(Tech Connections Column, July 2007, American Oil and Gas Reporter)

Exploration and production remains a data-driven industry. State agencies and geological surveys across the United States have made great strides in making oil and gas data available on line. This column focuses on information presented during a PTTC workshop regarding five states in PTTC’s Appalachian Region.

Pennsylvania has two online information systems: the Well Information System (WIS) and the Pennsylvania Internet Record Imaging System (PA*IRIS). Conceived as an internal database, WIS has evolved for public use and now hosts all the oil, gas and brine production data for Pennsylvania. The system can be used by visitors to the Pennsylvania Geological Survey’s offices.

PA*IRIS was developed to allow online access to well records. Essentially, the Pennsylvania Geological Survey scanned everything in its files into this system. An expensive software system is required to view the information, so the PGS charges each subscriber a one-time $5,000 fee plus $500 for annual maintenance. Since inception in 1999, PA*IRIS has evolved considerably, so individual well information such as log tops picked by staff geologists, lists of available logs, lists of “canned” reports with data in spreadsheets, and a production module that allows the user to gather production data, can be accessed. Capabilities are continually being enhanced.

Ohio has the Production of Oil & Gas in Ohio (POGO) database, which is updated annually; a digital map series; bedrock geology on CD or on line; and an interactive map series. The interactive map series is of particular interest. It includes oil and gas maps in combination with topographic maps, aerial photographs, roads and streams, etc. A print layout feature with scaling options allows one to create a PDF output file.

Searches can be made on many parameters, but most begin with the state permit number. Ohio has one file per well in its system, whereas Pennsylvania has separate files for the plat, well record, plugging record, etc. The Ohio system allows a user to cut and paste well data and create his own shape files. It also has a query string option, which allows a user multiple choices to add to the query string before the search is executed and the data are assembled in a table or on a map.

New York has created the Empire State Oil & Gas Information System (ESOGIS). The goal here was to make all subsurface data and information, including all reservoir studies, available on line. This includes slides of numerous talks presenting results of research.

To use the site, one first must create an account. One can then create different project files and add data to these files. There is no limit to the number of wells one can download, but there is a one-minute time limit on the downloads. A project-manager feature allows one to create a project, add wells, tailor the data, display the data, download data, and even export to Petra. Scanned images of well records, logs, core photos or images, New York State Energy Research Development Authority reports in PDF, etc., are available, as are production data. Subscriptions range from $2,500 to $25,000, depending on which of five levels one chooses.

The West Virginia Geological Survey also has developed an oil and gas database. Online services include: “pipeline,” a subscription service that allows users to access data on individual wells; production summaries, where queries can be made by well, county or years; e-logs as scanned images in TIFF files; focused data sets, mainly from project work such as Trenton- Black River, coalbed natural gas, etc.; and the PTTC’s IMS site, which is hosted by the WVGS.

New services are being developed in West Virginia. An exciting one is the “log scan” project. The idea, essentially, is to find every piece of data on five tight gas plays in two states, organize the data into a database, and deliver it on line. The selected plays are the Tuscarora/Medina/Clinton, Elk, Bradford, Venango, and Berea/Murrysville.

In Kentucky, the Kentucky Geological Survey has made a bold commitment to online data delivery: its oil and gas record room is open by appointment only. Everything in that room now can be accessed, searched and displayed on line. No fees or subscription service are required.

To use the system, one must download and install a free Web browser plug-in. Many choices are available for data searches, and one can create a database for each search.Wells can be displayed on various maps, including topo maps and aerial photos.

The world has changed. As Toto might say, “One doesn’t have to be in Kansas anymore to find Kansas data.” For that matter, users are encouraged to visit the Kansas Geological Survey’s Web site to explore the wealth of data it has made available on line.