Fugro Sells Seep Data Before Canadian Offshore Bidding

Fugro and partner Amplified Geochemical Imaging (AGI) have reported recent success selling licenses for data from a frontier region offshore Canada. The data were acquired during a hydrocarbon seep survey, heat flow and geochemical coring campaign in the large Orphan Basin, situated on the continental margin of Newfoundland.

The comprehensive data package is being licensed from both Fugro and AGI and includes multibeam echo sounder data (bathymetry, backscatter intensity and water column), sub-bottom profiler data, heat flow measurements and shipboard geochemical screening analyses; shore-based screening and advanced geochemical analyses, including biomarkers on select samples, are also included.

Covering an area of 11,070 square kilometers, Fugro’s sea-based workscope in this frontier region included the acquisition of 99 cores for geochemical sampling and investigation, and shipboard analysis of approximately 550 samples for hydrocarbon geochemistry. Heat flow measurements were acquired at 11 distributed locations with two measurements taken per location; these data are a significant improvement on the three pre-existing heat flow measurements along the periphery of the Orphan Basin and will vastly improve the robustness of basin models. AGI performed the shore-based geochemical work using their patented ultrasensitive analytical method to determine difficult-to-measure hydrocarbon concentrations to test for thermogenic signatures. The different geochemical datasets (shipboard, conventional shore-based and AGI adsorbent-based analyses) all suggest the presence of thermogenic hydrocarbons.

“With the keen interest in, and quick sale of, these licenses to international E&P companies, it is clear to us there is much excitement surrounding Canada’s growing offshore industry and Newfoundland and Labrador’s 2018 licensing round,” said Keith Kneale, Fugro’s Business Development Manager for the Americas.

These data will continue to be useful throughout the life of the field. A variety of further investigations - such as establishing environmental baselines, evaluating seafloor geohazards and preliminary planning for field development - ensures the data will deliver long-term value to any client purchasing a license. In offshore Newfoundland and Labrador, the purchase price of geoscience data programs in advance of a license round may be eligible to be applied to the work commitment bid in the event of a successful bid in the license round.

Nalcor Energy is also an investor in this project.