February 2010
Trading update to coincide with the six months ended 28 February 2010.
Click here to download PDFEuropean Patent Office Decision to revoke EMGS patent.
November 2009
Rock Solid Images wins further West Africa contract.
The Company's Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on Friday 15 January 2010.
OHM Enters Strategic Partnership with BGP and secures Marine CSEM Survey in offshore Equatorial Guinea.
Preliminary Results to 31 August 2009.
September 2009
Total Voting Rights and Capital.
Result of general meeting.
August 2009
Conversion of long term charter liability to equity, Placing of new ordinary shares and Trading Update.
July 2009
Richard Cooper appointed as Chief Executive Officer.
May 2009
First commercial use of WISE technology in North Sea CSEM survey.
April 2009
Interim Results Press Release.
Non Executive Director Appointment.
March 2009
Corporate Update.
February 2009
Corporate Update.
January 2009
OHM welcomes UK High Court decision in Schlumberger – EMGS patent case.
Rock Solid Images Commences Jubilee Field Seismic Inversion.
Summary of the UK high court decision on general method patents.
The Company's Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on Tuesday 10 February 2009.
Steve Ludlow has retired as a non executive Director of the Company.
December 2008
Rock Solid Images announces the addition of Dr. Arthur Cheng to it’s rock-physics team.
OHM Annual Report 2008.
Preliminary Results for the Year ended 31 August 2008.
October 2008
Regulatory Release 28th October.
September 2008
Trading Update 2nd September.
August 2008
Vanco Energy Company rewards Rock Solid Images with a 3-Year contract for Rock Physics and Seismic Inversion Studies.
Kosmos Energy and Tullow Select Rock Solid Images for Jubilee Field Development studies
July 2008
OHM and TGS complete extensive multi-client CSEM acquisition programme in Barents Sea
June 2008
OHM launches the WISE Consortium
April 2008
Interim results for the six months ended 29 February 2008
February 2008
Holding in the company 08 February 2008
January 2008
Director Share Purchase 31st January 2008
Trading Update 24th January 2008
Board Restructuring 18 January 2008
December 2007
Annual General Meeting 2007 Voting Proxy 19 Dec 2007
Annual General Meeting Resolutions 2007
November 2007
OHM Annual Report 2007.
Annual Report and Accounts November 27th 2007
Preliminary Results for the Year ended 31 August 2007.
October 2007
Total Voting Rights October 31st 2007
Issue of Equity
Total Voting Rights October 17th 2007
September 2007
Notification of major interests in shares.
Board change.
Directors' dealings.
Trading Update for the year to 31 August 2007.
August 2007
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping and Rock Solid Images join forces.
Directors' dealings.
Adjournment of EGM.
Acquisition of RDSP Acquisition, Inc, placing of 2.8 million new Ordinary Shares and adjournment of EGM until 10.00 a.m. on 17 August 2007.
July 2007
Strategic Alliance and Placing with CGGVeritas.
Appointment of Asia/Pacific Regional Manager.
Holding in Company 20th July 2007.
June 2007
OHM Express enters service in the North Sea.
Steve Hunt appointed as Chief Operating Officer.
OHM receives apology from Lehman Brothers and Andrew Archer.
Holding in Company 22nd June 2007.
May 2007
OHM team recognised for their contribution to the commercialisation of CSEM.
April 2007
Interim results for the six months ended 28 February 2007.
Lucy shareholding 20th April 2007.
Martin shareholding 20th April 2007.
Holding in Company 20th April 2007.
Holding in Company 4th April 2007.
March 2007
OHM and emgs resolve patent proceedings initiated by emgs over IP rights to SBL.
Electromagnetic Geoservices AS (emgs) agrees to discontinue patent proceedings against OHM.
Trading update for six months to 28 February 2007.
Holding in Company 21st March 2007.
Holding in Company 16th March 2007.
Holding in Company 12th March 2007.
February 2007
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping continues to grow international operations.
January 2007
OHM meets growing CSEM demand with dedicated survey vessel: 'OHM EXPRESS' chartered for five years.
Holding in Company 2nd January 2007.
December 2006
Annual General Meeting Result.
Total Voting Rights 21st December 2006 .
Holding in Company 15th December 2006.
Holding in Company 4th December 2006.
November 2006
Placing of 1.5 million new ordinary shares raises approximately £1.9 million (the “Placing”).
OHM, BP, and the University of Southampton to investigate CSEM for appraisal and production.
OHM Secures Vessel for Three-Continent Survey Programme.
OHM Annual Report 2006.
October 2006
Jeffrey Garner joins OHM Board as Non-Executive Director.
High Court Proceedings.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping Plc (‘OHM‘ or ‘the Company’) Preliminary Results for the Year ended 31 August 2006.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc High Court Proceedings.
Director shareholding.
September 2006
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping and TGS to conduct further multi-client CSEM acquisition in Norway.
OHM Trading update.
August 2006
Holding in company announcement 1st August 2006.
July 2006
OHM to conduct extensive CSEM survey for Falkland Oil & Gas.
June 2006
OHM delivers preliminary report to Rockhopper Exploration.
OHM and Rock Solid Images to cooperate on integration of electromagnetic data with wellbore and seismic data.
For further information, please contact:
Rock Solid Images www.rocksolidimages.com Jason Tinder, Manager Marketing Communications Tel: +1 713 783 5593 Email: j.tinder@rocksolidimages.com
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc www.ohmsurveys.com Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer Tel: +44 (0) 870 429 6581 Email: info@ohmsurveys.com
Aquila Financial Limited www.aquila-financial.com Peter Reilly Tel: +44 (0) 20 7202 2601
May 2006
OHM comment on University of Southampton Patent Case Appeal.
For further information, please contact:
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer, OHM Plc, +44 (0)870 429 6581
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
April 2006
Interim results for the six months ended 28 February 2006.
For further information, please contact:
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer, OHM Plc, +44 (0)870 429 6581
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
February 2006
Trading Update.
For further information, please contact:
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer, OHM Plc, +44 (0)870 429 6581
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc restructures Board.
For further information, please contact:
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer, OHM Plc, +44 (0)870 429 6581
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
January 2006
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping appoints Finance Director.
For further information, please contact:
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer, OHM Plc, +44 (0)870 429 6581
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
OHM welcomes inclusion of Electromagnetic Imaging in Norway licensing conditions.
For further information, please contact:
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer, OHM Plc, +44 (0)870 429 6581
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
December 2005
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc heads for the Falkland Islands.
November 2005
OHM launches shallow water survey.
October 2005
Preliminary results for the year ended 31 August 2005
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
June 2005
OHM awarded first contract offshore Sarawak, Malaysia
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
May 2005
OHM commences multi-client CSEMI survey.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc nominated for UK's most prestigious engineering award .
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc (OHM) Interim Results 2005.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
March 2005
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc (OHM) wins a prestigious industry award.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
February 2005
OHM announce appointment of Larry Scott.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
December 2004
OHM announces successful shallow water trial and contract completion.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
October 2004
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc results for the year ended 31 August 2004.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
September 2004
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc announces board appointments.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc, a leading provider of remote electromagnetic sensing services designed to detect the presence of offshore oil and gas, announces two board appointments...
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
July 2004
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc mobilises second controlled source electromagnetic survey crew.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc, a leading provider of remote electromagnetic sensing services designed to detect the presence of offshore oil and gas, has completed mobilisation of its second controlled source electromagnetic survey crew on the survey vessel Oceanic Viking.
Oceanic Viking is conducting some operational and deployment trials before proceeding to a number of proprietary survey projects in North West Europe.
Speaking as the vessel departed for sea, OHM’s operations manager, Jon Nicholls said: “At 106 metres long, and displacing over 9,000 tons, Oceanic Viking’s size and dynamic positioning capabilities make it an exceptionally stable platform from which to conduct these surveys.”
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive, commented: “Our recent flotation on AiM has given us the financial resources to invest in growing our business, and the commissioning of this crew is the first step in that process. We continue to see strong interest in our technology from oil and gas explorers and anticipate a busy time ahead for this crew. Our ongoing investment in research and development is leading to major breakthroughs both in survey instrumentation and in data processing and visualisation. We have made a thirty fold improvement in data signal to noise ratios in the last 12 months and expect further advances to be commercialised from our current research work – it remains our aim to establish our survey technique as an integral part of the industry’s exploration process.”
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
OHM field crew receive safety award for one year lost time incident free.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc’s survey crew recently reached a significant landmark as they completed an entire year without a single lost time incident
OHM’s CEO Dave Pratt visited survey crew 101 during a port call in Galveston, Texas to present Party Manager Frank Fox with an award to recognise the crew’s success. Pratt said: “I am very proud of this achievement. Introducing new equipment and technology creates demanding challenges. Not only has this crew managed to work extremely safely, they have also been instrumental in developing the work and management procedures necessary to ensure that our operations are carried out in a safe and efficient manner.
“The crew has operated in a number of very challenging offshore locations and has contended with extremes of weather, ranging from the storms of the North Sea to the extreme heat of tropical Africa. The team has safely and successfully completed more than 100 deploymenst and recovery operations and have towed our source in areas of rugged seabed topography.
“At OHM we believe that no business imperative is more important than the safety and welfare of our employees and those we interact with in our day-to-day operations. The two Party Managers and both rotations of crew 101 have demonstrated through this performance that they share this belief.”
OHM is a leading provider of remote electromagnetic sensing services designed to detect the presence of offshore oil and gas. The company listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AiM) in March, and recently opened its new headquarters in Aberdeen.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
June 2004
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc’s new imaging product to be used by BP plc.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc, a leading provider of remote electromagnetic sensing services designed to detect the presence of offshore oil and gas, has announced that BP plc intends to utilise the company’s newest data processing technique.
The product, OHM’s new imaging technique Diffusive E-field Focusing (DEFF), was launched by the company at the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers convention held in Paris this month. The advantages of the technique are that it can give a much more detailed, sharper, and more accurate image of resistive layers in the earth, thereby enabling explorers to get a clearer and more precise view of hydrocarbon accumulations.
The work to be undertaken for BP is expected to take around three months.
Lucy MacGregor, Chief Scientific Officer at OHM, said: ‘Client interest was very strong at EAGE, following the publication of our technical paper announcing the technique. We received a number of leads from oil companies and this significant order from BP to process data using the technique is early endorsement of its potential. DEFF represents a major step forward in the processing of controlled source EM data and at OHM we are confident that the improved imaging now available will help to accelerate industry adoption of the controlled source EM remote sensing technique.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
OHM announces contract extension.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc announce today that it has agreed terms to extend an existing long term service contract with a major oil company client.
Under the scope of the contract, one of OHM’s field crews provides dedicated services to that client internationally. Due to the sensitive nature of the exploration services provided by OHM, the company is unable to confirm either the name of its client, or the exact locations in which it is working.
Commenting on the contract award, OHM’s CEO, Dave Pratt said “I am delighted that our client has taken up the option to extend the contract. This not only secures continuing significant business for the company into our next financial year but also demonstrates the effectiveness of our technology and the viability of our services, and is a testament to the safe and efficient way in which OHM’s field crew conducts operations.”
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
April 2004
Preliminary results for the half year ended 29th February 2004.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc (OHM), the electromagnetic remote sensing company, today announces its audited half year results for the period ended 29th February 2004.
Highlights:
Half year revenues of £2.3 million (2003 £1.09 million);
Half year profits of £194,000 (2003 £23,000);
Better than forecast performance on existing field crew;
Successful flotation on London’s alternative investment market (AIM);
Completion of ITF project focused on the application of OHM’s technique to all water depths.
OHM, which raised £10 million net of expenses when it floated on the London Stock Exchange’s alternative investment market in March 2004, provides electromagnetic remote sensing services which enable oil and gas explorers to detect the presence and map the extent of hydrocarbon reservoirs. The technique is field proven in deep water, and the Company is currently engaged on a long term international contract for a major oil company, as well as having a number of smaller contracts with other leading oil and gas explorers. Proceeds from the recent flotation are being used to build additional capital equipment to equip a second field crew, which is expected to enter operation in 2004.
The Company recently completed a project for a consortium of oil companies facilitated by ITF, an oil industry initiative focused on the creation of joint industry projects that research and develop future technology solutions. The project sought to address issues relating to noise, which have to date restricted OHM’s technique to deep water areas. Results from this project are promising and a proof of concept survey is being planned for 2004.
Commenting on the Company’s interim results, Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer of Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc, said:
“I am delighted that the Company has been able to demonstrate its ability to create both positive operating cash flows and pre tax profitability so early in its development. Our half year results are slightly ahead of expectations due to better than forecast reliability of our equipment, resulting in improved revenues, and from an increase in demand for our data processing services.
Although our technique is still at an early stage of industry adoption, we are seeing a steady increase in interest, and have had to turn away opportunities during the half year reporting period. This, together with the capital raised from our recent flotation, gives us the confidence to move ahead with the construction of the equipment for a second crew, and all aspects of this project are currently on track.
We continue to invest heavily in research related to this method and believe that we now have the largest industrial research and development group working on this form of remote sensing. Our research efforts have yielded a number of improvements which are being incorporated in our next set of equipment offering ever improving capabilities for our clients.
Our progress in defeating airborne noise contamination opens up the future possibility of offering our technique in all water depths, and we are talking with a number of interested oil companies who wish to co-operate on a proof of concept survey in the near future. This presents the possibility of considerably increasing our potential market size.
We are particularly pleased with the results from our recent flotation, which was heavily oversubscribed, and which brought in a number of extremely high quality institutional investors as our shareholders.”
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
OHM announces progress in shallow water oil exploration solution.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc (OHM), a provider of remote electromagnetic sensing services designed to detect the presence of offshore oil and gas, today announced a major step forward in the application of their remote electromagnetic sensing technology in shallow water situations such as the North Sea. The technology is already proven to work in deep water.
In 2003 OHM received funding support from six operating companies through the Industry Technology Facilitator (ITF), a not for profit organisation supported by major players in the oil and gas industry. The funding support enabled OHM to undertake research into solutions to applying its technology to shallow water exploration. OHM has now delivered the successful results of the project to the sponsors. The Company is now planning “proof of concept” trials which will require deployment of its equipment over a known oilfield, probably in the North Sea.
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive Officer, said: “This breakthrough coming so soon after our successful listing on AiM in March is excellent news. The successful application of this technology in the North Sea could fundamentally change the approach to not only exploration but ongoing reservoir management. Although the technology has still to be proved in shallow water we are very encouraged by progress to date, and hope to make a further announcement before the end of the year.”
OHM was formed to commercialise technology resulting from extensive academic research at University of Southampton’s prestigious Oceanography Centre. The technology underwent proof of concept trials in 2000, and the first fully commercial survey was undertaken by OHM in 2002 on behalf of a major US oil company, which, in June 2003, entered into a service contract with the company for the provision of dedicated deep water exploration services.
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
March 2004
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc announces flotation on the Alternative Investment Market.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc (OHM), a provider of remote electromagnetic sensing services designed to detect the presence of offshore oil and gas, has today been admitted to London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM).
KBC Peel Hunt Ltd is OHM’s nominated advisor and broker.
The company has raised £10.0 million after expenses at a placing price of 170p per Ordinary Share, valuing the company at £49.3 million. A further £4.7 million was raised on behalf of existing shareholders.
OHM was formed to commercialise technology resulting from extensive academic research at University of Southampton’s prestigious Oceanography Centre. The technology underwent proof of concept trials in 2000, and the first fully commercial survey was undertaken by OHM in 2002 on behalf of a major US oil company, which, in June 2003, entered into a service contract with the company for the provision of dedicated deep water exploration services.
PLACING STATISTICS
| Placing Price | 170 pence |
| Number of new Ordinary Shares placed on behalf of the Company | 6,323,529 |
| Number of existing Ordinary Shares placed on behalf of Selling Shareholders | 2,784,739 |
| Market capitalisation at the Placing Price | £49.3 million |
| Number of Ordinary Shares in issue on Admission | 28,997,939 |
| Percentage of enlarged issued share capital subject to the Placing | 31.4% |
| Gross proceeds of the Placing available to the Company | £10.75 million |
| Net proceeds of the Placing available to the Company | £10.0 million |
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
February 2004
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping Limited announces intention to float on the Alternative Investment Market.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping Limited (OHM), a provider of remote electromagnetic sensing services designed to detect the presence of offshore oil and gas, has announced its intention to float on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM).
KBC Peel Hunt Ltd has been appointed as nominated advisor and broker to the company.
OHM was formed to commercialise technology resulting from over 30 man-years of academic research, at Cambridge University and at University of Southampton’s prestigious Oceanography Centre. The technology underwent proof of concept trials in 2000, and the first fully commercial survey was undertaken by OHM in 2002 on behalf of a major US oil company, which, in June 2003, entered into a service contract with the company for the provision of dedicated deep water exploration services.
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive, commented: ‘We are delighted to be seeking a listing on AIM, as we look to take the company to the next stage in its development. The recent appointment of our Chairman, Dr Pierre Jungels, enhances the strength of our management team, which I believe has the commercial and technical expertise to deliver on our strategy of becoming the leaders in EM surveying techniques and delivering value to our clients in the oil and gas exploration and production industry.’
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
January 2004
OHM Ltd announce appointment of Garry Allan as director of finance.
OHM Ltd has announced the appointment as director of finance of Garry Allan with effect from 19 January, 2004.
OHM’s remote sensing technology can detect the presence and extent of hydrocarbon accumulations before they are drilled. This developing application could significantly reduce the risk of drilling dry holes and reduce the scope of appraisal drilling programmes. As the company needed to expand into a larger facility, OHM recently moved its headquarters to new premises on The Offshore Technology Park at Bridge of Don, Aberdeen, where it will be building dedicated workshops for receiver calibration and maintenance. It retains a presence in Southampton.
Mr Allan is a chartered accountant and has a Masters degree in finance from the University of Aberdeen. He has 20 years’ experience in financial management in the oil exploration industry having held posts at KCA Drilling, Nabors, Wilrig, and Hamilton Brothers Oil and Gas. His last position was as Finance Director of OIS International Inspection plc.
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive, OHM Ltd, commented: ‘We are very pleased that Garry is joining us, as he will bring invaluable expertise to the company as we look to build our business going forward. With our recent appointment of Pierre Jungels as chairman, and the high quality team we have established over the last year, I am very confident that we have the people in place to take OHM to the next stage of its development.’
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
OHM Ltd announce appointment of Pierre Jungels as Chairman.
OHM Ltd has announced the appointment as chairman of Dr Pierre Jungels.
OHM’s remote sensing technology can detect the presence and extent of hydrocarbon accumulations before they are drilled. This developing application could significantly reduce the risk of drilling dry holes and reduce the scope of appraisal drilling programmes.
Dr Jungels, who holds a PhD in Geophysics & Hydraulics from the California Institute of Technology, has over 30 years experience in the oil industry and currently holds non-executive directorships at Woodside Petroleum Ltd, Offshore Logistics, Inc, and Imperial Tobacco plc.
Dave Pratt, Chief Executive, OHM Ltd, commented: ‘We are delighted that Pierre is joining us. He has vast experience of the oil industry, having fulfilled roles at the highest level both in the UK and internationally, and has long been a champion of leading edge technology. Pierre’s appointment comes at a key stage in our evolution as we consider funding options to develop the business further.’
Pierre Jungels added: ‘I am very excited at the opportunity of working with Dave Pratt and his team on a project that could revolutionise deepwater oil and gas exploration. OHM’s technology is already providing several major international clients with assistance in their exploration programmes, and I believe that, with further development, the electromagnetic technique the company employs will become a must for future offshore exploration.’
For further information, please contact:
Peter Reilly, Aquila Financial +44 (0)20 7202 2601
July 2003
OHM gets multi-year contract for EM surveys.
OHM Ltd, UK, has mobilised one of their crews for a multi-year contract for a major international oil company to provide a range of services based on Ohm’s active electromagnetic (EM) sounding technique.
“We will be providing these services worldwide to support our client’s exploration and development activities. As one of the early adopters of this technology in the exploration workflow, we believe that our client will gain a significant competitive advantage over rival oil companies by significantly reducing their exploration risk” said Dave Pratt, CEO of OHM. “We will be providing our client with state-of-the-art systems, including our DASI III deep-towed transmitter, whose output is an order of magnitude more powerful than previous generation systems. This provides a dramatic increase in signal penetration depths into subsea geological structures.”
OHM has commercialized the active EM sounding technique, pioneered at Southampton Oceanography Centre and Scripps Institute, to bridge a gap between 3D seismic data and exploration drilling. This technique detects and delineates the resistive subsea layers often associated with hydrocarbon deposits. Whereas 3D seismic data identifies structures that may contain hydrocarbons, in many circumstances it does not provide a reliable hydrocarbon presence indicator. Active EM sounding can confirm the presence of hydrocarbons: the possibility of drilling dry exploration wells is thus significantly reduced as is the need for extensive appraisal drilling.
Active source EM sounding uses a dipole source towed just above (typically 30m) the seafloor. The dipole emits a low frequency (a few tenths to a few tens of Hz) EM signal that diffuses outwards through the water column and into the underlying sediments. The resulting electric fields are measured by an array of receivers on the seafloor. Studying the variation in the amplitude and phase of this received signal as the source is towed around and through the receiver array allows the resistivity structure of the underlying sediments to be determined at scales of a few tens of metres at depths to several kilometres.
June 2003
OHM assesses EM sounding impact.
OHM Ltd, UK, has completed a series of detailed studies to assess the marine environmental impact of its active electromagnetic (EM) sounding method.
"Our EM technique in its latest form is quite novel," said Dave Pratt, OHM's CEO. "So as the leading contractor it was essential that we fully understood its potential environmental impact. We are now able to provide clients with highly detailed information that they can use in site-specific environmental impact assessments of exploration and production activities".
"The results of the independent studies we commissioned have also enabled us to develop operating procedures and survey design criteria which will give maximum environmental protection," he added.
OHM's active EM sounding technique bridges the gap between 3D seismic and exploration drilling. It detects and delineates the resistive subsea layers often associated with hydrocarbon deposits. While 3D seismic identifies the structures that may contain hydrocarbons it does not necessarily reveal their presence. Active EM sounding can confirm the presence of hydrocarbons: the possibility of drilling dry exploration wells is thus significantly reduced as is the need for extensive appraisal drilling.
March 2003
MacArtney subsea transformer, cables and connectors for OHM.
MacArtney A/S, Denmark has secured the order for key components of the active source electromagnetic (EM) sounding towed platform now building for OHM Ltd UK.
The order includes a subsea cable termination for 3t SWL, high voltage (4.5kV) and 4 optical fibres, Gisma HV electrical connectors, high current Subconn connector arrays and harness cables. In addition there will be single mode Optolink fibre optic connectors and harness cables, Focal Technology high voltage 5KV/fibre optic swivel and winch slipring units and 125kVA subsea transformer unit.
OHM commissions HSE management system.
OHM Ltd, UK, has contracted GSR, UK, to refine and further develop safety management procedures for operating its offshore hydrocarbons active electromagnetic prospecting system.
GSR provides a range of HSE services to companies operating in the oil and gas sector. For OHM it will integrate existing procedures and policies with its innovative e-MS intranet/internet-based management system. OHM users will be able to access management system documentation, monitor performance and apply lessons learned to prevent accidents and maintain high environmental standards.
OHM's CEO Dave Pratt commented: "Safety and environmental management is an essential component of our business. GSR are widely recognised as a leader in this area within the offshore prospecting business and we are very pleased to have them working with us on this project."
GSR is an association between Thonger Associates and Exploration Consultants Ltd.
OHM Ltd, UK, is the world leader in the provision of active electromagnetic (EM) sounding services to the offshore oil industry. The active SOURCE EM technique detects and delineates thin resistive layers often associated with oil and gas fields. The
technique complements 3D seismic which will identify geological structures that may contain hydrocarbons, but not the hydrocarbons themselves.
Through the application of active EM sounding OHM is able to prevent dry exploration wells; significantly reduce the need for appraisal drilling; and provide accurate time-lapse reservoir monitoring. These are three key components in improving the risk and cost structure of offshore E&P.
February, 2003
OHM's US$300k cable order.
OHM Ltd, UK and Houston, has placed a GB£200,000 (US$300,000) order with Cortland Fibron BX Ltd, UK, for a state of the art cable system. It is a key element in OHM's development of a new generation active electromagnetic sounding system. It will further enhance OHM's position at the forefront of this increasingly-used hydrocarbon exploration and reservoir delineation technique by producing images of far deeper targets with higher resolution. It will give an order of magnitude improvement in transmission power and signal complexity.
The OHM offshore hydrocarbon mapping method has been proved in the North Sea, off West Africa where it has detected and delineated oil and gas reservoirs in deep water without the need to drill.
The Cortland Fibron cable system now under construction for OHM has two elements. The first is a 6000m tow cable with central signal-carrying fibre optic component with electrical power cores laid over the centre and sheathed in polyurethane. Two layers of ultra-high tensile galvanised wire armour are applied over the polyurethane sheath. It is the unique high tensile strength of these armour wires that produces a cable of considerably smaller diameter than those currently in use.
The 6000m cable supplies power and signals to a towed body now under development by OHM and which represents a step change in electromagnetic source technology. The source in turn transmits a complex electromagnetic signal via the second element of the cable system. This is the 300m active element cable which is towed by the new source and which has an electric dipole to transmit the electromagnetic signal into the earth. Resultant electromagnetic fields are detected and logged by an array of seafloor-mounted receivers. Analysis of this data can indicate the presence of oil and gas.
Lucy MacGregor, Chief Scientific Officer of OHM commented : “Cortland Fibron has come up with an innovative cable design that meets our demanding requirements for an extremely high power transmission capability in the small diameter package we require to meet our tow speed objectives.”
Based in Southampton, UK, OHM’s team of scientists has over 25 years experience in the acquisition, processing and interpretation of active SOURCE electromagnetic source surveys.
January, 2003
Appointments at OHM.
Three appointments at OHM Ltd, UK, specialists in active source electromagnetic hydrocarbon prospecting.
Dave Pratt joins as Chief Executive Officer, based in the UK. He was previously President of Veritas Geophysical Services, Houston, after holding senior management positions with Digicon and Racal (now Thales.)
Linda Ruubas is Manager, Americas, based in Houston. She was previously VP Sales at Veritas DGC Inc and before that Manager of International Coordination, Schlumberger Oilfield Services.
Lucy MacGregor is Chief Scientist at OHM, based in the UK. She has been at the forefront of remote electromagnetic sensing of geological structures for the past nine years having held research posts at Cambridge University, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and Southampton Oceanography Centre.
OHM completes W Africa well test programme.
Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping Ltd (OHM), UK and Houston, has completed a multi-well test programme in deep water off West Africa for an unnamed US oil major.
This latest contract used the active electromagnetic sounding technique developed over many years by OHM scientists to map resistive layers associated with hydrocarbon reserves. The technique detects and delineates oil and gas in deep water without the need to drill.
While 3D seismic identifies geological structures that may contain hydrocarbons, OHM’s electromagnetic technique is the next stage in the exploration process since it shows the actual presence of hydrocarbons by detecting layers within the subsea formations. The resistivity within these layers can be 10-100 times greater than the surrounding strata and so can be readily identified.
This clear identification of hydrocarbons significantly reduces the risk of drilling dry exploration wells; OHM’s ability to accurately detect the edge of reservoirs can also replace the need for appraisal drilling. With the great savings thus made, exploration budgets can be applied to test many more prospects.
The OHM survey technique is based on transmitting a low frequency electromagnetic field from a dipole source towed just above the seafloor. Signals
from the source are detected and logged by an array of seafloor-mounted receivers. Signal variation relative to source/receiver geometry enables the resistivity of the subsea formations to be determined. The technique is safe and has no environmental impact on marine life.
Based in Southampton, UK, OHM’s team of scientists has over 25 years experience in the acquisition, processing and interpretation of active electromagnetic source surveys. These have been used extensively by the oceanographic community to investigate the nature of mid-ocean volcanic systems and to map gas hydraite deposits. OHM has more recently initiated a number of advances in power transmission and signal stability in the towed source to enable it to be used in hydrocarbon detection and reservoir delineation.
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