Avary changes the way we work

For Aker BP, Blueback Avary enables geologists, and geophysicists to achieve the highest quality geophysical understanding, analysis and insight faster than ever before. Avary allows you to elevate the quality and cadence of your business decisions. 

Blueback Avary is a new software developed in collaboration between Cegal and Aker BP aiming to optimize geophysical prospect de-risking or reservoir characterization in a production setting, enabling extremely high-quality results at speeds that were out of reach before.  

To quantify the risk factors when considering any reservoir prospect geologists and geophysicists need to characterize and understand the potential of the prospect in detail. Reservoir characterization is predominantly based on seismic data. Processes involved in this characterization typically demand many iterations per process and the ability to handle multiple, large seismic volumes when calculating attributes derived from amplitude variation with offset (AVO) theory. With the size of seismic volumes steadily growing, this workflow has traditionally been very time-consuming. Due to the size of the seismic data, and the use of multiple software applicators it has been challenging to iterate on parameterization within the workflow and difficult to understand the effects and relationships between processes.

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Solving the challenge of ever-growing data 

Øyvind Kjøsnes, Lead Geophysicist at Aker BP, explains the challenges they faced:

The problem Aker BP faced was that over the years the size of the seismic data was growing to a much higher volume. With the steadily growing size of seismic data, the software we were using was not able to analyze the data fast enough
Øyvind Kjøsnes, Aker BP 

Kjøsnes adds, “We had to replace the legacy software with a modern solution that could analyze the large amount of seismic data within the time frame we needed.”  

In 2018 Øyvind Kjøsnes took the initiative to collaborate with Cegal to develop Blueback Avary. Today, Avary allows Aker BP to achieve high-speed, high-quality reservoir characterization despite the ever-growing amount and size of seismic data. Blueback Avary enables Aker BPs geologists and geophysicists to bring the understanding of the reservoirs to the decision table when it matters. 

Kjøsnes continues:

Blueback Avary is a next-generation software solution allowing the users to go from input seismic data received from the contractor through to analyzed seismic data that gives a subsurface understanding of the highest quality as fast as possible through various optimization both algorithmic and on the hardware side
 Øyvind Kjøsnes, Aker BP 

Mark O'Brien, Director of Geoscience Products at Cegal, has been leading the development of Blueback Avary together with Aker BP. He says: "Traditionally, the processes and workflows used to characterize a reservoir or prospect have involved using different algorithms in different software applications at different stages in the workflow. Previously it’s not been easily possible to dynamically and interactively immediately understand the relationships between these processes. With Avary this has changed. Avary now enables completely streamlining this workflow into an interactive experience where all algorithmic processes interact with one another and data and results are virtual."

This means you can work with and interact with a large number of seismic volumes and results, across domains and on the fly
Mark O'Brien, Cegal

Built on Cegals NextGen software 

Blueback Avary is built on Cegals NextGen software – Flows, which optimizes efficient use of hardware and enables a paradigm shift in speed and results quality within the workflow. With Blueback Avary, you can focus more on the interpretation and evaluation of the data rather than handling and managing countless computational operations and parameterization across multiple applications.. In other words, increased effectiveness, speed, and quality for seismic post-stack processing workflows. 

A more accurate understanding of the subsurface ultimately means less risk and uncertainty. With the cost for drilling one well at approximately 50 million dollars – it’s easy to understand the risk and cost factors related to decisions taken on the wrong understanding of your seismic prospect.  

Øyvind Kjøsnes at Aker BP explains,

“The really unique part of Avary is that you can go all the way back or two steps back or go wherever you want in the workflow and change the parameters and instantly see the effect and the update on the products you will bring on in the reservoir characterization.”  

On the collaboration with Cegal, Kjøsnes emphasizes that the competence and experience within Cegal were unique to tackle the problem Aker BP had. 

Project Manager Odd Ivar Lindland adds, “The collaboration between Cegal and Aker BP has been very constructive and effective. The quality of the work from Cegal has been very high and has been a key success factor in the overall project.”  

In one sentence: Blueback Avary is all about getting the highest quality results in the least amount of time without sacrificing quality. 

Øyvind Kjøsnes, Lead Geophysicist at Aker BP, summarizes at the end:

For me, Avary has been a game changer in the way I work and think. Doing all the parameter optimization interactively in a way that has been impossible until now. In addition to being highly flexible and dynamic in how we test and set up workflows, we can produce the highest quality at record speeds. 
Øyvind Kjøsnes, Aker BP

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