General
Welcome to the PESGB Evening Lecture Series brought to you by RPS.
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and following the latest advice from the government relating to large gatherings, PESGB have taken the decision to move the evening lecture series online. Thanks to PESGB partnership with RPS and through the RPS Learning Hub the evening lecture series will be delivered digitally to ensure we maintain an active and engaged geoscience community.
Many of our speakers are leaders in their field and all have something of special interest to convey. This series will cover a wide range of disciplines and topics presented by subject matter experts from academia and industry. Each event will last approximately 60 minutes and there will be an opportunity for questions at the end of the webinar.
Upcoming Events
Recordings and Previous Events
Earth Observation and Beyond (GSL Energy Group)
9th November 2021 - 6:00pm (GMT)
Presenters: Prof Stuart Marsh & Cristina Vrinceanu – University of Nottingham
Earth Observation (EO) has been applied to the oil and gas industry for decades. At the outset, this was typically done in onshore exploration, though if one counts various geophysical datasets as a form of remote sensing then one can extend this to the offshore environment as well.
Mars Curiosity Rover's Adventures in the Gale Crater
12th October 2021 - 6:00pm (GMT)
Presenter: Dr Steve Banham, Imperial College London
A virtual lecture of the adventures of the Mars Curiosity Rover's adventures in the Gale Crater hosted by the PESGB Young Professionals .
NW Europe exploration trends – targeting niche plays in mature basins
14th September 2021 - 6:00pm (GMT)
Presenter: Dr. Henk Kombrink – Geologist and editor – expronews.com
In NW Europe, infrastructure-led exploration is the dominant way new reserves are being found. However, this does not mean that the same old reservoirs are being targeted.
Driving Net Zero - Policy Implications, Practical Consequences and Public Attitudes
13th July 2021 - 5:30pm (GMT)
Presenter: Michael Tholen & Natalie Coupar - OGUK
Since the CCC report “Net Zero – The UK contribution to stopping global warming” was published, the country’s energy policy has undergone a period of unprecedented change..
Improving Explor /Dev Opportunities from Legacy Seismic Data
8th June 2021 - 5:30pm (GMT)
Presenter: Spencer Quam, Principal – Quam Energy Developmen
In the July 2019 AAPG Explorer, Chopra and Sharma showed examples of using data processing steps typically used to improve imaging of post-stack data, but applied to pre-stack data. During several assignments in the past, the speaker has applied similar methods to improve not only legacy 2D seismic, but also newly acquired 3D seismic.
Net Zero Carbon Commitments and the North Sea Basin
11th May 2021 - 5:30pm (GMT)
Presenter: Dave Quirk – Energy and Sustainability Centre, Isle of Man
The North Sea Basin’s petroleum production has accounted for 40 Gt carbon dioxide or nearly 3% of all anthropogenic carbon emissions to date. Government pledges to mitigate climate change raises the question whether the North Sea can play a leading role in the transition to a sustainable, low carbon economy.
Geological Fissures: A Neglected Structural Phenomenon
20th April 2021 - 5:30pm (GMT)
Presenter: Bob Holdsworth - Durham University
Using ancient examples from onshore-offshore UK and southern Italy, we focus on the nature and development of dilatant faults and fractures hosted in basement rocks below regional erosional unconformities, commonly on the upfaulted flanks of nearby sedimentary basins
Recent advances in the North Sea’s Triassic Play
9th March 2021 - 5:30pm (GMT)
Presenter: Dr Stuart Archer, Chief Geologist – Chrysaor
The Triassic of the Central North Sea is a continental succession that contains highly prolific hydrocarbon bearing fluvial sandstone reservoirs, partitioned by thick mudstones. Within the Skagerrak Formation of the UK sector, hydrocarbon accumulations in the Judy, Joanne and Josephine Sandstone members are top sealed by the Julius, Jonathan and Joshua Mudstone members respectively, providing a number of reservoir seal pairs.
The Z2 Haupt Dolomite – A New Oil Play on The Margin of the Southern Gas Basin
9th February 2021 - 5:30pm (GMT)
Presenter: Peter Browning-Stamp – Senior Consultant Geoscientist – Horizon Energy Partners
The Zechstein (Z2 Cycle) Haupt Dolomite has for many years been a forgotten and neglected exploration target In the UK Offshore, despite successful production of both oil and gas from other areas of the Southern Permian Basin.
Can the canary tweet again?
19th January 2021 - 6pm (GMT)
Presenter: Vanessa Starcher – Operations Manager UKGEOS
Carboniferous coal-bearing strata provided a key energy source in Scotland during the 1900s prior to the advent of the oil-shale and oil and gas era. Today, flooded mines in the same rock succession are starting to provide an alternative decarbonised energy source for space heating and cooling known as mine water geothermal or shallow geothermal.
20 Years as a 4D Practitioner
1st December 2020 - 6pm (GMT)
Presenter: Jonathan Brain
Since joining Shell 20 years ago, Jonathan Brain has worked on over fifty 4D seismic projects in Europe and consulted on many more globally. In this talk he will reflect on the common themes he’s observed and consider what makes for a successful project and ultimately business value.
Energy poverty and the Energy Transition
10th November 2020 - 6pm (GMT)
Presenter: Scott Tinker
Affordable, reliable energy underpins modern economies and has led to unprecedented economic growth and human advancement. Yet 1/3 of the global population either lacks access to, or cannot afford, modern energy, which impacts basic needs such as housing, clothing, food and water. But energy poverty has deeper impacts.
IOG’s Development of the Blythe and Vulcan Satellites Hubs. A low Carbon Project in the mature UK Southern Gas Basin.
20th October 2020 - 6pm (GMT)
Presenters: Andrew Hockey & Phil Cox - Independent Oil and Gas
On March 6th 1967 the first natural gas from the UK Southern North Sea came ashore from the West Sole Field. Almost 54 years later, notwithstanding the exit of major players, changes in licence ownership, a reduction in available infrastructure and an increase in LNG and pipeline imports, gas from the basin continues to satisfy a significant percentage of the UK’s daily gas demand.
Geological Decarbonisation and Energy Transition: Learning from the Past.
13th October 2020 - 6pm (GMT)
Presenter: Mike Stephenson
Geology can provide insights into global environmental changes recorded in deep-time, for example mass extinctions, but also historical shifts in energy supply, like the industrial revolution of the 18th Century. A comparison of the two types of change can be instructive not only because of the biogeochemical aspects of both, but also because of similarities in the way that change happens..
Optimisation of the Arran Development Plan
8th September 2020 - 6pm (GMT)
Presenters: Catherine Tonge, Alastair Honey, Dave Webster, James Preston and Caroline Gill - Shell
The Arran field is a gas development of distal Palaeocene turbidites located in the UK Central North Sea. This lecture will cover the rapid journey through the transfer of operatorship focussing on risk based decision making and subsequently the integrated work needed to realise the cost saving opportunity, balancing the risks of the change against the reward for making it possible. .
A little bit of this, a little bit of that: The Geology of Northern Ireland
18th August 2020 - 6pm (GMT)
Presenter: Rob Raine – Geological Survey of Northern Ireland
This talk will provide a potted geological history of Northern Ireland, highlighting some of the major geological events. It will focus on basin formation and what we currently understand of the sedimentary and igneous fill of those basins. Finally it will outline the previous history of exploration for oil and gas, energy storage and geothermal resources in these basins and the future.
Upslope stratigraphic traps in turbidite systems
14th July 2020
Presenter: Laurence Amy - University College Dublin
This talk will outline results from a number of studies which used different approaches to give a better understanding of upslope stratigraphic traps, including an assessment of sand detachment in modern systems; a review of producing fields inferred to have upslope stratigraphic; and an evaluation of sediment bypass using sediment transport models.
The United Downs Deep Geothermal Power Project
9th June 2020
Presenter: Ryan Law of Geothermal Engineering Ltd
The United Downs Deep Geothermal Power project is the first development of its kind in the UK. It is located near Redruth in west Cornwall and is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund and Cornwall Council. Two wells have been drilled to intersect a target fault structure that, it is hoped, will provide natural permeability to allow circulation.