteerism and “giving back”, she has volunteered as animportantpartofthecommitteeforover 15 years. Her volunteer time expanded in 2012/2013 to include the CSPG Board as Outreach Director and in 2014 Education Trust Fund Trustee.

Dawn is now lead Operations Geologist for the Hibernia Platform in Eastern Canada.

TRACKS CITATION

Alexis Anastas

Alexisbeganhiscareeringeoscience digging out Ordovician fossils from the cliffs of the Humber River Valley in Toronto during high school in the 80’s. This childhood passion led to Bachelor’s Degree in Geology at the University of Toronto, and he then followed his soft rock passion to Waterloo, where he received his M.Sc., studying the Silurian Bruce Peninsula. After two summers mapping with the Ontario Geological Survey, Alexis then took a Ph. D. at Queens University, on Oligo-Miocene Carbonates from New Zealand. Among other experiences, working as a graduate student on an industry field trip to the Bay of Fundy illustrated the value of geoscience in the working world and inspired Alexis to pursue an E&P career. The magnitude of the projects,excitementoftheevaluation,as well as the immense technical and business challenges sealed the decision to join the industry in Calgary.

Alexis started his career in Calgary with Amoco in 1997 and started volunteering withtheCSPGonContinuingEducation Committee. Later he worked on the 1999 short course slate. With the BP merger with Amoco, Alexis travelled to work on the prolific Wytch Farm in England and spent many weekends, and a few weekdays, on

the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. After returning to Canada, Alexis joined theGas BusinessUnittoworkondevelopment geology, foothills, and deep basin fields, wells and prospects. In 2003 Alexis left BP to join Devon Canada Corporation as a carbonate sedimentologist to support the company’s many projects in Alberta, BC and occasionally Brazil. It was at Devon that Alexis had the privilege to work with the late Graeme Bloy, who would later become CSPG’s President. Graeme imparted his strong belief in the vast potential of the Alberta Basin, the importance of rigorous methodical work, anda passion forthe Devonian and Mississippian carbonate section. Alexis’ next move was to the Regional Exploration Group at Nexen and that is where he has been for 10 years evaluating assets, generating prospects, and bid rounds in Europe, Africa and South America. Trying to reconstruct the geology of basins with very little hard data was a humbling experience and makes one cherish the Alberta Basin.

Alex has found his years in the industry has been rewarding for the challenges and rewardsfound inthework,butalsolargely because of the interpersonal experience. Through the years and in different countries, Alexis has been fortunate to work and volunteer with many collaborative, hardworking groups of positive, friendly and thoughtful individuals of different backgrounds. Alexis looks forward to the future pursuing his passion of working in geology, spending time with family and friends, cycling, volunteering, and watching his children mature into adulthood.

Alex has received four Service Awards in his 28 years of CSPG Membership. This Tracks Award has been earned through his exemplary volunteering, as well as his dedicated work as the Chair for ACE field trips and the way he reconceptualized the way CSPG values it’s instructors.

David Clyde

David Clyde graduated with a degree in Geology from University of British Columbia in 1979. He started his career

working as a wellsite geologist with ExLog for a year, before joining PetroCanada. At PetroCanada, he started off working on the Hiberniaoilfield,beforebeing transfered to the Arctic Region where he was involved in the day to day drilling operation of the PanArctic JointVenture. He finished his career with PetroCanada in the Western Basin. Eventually, David transitioned in to the accounting field and currently is a Controller at Hawk Machine Works.

David’s first involvement with CSPG was in1983, when he was asked togivea presentation on the Geology of the Sverdrup Basin and Hydrocarbon Potential to the participants of the CSPG SIFT program. He became involved again in 2007, whenhe began serving as a communication director for the technical chairs and other various capacities. He was asked to join the Joint AnnualConventionCommitteeasaboard Member in 2012, and he assisted with the JACC transition to the GeoConvention Partnership, where he served as a Director until 2016. David is currently a Trustee on the CSPG Foundation.

David has been awarded four Service awards and be a constant presence in the Mixed Golf tournaments for almost a decade. David Clyde has earned this Tracks Award for his decade of devoted volunteer work

with the CSPG and his leadership with GeoConvention.

Ian McIlreath

Since 1976 Dr. John Harper first introduced Ian McIlreath to volunteering for the Society, on the Technical Luncheon Program Committee,Ianhasvolunteeredinmany capacities. Most notably he was theCSPG President in 1983 at the same time as being the Technical Program Chair of the 1983 Annual Meeting, the General Chairman of GeoCanada 2000 (the Millennial GeoscienceSummit),andthe originatorand early organizer of GeoCanada 2010. Besides having chairedanadditional25different committees, and being an active member ofat least 15 other separate committees through the intervening years, Ian has been theCSPGliaisonto6differentnationaland international organizations. He has played an active role in organizingand chairing other conventions, convention technical sessions, and special technical meetings including the first carbonate core conference (when it was a separate fall event), as well as leading field trips into the Front and Main Ranges. Ian chaired the CSPG-CSEG-CWLS Joint Annual Convention Committee (2007 –2009). Based on his experience and historical perspective, various CSPG executives have asked him to lead a number of in-depth task forces to investigate specific issues of special interest to the organization, and to act as an advisor.

For his volunteer efforts the CSPG has

previously recognized Ian with the President's Special Recognition Award, President's Award (3 times), H.M. Hunter Award, Tracks Award (4 times), and with a number of Service and Volunteer Awards.

This particularTracks Award is in recognition for recently chairing the Ambassador Program; chairing the CSPG Awards Task Force; serving on the Medal of Merit, R.J.W. Douglas Medal and H.M Hunter Award Committees; being the lead in organizing the field trips and core conference for the CSPGSEPM Mountjoy Carbonate Conference; and three other commitments.

Alex J. MacNeil

MacNeil, Alex J. is a carbonate sedimentologist and stratigrapher currently at Osum Oil Sands where he was worked since 2012. Although the focus of his work is reservoir characterization and modeling of carbonate-hosted bitumen in the Grosmont Formation, he is also an active memberontheColdLakeOrionSAGDasset team. Highlights of his time at Osum have included being part of the team involved with the Grosmont Pilot at Saleski, which operated for nearly five years before being suspended in September, 2015, and being able to conduct several weeks of field work in Montana on the Madison, which serves as an analogue for key Grosmont reservoir facies. Prior to joining Osum Alex was employed at Imperial Oil where he worked on a variety of projects from conventional production at Rainbow and Norman Wells

to Mackenzie Delta exploration.

Prior to working in industry Alex completed a Ph.D. thesis at the University of Alberta (2006) on the stratigraphy and sedimentology of the Upper Devonian Alexandra Formation in the N.W.T., and an M.Sc. thesis (2001) on near-surface dolomitization processes in the Cayman Islands. Alex completed his B.Sc. Hons. degree at the University of Saskatchewan in 1998. He loves being in the field and has worked in northern Saskatchewan for the Saskatchewan Geological Survey and the Arctic islands (Prince of Wales, Somserset, and Devon) for Cominco and Noranda.

Alex is an active member of the CSPG where he currently sits as the Director for Conferences as well as a member on the Technical Luncheon Committee and an Associate Editor for the Bulletin. For many years he has been helping to organize a shadowy group in the city known as the Carbonate Liars… He is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Marine and Petroleum Geology and a member of the SEPM, IAS, and AAPG. In 2016 he was a co-chair for theCarbonates and Evaporites theme atthe AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition, helping to organize eight sessionsfor the meeting. In 2015 he was a conference organizer/technical co-chair for the inaugural CSPG-SEPM Mountjoy carbonate conference held in Banff. An SEPM-CSPG Special Publication on carbonate modeling and characterization is nearly completed from that event and will be published in the coming months. This hard work, along with his exemplary volunteering, has earned Alex this Tracks award.

OBITUARIES

Robert Dobson (Bob) Orr

July 17, 1932 – Banff, Alberta

April 26, 2017 – Calgary, Alberta

Robert D. (Bob) Orr passed away peacefully on April 26. A proud Albertan and Calgarian, Bob was born in Banff, AB growing up in the mountains and foothills of Exshaw and Cochrane. It was here that his lifelong passion for the cowboy life was born with the Edge family, as was his love for science and geology. Bob graduated from high school in Canmore, then moved onto Mount Royal College, U.B.C. and then the University of Alberta where he graduated in 1956 as a geologist. It was at Mount Royal that he met the love of his life, Margaret Matyas, marrying in 1956. Over the course of their 56 year love affair they created a loving household that highlighted learning, athletics, music, and good food and drink shared with family and friends. Bob's successful business career began at Imperial Oil in the exploration department in Edmonton, then transferring to Calgary in 1968. In 1972 Bob joined Husky Oil as their Manager of Exploration, and in 1980 he became Husky's Vice President of Exploration. During this time Bob also served as the President of the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists (CSPG) and was presented with honourary membership in 1982. He retired from Husky in 1989, joining Marg as a full-time snowbird and golfer at their second home in Casa Grande, Arizona. Bob is survived by his son David, grandson Travis and wife Jenny and great-grandson Clark,granddaughterMegan; daughter Barb LongandgrandsonsBrendanandConnor. He was predeceased by Margaret in 2012, and his parents Bertha and Tommy Orr.

Elmer “Herb”Herbaly

Elmer “Herb” Herbaly passed away Sunday, February 28, 2016 at the age of 94. He was born inChicagotoHungarianimmigrants. Heserved in the Armyin EuropeduringWorldWarII. While he waited to be sent backto theStates atthe end of the war, he tooka geologyclass and knew that would be his life’s work. He earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Geology from Northwestern University. He spent a year working for the United States Geologic Survey. In 1950 he began a career in the oil and gas industry withGulf Oil Corporation. That December, he was set up on a date with Lorna Collett, a schoolteacher from Wisconsin who was working forShellOil Company. Withintwo weeks,he bought therings, andtheywereengaged, making Lorna one of two women in the world who think of Casper, Wyoming as a city of mystery and romance. They married in 1951.

In 1957, they moved to Calgary, and in 1959 he and Paul Roston formed Panalta Petroleums Ltd., the first of several companies he built, followed by Elhexco Petroleum Ltd., Herbaly PetroleumCorp.andHerbalyExplorationLLC.In1971theHerbalysmovedtoDenver.In 1978 his son David joined the business and over the years, running the business shifted an inch at a time from father to son. He continued to come in to the office until his final illness.

He was a member of numerous professional organizations in the US and Canada, including American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta, Rocky Mountain Association of Geologists, Wyoming Geological Association and Geological Society of America.

Herb served on the board at Columbine United Church, on the All Veterans Honor Guard, and in various offices with the George Evans Post of the American Legion, the Pat Hannon Post of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the 89th Division Society of World War II. He was a member ofColumbineKiwanis.Heenjoyedgardening,travel,goingouttolunch(withaglassofwhite wine), but most of all his life with Lorna. They had an amazingly happy 64 year marriage.

Elmer issurvivedby his wife Lorna and son David. His daughter Jandiedin 2006. Services were held March 8, 2016 in Littleton, Colorado with burial at Fort Logan National Cemetery.

October

Thisyear'sGussowResearchConferenceaimstoaddresstheholy grailofpetroleumsystemsresearch!

Wewelcomeapanelofexpertspeakerscoveringthephysicalprinciplesof petroleummigration,geochemical(biomarkerandisotope)tools,laboratory experiments,numericalsimulation,andcasestudies.

5 diverse sessions of world-class lectures and discussionwill addresspetroleummigrationfromporetobasinscale, reservoirleakage,andentrapmentintightoilplays.

Registration includes Conference Accommodations

2 breakfast, 3 lunches Ice Breaker ConferenceDinner

CSPGMembers$1085CAD

Non Members$1380 CAD

OrganizingCommi ee:

Mar nFowler,PhD. mar n.fowler@aptec.ca (Applied PetroleumTechnology)

MilovanFus c,PhD. milovan.fus c@canada.ca (NaturalResources Canada)

AndyMort,PhD. andy.mort@canada.ca (NaturalResources Canada)