Seismic Redesign for Efficiency and Sustainability: A Case Study from an Offshore Sarawak Field

This paper outlines the innovative methodologies and strategic improvements applied in the seismic survey design for the Ml field’s carbonate reservoir, crucial to the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project and the goal of net-zero carbon emissions. It details the shift from the traditional orthogonal shooting configuration using Ocean Bottom Node (OBN) technology to a more advanced parallel shooting approach. This modification is expected to address challenges associated with legacy data limitations and shallow gas interference, potentially expanding our reservoir insight for future CO2 plume monitoring and striving to lay the groundwork for detailed reservoir analysis. This approach has led to a significant decrease in the carbon footprint of seismic operations to just 9,400 CO2e (tonnes), surpassing the anticipated 15,000 CO2e (tonnes). This paper highlights the benefits of the revised survey design, including unique azimuthal coverage and contrasts the efficiencies of parallel shooting against the known inefficiencies of orthogonal shooting. This approach not only enhance data quality and diminish environmental impact but also establishing a new benchmark for environmentally responsible geophysical operations without sacrificing technical accuracy.