The Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) has reached an agreement with a UK data firm to bring it a “step closer” to the UK’s first oil and gas National Data Repository (NDR).
The agreement and creation of the NDR will “deliver value and inward investment to UK”, the OGA said last night.
The OGA said it has reached an agreement with Common Data Access Limited (CDA) (a wholly owned subsidiary of Oil & Gas UK) to operate the NDR for two-years, building on the existing service operated by CDA for over 20 years.
The OGA has commenced a procurement process for the OGA operated NDR, with services planned to begin in 2021.
Nic Granger, director of corporate at the OGA said: “The NDR is key to delivering the opportunities offered by Vision 2035 – to add three billion barrels of production over the next 17 years. It provides a strong foundation to achieve our exploration and production goals, enhance collaboration, and drive innovation and learning as an industry.”
It’s hoped the agreement with CDA allows the OGA to unlock further remaining resources in the North Sea.
The OGA said the NDR will enable the organisation use its “newly commenced information and samples powers” ensuring that UK oil and gas data is maintained used to drive “inward investment, new technologies and exploration activity”.
Simon James, chief information Officer at the OGA said: “The launch of the NDR will allow the OGA to further build on its highly successful policy of creating value by maximising data transparency and providing digital services and authoritative analysis to industry. It creates the conditions necessary for the application of new and exciting data analysis tools, such as machine learning and AI.”
CDA’s chief executive, Malcolm Fleming added: “For 25 years, CDA has been collaborating with industry to establish this unique collection of UKCS well and seismic information. We are delighted to be able to put the collection at the centre of the NDR so preserving data, sharing it between licensees and for disclosure to all under open licence conditions.
“The NDR will ensure use of the broadest range of information in the search for oil and gas, an activity for which access to extensive top quality data is key.
“The Repository is expected to provide an invaluable resource to technology innovators looking to apply new machine learning and artificial intelligence techniques to the demanding task of locating oil and gas deposits deep in the subsurface.”
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