| OGSR Wireline
By OGSR Library
January 2019
|
Hi ,
Welcome to the first quarterly edition of 2019! The library has been busy with wrapping up projects and planning this year's Energy Prospect Expo coming up at the end of April. The library has set some large goals and we’re ready to reach them. Watch out for us at events like the Geological Survey of Canada's Groundwater Open House in Guelph in February,
on social media (@ogsrlibrary), and of course this newsletter!
Let us know if you have any requests for future articles, or if you would like to feature an article! In the meantime,
Keep geologizing,
The OGSR Library Team
Jordan, Matt, Craig, Shuo, Nicole, Hanna & Rhys
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The Petroleum Pioneers Have Returned
Drill Into Ontario's Oil & Gas History!
By Nicole
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On Your Computer Screen
by Matt
Projects Projects Projects
by Shuo
GIS in 2019 - A New Perspective
By Rhys
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Monthly Drilling Report - December 2018
The Petroleum Pioneers Have Returned
By Jordan
It will be good news to all those in the industry to hear that activity levels in 2018 rebounded from the lows of 2017. Not only did the counts of new drilling starts increase but we saw several other important activities in the past year. Exploration has returned with two wells being drilled in that class, for the first time since 2014. New well classes and purposes have
also emerged with the new Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) standards. The OGSR Library has many new and improved data sets to support these operations, mainly the ongoing geologic data quality assurance programs that benefit everyone working in Ontario’s subsurface. Looking forward the Library continues to promote the industry and its assets through data maintenance and enhanced media projects. In 2019 we also look forward to the Black Gold film by Aaron Huggett that documents the original
petroleum pioneers of the 1850’s.
In 2018 we had a total of 12 wells reported as reaching total depth, up from four in the previous year. These wells included seven natural gas storage wells, one observation well, two stratigraphic tests, and two new pool wildcat wells exploring for new oil finds, see table 1. The return of exploration drilling is very significant as we did not see any
drilled in 2017, see Figure 1 below for recent exploration trends.
Table 1: Petroleum Well Activity in 2018
Figure 1: Exploration Trends in Recent Years
An interesting development in 2018 is the introduction of a new class of well for storing compressed air. These borings will use salt caverns to store compressed air in times of energy surplus and reverse direction in times of energy demand to generate electricity. The EPEX 2018 conference featured a couple of talks on this topic back in May and these
talks are available to everyone on the EPEX Youtube playlist. (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLGBWihElY2GtfIfvieInxeYmKePerd3v). The videos on CAES are among our most popular on the channel!
Providing data to subsurface industries is one of the central goals of the OGSR Library and in 2018 the Library was engaged in completing ten major data projects. All geologic and well file related data is made available to members as projects are completed so users of Library data have no double already benefited from this work. Here are some of the major
highlights and other data sets that are available:
- Brittain document portal, a DHCP project funded by Library and Archives Canada. Historic documents and maps, detailing old well locations and industry activities, in the thousands have been scanned and georeferenced. We are about to open the doors to the portal and make all this information publicly available.
- Base of Fresh Water and Base of Sulphur Water reports available from the OGSR Library open files page. (http://www.ogsrlibrary.com/publications_index_ontario_oil_gas)
- Updated quality assurance of four key salt layers including newly updated salt isopach shapefiles. We hope these will be useful is assessing potential locations for salt caverns.
- A full database of porosity and permeability has been made from all available core analyses at the Library. This includes porosity and permeability values from 491 different locations and an amazing total of 28,841 different depths.
- Numerous database fixes across well cards, drilling and completion records and plugging records.
We will be presenting some of our recent and most exciting work on modelling this February 27th and 28th at the groundwater open house in Guelph. We will have the 3D model on a screen for view and in other formats that will be sure to amaze (Figure 2). If you can’t
wait that long to learn about the model a workshop talk presented by geologist Terry Carter at EPEX 2018 has just been published on our EPEX channel (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATMur6JQ97Q&list=PLLGBWihElY2GtfIfvieInxeYmKePerd3v&index=10&t=0s)
Figure 2: Clip of 3D Bedrock Model
We hope that you’ll take full advantage of the new data and opportunities that 2019 brings and continue in the pioneering spirit of our local petroleum industry. We look forward to serving you in 2019 and seeing everyone at EPEX 2019 or the London premiere of the Black Gold film that documents and dramatizes our original petroleum
pioneers.
On Your Computer Screen
Matt
Hello everyone and happy new year! Back in October I talked about the upcoming release of the video presentations from EPEX 2018, OPI’s 56th Conference and Trade Show. I’m pleased to say that we have been steadily releasing the talks since mid-November to some good feedback. So far, the most popular topic has been energy storage, followed by petroleum exploration.
Check out our YouTube page if you haven’t yet to see these great talks for yourself and to get jazzed up for EPEX 2019!
This month sees the release of the last of the EPEX 2018 presentation videos. The final two being released later this month include a talk about energy storage, and a talk about new technology in development. New videos available immediately (see links above) include Gary Winthrop’s talk about In-Situ remediation, Fred Longstaffe’s talk about fingerprinting subsurface fluids,
and Terry Carter’s talk about the 3-D model of southern Ontario. More great talks with a ton of information to share.
Speaking of the 3-D model… if you’re looking to interact with the model and see what it can do, come to the Geological Survey of Canada Groundwater Open House on February 27th and 28th, where we will have it on display. We will be introducing an even more immersive way to experience the model, something very exciting, but that’s all I’m allowed to say at this time,
so you’ll just have to come out and see for yourself.
We have lots of great things in store for 2019 that we’re excited to share: A new video about exploration, episode 1 of Geology Gals, a promo video about the DHCP project, and more. Leading up to EPEX 2019 we will be releasing promo material and details about the conference as they emerge. Stay tuned and hope to see you there!
Figure 1: Behind the computer screen, a snapshot of the videos the Library has been working on
Union Gas Well Digitization Project
Craig
The OGSR Library is currently in the process of supplementing and updating our well licence records by using historical well cards donated by Union Gas. There were 22 donated boxes containing over 50,000 well cards. The first phase of the project entails matching and adding information from approximately 9,000 well cards into our database. Our former co-op
and summer student, Ben Somers, began this project in the summer of 2018 and it is continuing to this day with current employees matching, copying and scanning the well cards.
The library is also using this opportunity to perform quality assurance on our Ontario Petroleum Data System (OPDS) database with newly found information from these well cards. The process involves using our current records to match existing well licences to the well cards by using attributes such as location, well name, completion date and geology. Each
well card that is matched with a licence is then photocopied and scanned to be included in both our physical and digital well files going forward. Noticeable improvements in our data include geological formation information being added to wells that were previously absent, and improved accuracy of well completion dates.
Figure 1: Example of a historical well card
Salt Cavern Inventory Project
Shuo
Time flies! This is my third newsletter article since I joined the OGSR Library team! The geologists have been busy for the last three months. The salt edge map has been revised and two more geology projects have set off for the next season.
The salt front map created by Sanford in 1997 has been modified by continuing QA work in 2018. Overall, 2000 wells have been selected and plotted in qGIS for quality assurance. The criteria for selecting these wells is based on the quality of well logs and drill cuttings, and the distance to previously mapped salt solution edges in the base layer. Among them, 762 wells have been examined by
myself and Hanna, our geology assistant to confirm and update the formation picks due to their priority. Over 4,000 formational tops have been re-picked and updated in the Ontario Petroleum Data System (OPDS). A new revised salt edge map has been created using ArcGIS, which will be released in 2019, as well as the isopach map of each salt unit.
One of the upcoming projects is the geology QA/QC of the Lockport Group at formations level. The Lockport Group is a succession of open to restricted marine carbonate rocks of Silurian Wenlock age (433-427 Ma), comprising in ascending order, the Gasport, Goat Island, Eramosa, and Guelph Formations. These formations are very extensive with down-dip extension into the deep subsurface and are of
interest as a source of potable water at shallow depths in Wiarton-Guelph-Hamilton area, of production of petroleum resources and storage of natural gas in the deep subsurface, and as a hydrochemical indicator interval for down-dip/vertical penetration of meteoric water. This project is based on the newly released database of core analyses of porosity and permeability in Ontario by the OGSR Library in 2018. This project is in collaboration with the Geological Survey Canada (GSC) and Ontario
Geological Survey (OGS) to improve the Ontario Petroleum Data System (OPDS) formation top data of the Lockport Group in southwestern Ontario using geophysical well logs, cored wells and drill samples, in order to improve the accuracy of the 3D lithostratigraphic model. A shapefile containing the 155 Lockport cored wells from the porosity and permeability database and 1,000 key wells with missing formation top picks of the Lockport Group has been created and plotted geographically in qGIS. This
work will follow the formation top-pick criteria listed in Armstrong and Carter (2010) and Brunton et al. (2012). Each formation top-pick will be assigned a QA code and entered into the OPDS. By the end of March, 2019, this new data will be updated and used to revise the GSC 3-D lithostratigraphic model and to correct the isopach maps of each formation in the Lockport Group.
Figure 1: Outcrop section of the Lockport-Cabot Head formations at the Devil’s Punch Bowl, Hamilton, Ontario.
Sources:
Armstrong, D.K. and Carter, T.R. 2010. The Subsurface Paleozoic Stratigraphy of Southern Ontario; Ontario Geological Survey, Special Volume 7, 301 p.
Brunton, F.R., Brintnell, C., Jin, J. and Bancroft, A., 2012. Stratigraphic architecture of the Lockport Group in Ontario and Michigan – A new interpretation of early Silurian “Basin Geometries” & “Guelph Pinnacle Reefs”, in 51st Annual Conference, Ontario-New York Oil & Gas
Conference, Oct. 23-25th, 2012, Niagara Falls, Ontario, p.1-37.
Drill Into Ontario's Oil & Gas History!
By Nicole
Last newsletter I asked you, the reader if you could guess who the elusive W.D.Brittain was. If you guessed the gentleman in the middle of the back row with the striped tie – you’re right! See Brittain with the Petrolia Discovery board and committee members at an annual general meeting. Also pictured is Charlie Fairbank (back row in plaid
shirt), who inspired this project by donating the Brittain collection.
After months of dedicated work, the DHCP Brittain Portal is close to being launched! An Oil and Gas Well Inspector for the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Brittain was involved in oil and gas exploration, well drilling, oil/gas production, well plugging, and inspections. With roughly 10,000 documents and more than 400 historic maps, the portal will
provide unique insight with a large number of unique and handwritten material – letters, reports, production figures, notes, sketches, and a range of maps.
The Brittain Collection was donated to the Library by Charlie Fairbank and the project was funded through Library and Archives Canada’s Documentary Heritage Communities Program (DHCP). During the summer and fall we’ve been busy digitizing and cataloging all the documents and maps, which you’ll be able to search for a specific individual, date, location, or type of document.
The portal will be available to everyone, not just members of the Library. Learn more about operations and historical wells in Ontario, trace developments in the oil and gas industry, and immerse yourself in the world of W. D. Brittain!
Figure 1: Picture of Brittain and various other members (top-middle)
Figure 2: Brittain (top left) and other Ontario Petroleum Institute Members being presented with the "Shell Oil Company" trophy at a Bonspiel in 1963. Permission to use photograph given by the
Blenheim News Tribute.
GIS in 2019 - More Than Just Maps
By Rhys
A Geographic Information System (GIS) lets us visualize, question, analyze, interpret and understand data to reveal relationships, patterns and trends. It acts as a framework to
organize, communicate, and understand the science of the world. GIS is used in a multitude of everyday applications, like education, healthcare, natural resources, government, manufacturing, and even insurance.
GIS can identify problems, monitor change, manage and respond to events, perform forecasting, set priorities and understand trends. In a way, the Library is its own GIS. The extensive data we hold in the Library fastens industry, academics and government together into one system. Here at the library, we work together to provide data that aids these departments and assists
in forming smarter and more informed decisions regarding the Oil, Gas and Salt Industry.individual, date, location, or type of document, or simply browse as well.
The library is a consistently changing dynamic system. We take on new projects to make our geology data more diverse and available. We network at various functions to enrich and diversify our client base. We offer clients updated databases for GIS based projects and aid them in producing the highest quality of maps for their projects.
Using location information is an integral part of our job. The point of the Library is based on locations; locations of wells, locations of subsurface units, and locations of exploration and production. We aid representing the future of the industry.
We help connect countries, provinces and cities in Southern Ontario. We manage and analyze data to create interactive and diverse maps to show data – using quantitative data and making a qualitative approach.
Figure 1: Behind the scenes of data management and mapping
Sources:
ESRI Canada. (2012). What is GIS? Retrieved from https://www.esri.com/library/fliers/pdfs/what_is_gis.pdf
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New Licences Issued
| Licence |
Issue Date |
Operator |
County |
Township |
Status |
TD (m) |
| T012600 |
2018-12-04 |
Big "T" Oil & Gas Inc. |
Kent |
Raleigh |
OPGP/NDR |
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New Licences Issued For Existing Wells
| Licence |
Issue Date |
Operator |
County |
Township |
Status |
TD (m) |
| T012599 |
2018-12-14 |
ref_5606cb40e8d0ef9aa
64d65bea817485e
|
Haldimand |
South Cayuga |
PGP/SUS |
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Wells TD'd
| Licence No. |
TD Date |
Operator |
County |
Township |
Status |
TD (m) |
| T012513 |
2018-10-13 |
First Chatham Energy |
Kent |
Dover |
LIC/NDR |
1069.6 |
Wells Plugged
| Licence No. |
Plug Date |
Operator |
County |
Township |
Status |
TD (m) |
| T012568 |
2018-03-28 |
Ministry of Infastructure |
Haldimand |
South Cauyga |
GP/ABD |
|
| T012573 |
2018-11-23 |
The Corporation of Haldimand County |
Haldimand |
North Cayuga |
GP/SUS |
|
| T012577 |
2018-10-03 |
ref_c065890a21a2d706c1f7
10e8ef22e414
|
Lambton |
Sarnia |
PGP/ABD |
189.89 |
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What is the OGSR Library?
The Oil, Gas & Salt Resources Library is a not-for-profit corporation that manages all of Ontario's public drilling and production data from the petroleum and solution mined salt industries. This includes processing, storing, and providing safe and convenient access to all of the industry's drill core and rock cuttings. The Library makes as much of this data as possible available through our online portal to members all over the world. The financial support of the petroleum industry and
our membership make this possible.
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