Conferences & Courses

Seize The Opportunity To Attend IPA's Annual Convention And Exhibition
The Indonesian Petroleum Association (IPA) will be holding its 28th annual convention and exhibition at the Jakarta Convention Centre from October 16th to October 18th, 2001.

Since 1972, the IPA annual conventions have served to highlight the successes and achievements of Indonesia's continuously evolving oil and gas sector. In addition to a programme of technical papers and industry exhibitions, field trips and shorts courses, the IPA convention and exhibition provides an important forum for exchanging knowledge and ideas through discussions among scientists, engineers, government officials, PSC contractors, service companies, suppliers and investors.

The theme for the 2001 convention is: 'Indonesian Oil and Gas in Transition. Seize the Opportunities.'

Attendance has exceeded 2,100 at each of the past two conferences, and is expected to reach record levels in 2001, due to the buoyant state of the industry and the many opportunities available in Indonesia.

In addition to the technical programme of oral and poster presentations, the 2001 programme will feature an innovation in the form of plenary sessions, where distinguished industry experts will conduct panel discussions on strategic topics of general interest.

The topics for the plenary sessions are:
Day 1: Boosting Oil and Gas Investment in Indonesia
Day 2: Socio-Economic Impact of Political Transition on the Oil and Gas Industry
Day 3: Promoting Sound Business Ethics in the Oil and Gas Industry

The IPA Industry Exhibition is a major regional attraction, offering high exposure opportunities for individual firms to display and communicate new technology, techniques and services to the Indonesian petroleum industry. A record number of exhibitors is expected at this year's event.

Exhibition coordinator, Jeremy Dyer, said, "Booths are offered at a competitive rate of US$200 /m² and will be located in the main lobby of the Convention Centre, with expansion to the lower level to accommodate an expected increase in the number of exhibitors; approximately 1,800 m² in total, with almost 80 % already accounted for. The IPA plans to improve the visual impact of the exhibition, and strongly encourages exhibitors to customise their booth design; customisation help is available from the IPA's Exhibition Consultant."

Special exhibitor registration facilities and guest passes will be routinely available for exhibitors and, for the first time, an Exhibitor's Manual will be available.

Further information on the Convention field trips and training courses is available from the IPA Secretariat, Titi Tabusalla or Audrey Sahertian Rini:
Phone: +62 21 572 4284, +62 21 572 4285, +62 21 572 4286
Fax: +62-21 572 4259
Email: ipa@cbn.net.id

Information on the Exhibition is available from Jeremy Dyer:
Phone: +62 21 723 2640/2664
Mobile: +62 816 183 5928
Fax: +62 21 723 2632
Email: ggnjkt@cbn.net.id

EASTERN AUSTRALASIAN BASINS SYMPOSIUM
NOVEMBER 25th-28th 2001, MELBOURNE
Organisation of the PESA Eastern Australasian Basins Symposium is gathering pace
This inaugural symposium, with the theme of 'A Refocussed Energy Perspective for the Future' will be held from November 25th to 28th 2001, in Melbourne at the Hilton on the Park on the edge of Melbourne's CBD. EABS promises to become a premier event in the petroleum industry events calendar to provide a regular forum for technical advances in the search for, and development of, hydrocarbons in eastern Australasia. This complements the now well-established PESA Western Australian Basins Symposium (WABS). The EABS technical programme will concentrate on Papua New Guinea, New Zealand and the eastern half of Australia.

The major sponsors, BHP, Woodside and Landmark, are providing strong support. As this article goes to press, the organising committee is inviting the industry to participate in the exhibition and is offering opportunities for sponsorship of key events.

The preliminary conference schedule is shown below. In addition there will be the ever-popular Farmout Seminar conducted by John Mebberson to take place on the Sunday before the conference. There will also be a pre-conference field trip to Cape Liptrap and a post-conference field excursion to Port Campbell and the Otway Ranges providing there is enough interest.

To date, about 70 papers have been accepted. All submitted papers will be published in both CD and full-colour hard copy format. The latter will be available by subscription only and can be purchased at the symposium. To provide a flavour of the wide range of topics being discussed, the papers committee has provided some abstracts below, abbreviated to fit in the space available.

Preliminary Schedule EABS Conference November 25th to 28th Melbourne Hilton on the Park
• Cape Liptrap Field trip before the Conference
• Farmout Seminar before the conference
• Monday morning: Conference opening then southern margin/NZ plenary session
• Monday afternoon: Session 1 Gippsland – GAB Session 2 East Coast basins – New Zealand
• Tuesday morning: New Technology, Environment and Otway Plenary session
• Tuesday afternoon: Session 1 Otway Basin Session 2 New Technology
• Wednesday morning: Frontier and Cooper-Eromanga Plenary Session
• Wednesday afternoon: Session 1 Frontier Basins Session 2 Cooper-Eromanga
• Port Campbell and Otway Ranges Field trip after the conference
• Golf day after the conference

Jenny Lock (Phil's wife) is spearheading the partner programme including shopping, sightseeing trips and tours of interest in and around Melbourne. On the day after the conference ends, Thursday the 29th, those who wish to (partners included), can enjoy themselves at the Conference Golf Tournament to take place at The Dune Golf Club, considered one of the best links courses in Victoria.

Details of sponsorship opportunities and exhibition booths can be found by visiting the website : http://www.pesa.com.au or contact EABS secretariat:
Miriam Way, EABS Secretariat
The AusIMM
PO Box 660, Carlton South, VICTORIA 3053
Ph: 61 3 9662 3166
Fax: 61 3 9662 3662
Email: miriamw@ausimm.com.au

The Search For Stratigraphic Traps Goes On, Cooper-Eromanga Basin
By Takeshi Nakanishi* and Simon C. Lang**
*National Centre for Petroleum Geology and Geophysics (NCPGG)
**Australian Petroleum Cooperative Research Centre (APCRC)

Abstract
Exploration and development in the Cooper-Eromanga Basin have been predominantly focused on structural traps. However, the future for exploration and field development lies in exploration for stratigraphic traps. Using advanced visualisation techniques on open file 3D seismic survey data from the Pondrinie field on the Gidgealpa-Merrimelia-Innamincka structural high trend, Cooper Basin, we have sought to characterise the variety of possible stratigraphic traps in the Permian, Triassic and Jurassic succession. The key to the analysis lies in a genetic-stratigraphic framework using sequence stratigraphy concepts as applied to non-marine basins.

Three dimensional distributions of the possible reservoir and seal rocks are presented stratigraphic trap opportunities are ranked.

A Marine Source Rock In The Gippsland Basin?
By John D. Gorter*, Gwenda Hart**, Karyn Pratt**
* Agip Australia Limited, West Perth WA
** Geotechnical Services, Welshpool WA

Abstract
Conventional wisdom holds that all oils recovered to date in the Gippsland Basin are derived from the thermal maturation of terrestrial-derived organic matter deposited in lower coastal plain strata. However, oils and condensates recovered from a few wells drilled in the southeastern part of the basin have biomarkers that suggest a significant contribution to the oils from organic matter deposited under marine environments. This evidence includes pristane/phytane ratios, sterane and diasterane values, presence of complex methylsteranes including dino-steranes and carbon isotopic values in oil and condensate that are not effected by elevated maturity or advanced biodegradation. The probable source rock horizons for the marine-sourced oils lie in the marine shales of the Golden Beach Sub-group.

The Kapuni Costal Facies, Taranaki, New Zealand
By Eric Matthews
New Zealand Oil and Gas Ltd

Abstract
Coastal sand bodies within the Eocene-Palaeocene Kapuni Group are a prime target for exploration in the Taranaki Basin. While regional amplitude mapping can be used to map the major facies belts, more detailed local mapping is needed to identify individual sand bodies such as barrier islands, or attached strand plains.

Seismic modelling studies have shown that both oil and gas can generate AVO anomalies in clean well-developed sand bodies of this sort where sufficient porosity has been preserved. Local mapping of the AVO response has identified anomalies that appear to relate to trapping geometries, and has been useful in high-grading prospects in this trend.

Geological Framework Of The Lord Howe Rise And Adjacent Ocean Basins
By J.B. Willcox, J. Sayers & H.M.J. Stagg
Australian Geological Survey Organisation

Abstract
The Lord Howe Rise (LHR) is a submarine feature that extends for more than 1600 km from the Challenger Plateau, west of New Zealand, to southwest of New Caledonia. It has a width of between 400 and 500 km. Water depths range from about 750-1200 m along its crest to about 5000 m on its lower flanks. The LHR is underlain by continental crust, which detached from eastern Australia during the margin breakup that led to the formation of the oceanic Tasman Basin from 85-52 Ma.

Despite the lack of wells and other rock samples in the region, structural and palaeogeographic considerations suggest that hydrocarbon source rocks may be present, particularly in Late Cretaceous syn-rift sediments. A favourable restricted marine environment may also have prevailed in the half-grabens on the western Lord Howe Rise, and in the New Caledonia and Reinga Basins. Hydrocarbon traps may exist against the boundary faults, as syn-rift folds, and as diapiric structures that appear to emanate from the early syn-rift fill. Interbedded shales and pelagic oozes may provide a regional seal.

Recently acquired high-quality seismic data and satellite synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery indicate that hydrocarbons may have been generated. Bottom simulating reflectors (BSRs) observed in seismic reflection data on the northeast and southwest flanks of Lord Howe Rise suggest the presence of gas hydrate. In the northeast, the general coincidence of the BSR with the western updip flank of the Fairway Basin may indicate a thermogenic component to the gas hydrates. Also, in this area, some evidence for low-level oil slicks and films on SAR imagery, combined with seismic evidence for fluid migration through the sedimentary section, may indicate that active hydrocarbon generation is taking place.