Institute of GeoEnergy Engineering (IGE) plays host to leading UK delegation

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Heriot-Watt was the venue for the first offsite meeting of the UK's Exploration Task Force (XLT).

The 2-day event was held on campus on 12-13th September, chaired by Dr Nick Richardson and Dr Jo Bagguley who were representing the UK Regulator, the Oil & Gas Authority. The meeting was attended by 12 representatives drawn from across the sector including Exploration Managers of all the leading North Sea industry operators, the seismic companies and the Oil & Gas Technology Centre (OGTC).

The XLT are charged with implementing the recommendations of the Wood Review that highlighted the need to Maximise the Economic Recovery (MER) of mature basins located on the UK Continental Shelf. The meeting also discussed the ways and means of Extending the Life of the North Sea by re-purposing depleted oil and gas fields as safe carbon storage sites to help the UK meet its carbon emission targets and aid the conversion to a hydrogen based economy.

Professor John Underhill, IGE's Chair of Exploration Geoscience, who populates the XLT, acted as the HWU host. As part of the visit, the delegates had the opportunity to see North Sea subsurface geology displayed in the Ogilvie-Gordon 3D Audio-Visualisation Centre (OGAVC) and view core from a variety of North Sea reservoirs under the guidance of IGE's Dr. Andy Gardner.

Professor Underhill said: "It is highly significant that Heriot-Watt was selected for the XLT's first off-site visit since it demonstrates that the Institute of GeoEnergy Engineering (IGE) is the go-to place for energy solutions in general and decarbonisation ones in particular".