Executive Summary
PROJECT OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this PTAC Project is to validate the performance claims of the technology and to determine its usefulness to industry and government by conducting an airborne survey of oil sands areas.
Meetings were held with the following interested organizations: Look North, Suncor, Husky, JACOS, and Cenovus.
SCOPE
Sky Hunter microseep surveys measure the hydrocarbons released through the cap rock. The negatively charged hydrocarbon molecules travel rapidly and vertically through the subsurface and atmosphere towards the positively charged ionosphere. A hydrocarbon nose and sensor unit is mounted on and in an aircraft. Three sensors measure one gas and two oil data sets. The strength of the hydrocarbon counts are presented on footprint maps in plain view. This information is combined with subsurface geology. The combination of rock property information and the location of the hydrocarbons aids in the definition of the reservoir.
Use of the Sky Hunter data and maps will be beneficial in the following areas:
• Subsurface
• Reservoir characterization and delineation
• Reservoir simulation
• Gas over bitumen management
• Increased recovery
• Steam chamber measurement and management
The Project will conduct a survey over 4 areas that have sufficient subsurface control to evaluate the benefits of the Sky Hunter system over any oil sands area. Areas with both high and low well densities should be included. An area that includes a project with production history and a startup project will be considered. Areas with no potential could serve as benchmarks. Industry should define the best area to evaluate this survey system.