SLB and Shearwater Begin 3D Seismic Acquisition Offshore Brazil’s Amapá Coast

Oilfield services company SLB and marine seismic specialist Shearwater GeoServices have commenced a three-dimensional (3D) seismic survey in the Amapá sector, an offshore basin region along Brazil’s northern equatorial margin, according to an announcement reported this week.

3D seismic surveys use sound waves emitted from a vessel and recorded by underwater sensors to build detailed images of rock formations thousands of meters below the seabed. The resulting data help exploration teams identify potential oil and gas traps before committing to the far greater cost of drilling an exploration well — a standard first step in frontier or underexplored acreage.

The Amapá region sits near Brazil’s border with the Guianas, where a series of large upstream discoveries in recent years have drawn industry attention to the equatorial margin trend. Brazil’s national regulators have opened portions of the country’s northern offshore basins to exploration interest, and acquisition of modern seismic data is typically among the earliest commercial activities in such areas.

For SLB, the project extends the company’s long-standing presence in Brazil, where it provides a range of services across the pre-salt and other basins. Shearwater, a dedicated marine acquisition provider, will handle vessel-based data collection operations. Neither company’s announcement detail identified the client or clients licensing the resulting data.

Seismic campaigns of this kind are often conducted on a multi-client basis, with the contractor firm acquiring data at its own risk and then licensing the processed results to multiple exploration companies — an arrangement that spreads cost and risk across the industry.

SLB shares were trading at $57.10 in Monday activity, up 0.18% from the prior close of $57.00, valuing the company at roughly $84.7 billion.

What to watch

• Completion timelines and data processing milestones for the Amapá survey, which typically follow acquisition in subsequent quarters.
• Any disclosed multi-client licensing agreements with exploration companies operating in Brazil’s equatorial margin basins.
• Brazil’s regulator ANP activity in the region, including future exploration block offerings covering the Amapá sector.
• SLB’s upcoming quarterly results, which may reference activity levels in Latin America.

Source: original release