The next MTS Houston Section luncheon presentation will be held on August 23, 2018 and will feature a presentation by Dr. Niall McCormack, who leads BHP’s worldwide petroleum exploration campaign with a current focus on execution and a concentration on areas with Tier 1 potential. Dr. McCormack will present Mexico and Gulf of Mexico – More than 100 years of production. 1,000,000 wells drilled; 50,000 drilled offshore; 3,500 wells in deepwater.
This presentation focuses on BHP’s geologic knowledge of the Gulf of Mexico basin and how it creates a platform for understanding resource potential. BHP’s Global Strategy is focused on access of Tier 1 opportunities. Tier 1 opportunities are those that can deliver 100,000 kboe/d net to BHP and can create new heartland production assets. In order to deliver to the corporation Tier 1 resources BHP Exploration Teams define those basins that have a world class source rock, big reservoir system and large traps.
The focus is on countries with favorable fiscal terms and where we can be an early mover and capture a disproportion of share. The Gulf of Mexico – both sides, Mexican and U.S. – has been identified as fast-moving province with large Tier 1 opportunities, such as Trion and Wildling, that can be quickly brought to production. A look back to the industry activity in the Gulf of Mexico shows that this superbasin has been delivering Tier 1 opportunities to the industry since the beginning of the 20th century, moving from onshore play slowly to shallow water and by the ‘80s into deep water. New technology and new seismic data have further unlocked complex sub-salt opportunities through the 90s, and most recent technology such as OBN are currently being tested. With over 100 years of production history, the basin has seen more than 1 million wells drilled. 50,000 offshore with 3,500 in the deep water. And more than 300 billion barrels of oil equivalent have been discovered.
About the Speaker
Dr. Niall McCormack joined BHP in 2012 and leads the Company’s worldwide petroleum exploration campaign, with a current focus on execution and a concentration on areas with Tier 1 potential. With more than 20 years of industry experience, Niall has worked at companies including BP, GNS Science, Hess Corporation and Afren Plc., holding various management positions in exploration and geoscience across the US, South America, Europe, Middle East and Africa. Niall holds a bachelor’s degree in Geology and a PhD in Geology from Trinity College.
