Petrel 2013 5 Whats New

Petrel E&P Software Platform 2013
What’s New Guide

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Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 2 3 March 2014

Contents
Welcome to Petrel 2013 ..........................................................................................................................14
Structural Framework .............................................................................................................................15
2013.2 .......................................................................................................................................................15
Volume Based Modeling Method ..................................................................................................................... 15
Solution for Construction of Complex Structural Models in Petrel................................................................... 15
Ability to handle complex fault networks ......................................................................................................... 16
Modeling of geological sequences: ................................................................................................................. 17
Sparse data handling ...................................................................................................................................... 17
Proportional layering ....................................................................................................................................... 18
Fast model update .......................................................................................................................................... 18
Thin layer handling.......................................................................................................................................... 18

QC Manager ....................................................................................................................................................... 19
Structural and Fault Analysis ................................................................................................................20
2013.1 .......................................................................................................................................................20
Fault plane diagram view.................................................................................................................................. 20
Structural framework fault tools ...................................................................................................................... 20
Asperity identifier ............................................................................................................................................ 20
Edge detection ................................................................................................................................................ 21
Pillar fault tools ................................................................................................................................................ 21
Grid permeability modification......................................................................................................................... 21
Fault permeability prediction: user-defined relationship .................................................................................. 21
Seismic horizon interpretation, point and surface data ................................................................................ 21
Distance to failure on points............................................................................................................................ 21
Isochore gradient ............................................................................................................................................ 21
Geophysics .............................................................................................................................................22
2013.5 .......................................................................................................................................................22
Volume attribute: Phase shift (full trace) ........................................................................................................ 22
2013.4 .......................................................................................................................................................22
Seismic Smart Folders...................................................................................................................................... 22
Geobody Interpretation..................................................................................................................................... 24
Seismic compression ....................................................................................................................................... 25
Compression information ................................................................................................................................ 25
Option for better fidelity ................................................................................................................................... 25
Licensing ........................................................................................................................................................... 26

2013.3 .......................................................................................................................................................26
Surface attributes: resample option ................................................................................................................ 26
Interval velocity maps ....................................................................................................................................... 27
Keyboard shortcut key - Shift + E .................................................................................................................... 28
Seismic volume rendering................................................................................................................................ 28
2013.2 .......................................................................................................................................................28
Multi-Z Interpretation ........................................................................................................................................ 28
Triangle Mesh ................................................................................................................................................. 33
Interval velocity maps ....................................................................................................................................... 35
Seismic Reconstruction – 2D ........................................................................................................................... 37
Unconformity handling .................................................................................................................................... 37
Seismic Compression ....................................................................................................................................... 39
Compressed ZGY Cube.................................................................................................................................. 39

SEG-Y 2D Toolbox............................................................................................................................................. 40
Seismic Well Tie ................................................................................................................................................ 40
Sonic Calibration > Polynomial fit ................................................................................................................... 40
Synthetic Generation > Time varying wavelet................................................................................................. 42
Wavelet Toolbox > Wavelet Average .............................................................................................................. 46
Log Conditioning Behavioral Change ............................................................................................................. 47
Draw ............................................................................................................................................................... 47
2013.1 .......................................................................................................................................................48
SEG-Y 2D Toolbox............................................................................................................................................. 48
Horizon Autotracking ........................................................................................................................................ 51
Simplified GUI ................................................................................................................................................. 51
Augmented Tracking Algorithm ....................................................................................................................... 52
Dip Variation ................................................................................................................................................... 53
Wavelet Correlation ........................................................................................................................................ 53
3D Snap .......................................................................................................................................................... 54
Seeds/Locking ................................................................................................................................................ 54
Meta Data ........................................................................................................................................................... 55
Meta Data Tab ................................................................................................................................................ 55
Survey Manager.............................................................................................................................................. 56
Composite Lines ............................................................................................................................................... 57
Automatic Creation for Non-Intersecting Sections .......................................................................................... 57
User-Defined Creation for Non-Intersecting Sections ..................................................................................... 57
Seismic Calculator ............................................................................................................................................ 58

Access to Index (i,j,k) ...................................................................................................................................... 58
Chained Expressions ...................................................................................................................................... 58
Multi-Threaded ................................................................................................................................................ 58
Inspector Updates ............................................................................................................................................. 58
Increased Horizon and Fault-Interpretation Support ....................................................................................... 58
Geobody Interpretation..................................................................................................................................... 59
New Ray Casting Engine ................................................................................................................................ 59
Improved Visual Quality .................................................................................................................................. 60
Full Resolution Extraction ............................................................................................................................... 60
Extract beyond Probe Boundaries .................................................................................................................. 61
Leveraging the GPU and Scales..................................................................................................................... 61
Required Hardware – Graphics Card .............................................................................................................. 62
Optimal Microsoft Windows Environment ....................................................................................................... 62

Light Tool ........................................................................................................................................................... 63
Typical Usage ................................................................................................................................................. 63
Light Tool Features ......................................................................................................................................... 64
General Depth Conversion ............................................................................................................................... 64
Volume Attributes ............................................................................................................................................. 65
3D Edge Enhancement ................................................................................................................................... 65
Grey-Level Co-Occurrence Matrix (GLCM)..................................................................................................... 68
Log Conditioning............................................................................................................................................... 70
Seismic Well Tie ................................................................................................................................................ 70
Track Manager ................................................................................................................................................ 70
Seismic Track ................................................................................................................................................. 71
Copy from Template ....................................................................................................................................... 72
Simultaneous Display of Time and Depth Tracks in Default Templates ......................................................... 73
Synthetic Generation Process: ....................................................................................................................... 74
Interval Velocity Manipulation ......................................................................................................................... 74
QC Interval Velocities ..................................................................................................................................... 74
Any log as input for RC calculation ................................................................................................................. 75
Correlation Tab ............................................................................................................................................... 75
Reflection Coefficient Modeling ...................................................................................................................... 76
Correlation Track ............................................................................................................................................ 77
Wavelet Toolbox ............................................................................................................................................. 77
Integrated Seismic Well Tie – Single template................................................................................................ 79
Color Table Enhancements .............................................................................................................................. 80
Local Legends................................................................................................................................................. 80

Minimum and Maximum Color Template Settings .......................................................................................... 81
Global Seismic Color Table Template Enhancements.................................................................................... 82
Geophysics: Seismic Well Tie ...............................................................................................................83
2013.4 .......................................................................................................................................................83
Depth Seismic Calibration ................................................................................................................................ 83
Application of Seismic Well Tie to calibrate depth domain seismic data ......................................................... 83
Geology ...................................................................................................................................................84
2013.4 .......................................................................................................................................................84
Surface intersections ........................................................................................................................................ 84
2013.3 .......................................................................................................................................................84
Backward compatible projects ........................................................................................................................ 84
Checkshot loader .............................................................................................................................................. 84
Well log calculator............................................................................................................................................. 84

Well tops attributes ........................................................................................................................................... 84
Well tops editing in 3D windows...................................................................................................................... 84
Well section window display ............................................................................................................................ 84
Transferring wells with RPT ............................................................................................................................. 84
Log visualization in 3D and Interpretation windows ...................................................................................... 85
2013.2 .......................................................................................................................................................85
Multiple LAS Importer ....................................................................................................................................... 85
Stratigraphic chart – duplicate column/copy zone ........................................................................................ 86
Well labeling – trajectory point ........................................................................................................................ 86
Fault modeling................................................................................................................................................... 87
2013.1 .......................................................................................................................................................87
Map-based Volume Calculation ....................................................................................................................... 87
Process Dialog ................................................................................................................................................ 88
Reporting ........................................................................................................................................................ 88
Workflow Editor ............................................................................................................................................... 88
Stratigraphic Charts .......................................................................................................................................... 89
Chart Tree ....................................................................................................................................................... 89
Spreadsheet.................................................................................................................................................... 90
Display ............................................................................................................................................................ 90
Well Labeling ..................................................................................................................................................... 91
Rotation .......................................................................................................................................................... 91
Background ..................................................................................................................................................... 91
Geology Inspectors ........................................................................................................................................... 92

Well Header Latitude and Longitude ............................................................................................................... 94
Time-Series Logs .............................................................................................................................................. 95
Time-Series Logs Supported in Vertical Tracks .............................................................................................. 96
Coloring Time-Series Logs ............................................................................................................................. 98
Well Log Attributes ........................................................................................................................................... 98
Well Tops Filtering ............................................................................................................................................ 99
Example Filtering Settings .............................................................................................................................100
True Horizontal Length Index..........................................................................................................................102
Well Usability ....................................................................................................................................................102
Coloring by Attributes.....................................................................................................................................102
Using Folders in the Log Calculator ...............................................................................................................103
User Defined Patterns ......................................................................................................................................103
Geology: Wells ......................................................................................................................................104

2013.4 .....................................................................................................................................................104
Well log calculator............................................................................................................................................104
Loading production log ...................................................................................................................................104
Log version collection .....................................................................................................................................104
Well top filter folder..........................................................................................................................................104
Spatially unaware wells ...................................................................................................................................104
Well Section Window ............................................................................................................................105
2013.3 .....................................................................................................................................................105
Reference Project tool .....................................................................................................................................105
2013.1 .....................................................................................................................................................105
Enhanced Cross Sections Object ...................................................................................................................105
Creating X-sections........................................................................................................................................105
Configuring X-section Style Settings in a 2D or Map Window .......................................................................106
Opening a Well Section Window....................................................................................................................107
Exploration Geology .............................................................................................................................111
2013.2 .....................................................................................................................................................111
Petroleum Systems 1D and 3D .......................................................................................................................112
Lithology Database ........................................................................................................................................112
Invasion Percolation Simulations now visible in Petrel ..................................................................................112
Separation of “Ages and facies table” into chrono-stratigraphic column and facies definition table...............112
Modeling ................................................................................................................................................114
2013.3 .....................................................................................................................................................114
Dual Scale Reservoir Modeling Workflow ......................................................................................................114

“Refinement” process in Corner Point Gridding folder ...................................................................................114
”Mapping with properties” sampling method in Scale Up Properties..............................................................114
Scale up well logs ............................................................................................................................................114
Scale up well logs zone correction .................................................................................................................114
Property Modeling ................................................................................................................................115
2013.1 .....................................................................................................................................................115
Data Analysis....................................................................................................................................................115
Enhanced Variogram Analysis .......................................................................................................................115
Petrophysical modeling ...................................................................................................................................116
Property Modeling with Nested Variogram.....................................................................................................116
Workflow Editor................................................................................................................................................117
Multiple 3D Grids Handling – Scenarios Uncertainty .....................................................................................117
Object Variable Enhancements .....................................................................................................................118

Reference List Enhancements .......................................................................................................................119
Facies Conditioning Variable Enablement .....................................................................................................119
MIP for Facies Modeling ................................................................................................................................120
Object Modeling ...............................................................................................................................................121
Body Shape Enhancements ..........................................................................................................................121
Reporting Enhancements ..............................................................................................................................122
Geometrical Modeling ......................................................................................................................................123
Seismic Resampling Performance Enhancement ..........................................................................................123
Model Extraction from Inside Polygons .........................................................................................................123
Make Thickness/Proportion Maps Operation ................................................................................................124
Facies Probabilities Calculation .....................................................................................................................125
Modeling Processes Active 3D Grid Switching .............................................................................................125
Inspector for Properties...................................................................................................................................125
Model-Dependent Default Variogram Ranges Switch ...................................................................................126
Fracture Modeling .................................................................................................................................127
2013.2 .....................................................................................................................................................127
Geomechanical method ...................................................................................................................................127
Geomechanically-based driver for constraining fracture modeling in Petrel ..................................................127
Comparison of data and computed fractures .................................................................................................128
Computing map of fractures trend orientation ................................................................................................128
Discrete Fracture Network .............................................................................................................................129
Workflow illustration .......................................................................................................................................130
Main Benefits of the Geomechanically-Based DFN Driver ...........................................................................131

Classical fracture analysis .............................................................................................................................131
Geomechanically-based approach ................................................................................................................131
Well Design ...........................................................................................................................................132
2013.3 .....................................................................................................................................................132
BHA display in Well section window ..............................................................................................................132
2013.1 .....................................................................................................................................................132
Well Plan Inspector ..........................................................................................................................................132
Style Tab........................................................................................................................................................132
Constrained 3D Editor Tab ............................................................................................................................133
Importing Data from COMPASSTM EDM File ..................................................................................................133
Importing Survey Options ...............................................................................................................................134
EDM Data Index Item Manager ........................................................................................................................135
WITSML Risks Importing for Multiple Wells ..................................................................................................136

Production .............................................................................................................................................138
2013.3 .....................................................................................................................................................138
OFM ...................................................................................................................................................................138
Importing from OFM .......................................................................................................................................138
Petrel 2013.1 OFM Data Connector Templates .............................................................................................138
Production Analytics .......................................................................................................................................138
Split Sets........................................................................................................................................................138
Well Deliverability.............................................................................................................................................138
Petrel Projects with TUFFP Flow Correlations ...............................................................................................138
2013.2 .....................................................................................................................................................138
New Production Analytics ...............................................................................................................................138
Production Bubble Mapping Process .............................................................................................................139
Production Mapping Process .........................................................................................................................139
Production Track for Well Section Windows ..................................................................................................139
Split Set and Split Set Manager .....................................................................................................................140
OFM Data Connector........................................................................................................................................140
Import Completion Level Data with the OFM Data Connector .......................................................................140
Import Well Annotations with the OFM Data Connector ................................................................................141
Support Full Flow Path in VFP Simulation .....................................................................................................141
Support Gas Separator and Viscosity Correction in ESP ............................................................................142
Import Well Location from PIPESIM if the Well Location is Defined in GIS ................................................142
Well Deliverability .................................................................................................................................143
2013.1 .....................................................................................................................................................143

Flow Correlation Data Matching .....................................................................................................................143
Inflow Performance Relationship (IPR) ..........................................................................................................143
User-Defined IPR Model ................................................................................................................................143
Calculated IPR Variables from Well Test Data ..............................................................................................143
Vertical Flow Performance (VFP) ....................................................................................................................144
VFP Workflow Step Enabled..........................................................................................................................144
VFP in Uncertainty and Optimization .............................................................................................................144
VFP for Injector Wells ....................................................................................................................................144
Support for Electric Submersible Pump ESP .................................................................................................144
Set Plan as Active Work Step..........................................................................................................................145
Reservoir Engineering..........................................................................................................................146
2013.5 .....................................................................................................................................................146
Use default calculation in simulator now exports skin factor ......................................................................146

Correct activity value exported for ACTNUM ................................................................................................146
Partial export now creates correct START date in ECLIPSE dataset .........................................................146
2013.3 .....................................................................................................................................................147
Exporting multiple realization cases ..............................................................................................................147
Specifying the simulator version when exporting a data set containing the WSEGVALV keyword ........147
2013.2 .....................................................................................................................................................147
Changes to INTERSECT Support in Petrel.....................................................................................................147
Correct specification by Petrel of valve pipe diameters may result in changes to the frictional pressure
drop ...................................................................................................................................................................148
Unrecognized summary results are now visible in the Results pane .........................................................148
Improvements to the reference valve calculation when converting to simulation design ........................148
2013.1 .....................................................................................................................................................149
Behavioral Changes .........................................................................................................................................149
VFP Tables with GRAT ALQ Type Unit Measurement ..................................................................................149
Non-midnight Time Steps in Existing Projects ...............................................................................................149
Pressure Equivalent Radius r0 Exported for OPEN Connections Only ..........................................................149
Longer Lines Written to ECLIPSE Deck Files ................................................................................................150
Change of Default Number of Rows in Capillary Pressure Tables in Make Rock Physics.............................150
License Module Changes ..............................................................................................................................150
Performance Improvements ............................................................................................................................150
Documentation .................................................................................................................................................151
Results Charting and Analysis .......................................................................................................................152
New Plotting Data Options .............................................................................................................................152

Splitting Options .............................................................................................................................................153
Option ....................................................................................................................................................153
Produces ...............................................................................................................................................153
Well Player .....................................................................................................................................................153
Case Player ...................................................................................................................................................154
Charting Window Inspector ............................................................................................................................154
Sliding Sleeve and FCV Simulation ................................................................................................................156
Import of Historical Sliding Sleeve Data from New File Format .....................................................................156
Sliding Sleeve Device Control Data File Format ............................................................................................157
Sliding Sleeve History Development Strategy Rule .......................................................................................158
Connection Factor Enhancements .................................................................................................................159
Connection Factor Calculation Options..........................................................................................................159
Visualizing Well Connection Properties .........................................................................................................160

Capillary Pressure and Relative Permeability Tables ...................................................................................161
Independent Creation and Editing .................................................................................................................161
Change of Default Number of Rows in Capillary Pressure Tables.................................................................161
Enhanced ECLIPSE Deck Import and Export ................................................................................................161
Header Information Written to all ECLIPSE Deck Files .................................................................................161
Support for SKIP/ENDSKIP Keywords......................................................................................................161
Support for PATHS Keyword .........................................................................................................................162
Support for Non-Darcy Flow Forchheimer Correction ....................................................................................162
Precision Changes for Keyword Export .........................................................................................................162
Numeric Precision in Templates ....................................................................................................................162
Controlling Numeric Precision for Export .......................................................................................................162
Templates Used by ECLIPSE Keywords .......................................................................................................163
Field Management ............................................................................................................................................169
Drag and Drop Modes in the Field Management Dialog ................................................................................169
Entering an Expression as Text .....................................................................................................................170
Creating a Region List for a 3D Property .......................................................................................................170
Field Management Options ............................................................................................................................170
Support for INTERSECT Workflows ...............................................................................................................171
Support for Temperature vs. Depth Tables (TEMPVD) in INTERSECT ........................................................171
Modeling Fault Threshold Pressure ...............................................................................................................171
Studio.....................................................................................................................................................173
2013.4 .....................................................................................................................................................173
Indexing Service ...................................................................................................................................173

2013.3 .....................................................................................................................................................173
Studio Database Compatibility .......................................................................................................................173
Web Map Gallery ..............................................................................................................................................173
Data Synchronization.......................................................................................................................................174
2013.2 .....................................................................................................................................................175
Studio Database Compatibility .......................................................................................................................175
Original CRS .....................................................................................................................................................175
Option to enable/disable Seismic image generation during transfer ..........................................................176
Support of Raster Logs ...................................................................................................................................177
Enabling Well Tops Folder Synchronization Status .....................................................................................177
Re-parenting of seismic interpretation ..........................................................................................................177
2013.1 .....................................................................................................................................................178
Studio Installer .................................................................................................................................................178

Find....................................................................................................................................................................178
Saved Selection .............................................................................................................................................178
User defined search result hierarchy .............................................................................................................179
Favorites ........................................................................................................................................................180
General ..............................................................................................................................................................180
Importing and Exporting Shape Files .............................................................................................................180
Map Service preview......................................................................................................................................180
Support for URLs in the Inspector ..................................................................................................................181
Framework.............................................................................................................................................182
2013.2 .....................................................................................................................................................182
Spline/Linear interpolation switch for opacity curve ....................................................................................182
Rendering geo-referenced images in geographic space..............................................................................183
General ..................................................................................................................................................184
2013.2 .....................................................................................................................................................184
CRS Consolidation ...........................................................................................................................................184
Restructured Tools menu...............................................................................................................................184
2013.1 .....................................................................................................................................................184
User Interface ...................................................................................................................................................184
Help Center ....................................................................................................................................................185
Display ...........................................................................................................................................................186
Selection Synchronization to Data Tree .........................................................................................................186
Activation Follows Selection ..........................................................................................................................187
Process-Dependent Window Activation Removed.........................................................................................188

Visualization of Points and Polygons ............................................................................................................188
New Point and Polygon Rendering ................................................................................................................188
Point and Polygon Editing Tools ....................................................................................................................188
System Enhancements ....................................................................................................................................189
Startup Optimization ......................................................................................................................................189
Installation Progress ......................................................................................................................................190
Memory Monitoring ........................................................................................................................................190
Version Identifier ............................................................................................................................................191
Coordinate Reference System (CRS) .............................................................................................................192
CRS Consolidation.........................................................................................................................................192
Upgraded ESRI Projection Engine..................................................................................................................193

Welcome to Petrel 2013
Finding, characterizing, and exploiting new and existing reservoirs is increasingly complex. To overcome these
challenges, we must continually improve and innovate the way we work. With the Petrel* E&P Software Platform,
Schlumberger revolutionized the oil and gas industry by bringing disciplines together with best-in-class science in
an unparalleled productivity environment.
Our commitment to Petrel resulted in dramatic strides forward in the way we develop and deliver a software
platform, and with the Petrel 2013 Platform and Update releases, we continue to deliver on our promise of better
integration, deep science, and productivity. Today we support an engineering team unrivalled in size and expertise,
empowered by the Ocean software development framework. More than ever before, we are positioned to help you
develop critical insights into reservoirs throughout the oilfield lifecycle.
This document is updated for the 2013.5 release. The following sections are organized, as far as possible, by
discipline. Within each section you will find the New Features and any significant behavioral changes listed,

grouped by the release in which they first appeared; with the newest release appearing first. Note that not all
disciplines have New Features in every release.
Refer to the companion documents, Petrel E&P Software Platform 2013 Release Notes and Petrel 2013 Installation
Guide, for information on licensing and system requirements.
Documentation for all prior Petrel releases is available from the Schlumberger Information Solutions (SIS) Support
Portal.

Structural Framework
2013.2
Petrel 2013.2 is introducing a new algorithm for creating horizons in Structural Framework models. This method
complements the legacy methods called Fault Centre Grid Dislocation (FGD) and Multi Patch Interpolator (MPI)
introduced in Petrel 2010 and 2011 respectively.
Volume Based Modeling Method

Solution for Construction of Complex Structural Models in Petrel
Volume Based Modeling (VBM) technology revolves around the concept of ’implicit modeling’*. The main idea

behind this technique is to model directly volumes (the geological layers) rather than surfaces (horizons that are
bounding these layers). In order to enforce the geological consistency of the created models another key element is
built into this technology: it guarantees that the variations of dip and thickness of the created geological layers are
minimized, while all seismic and well data are properly honored. It basically integrates all information (well tops,
interpretation, and control points) at once and provides a geologically consistent global representation of the sub-
surface.
The process for creating such models is conceptually simple: first, a fully unstructured faulted 3D mesh is built from
a watertight representation of the fault network, then a volume attribute representing the stratigraphic age of the
formations is interpolated on this mesh, once this calculation is completed, iso-surfaces of the attribute which
correspond to the location of the original input data points are extracted as horizons in the Structural framework
and a zone model is computed; this yields a volume representation of geological layers.
Figure 1. Stages in the construction of a Volume based model (VBM)
Input Data Create background Compute background Extract horizons from Build zone model
volume model stratigraphy property volume

The VBM horizon method incorporates a set of robust and innovative algorithms which are designed to approach
the construction of complex structural geologic settings. This translates, for users, into the ability to create realistic
models without needing to be concerned by the structural complexity found in many of the challenging reservoir
modeling environments including, fault configurations with crossing (X), synthetic/antithetic (Y), lambda, reverse or
low-angle thrusts and overturned structures; non-conformable stratigraphy (presence of multiple unconformities
forming complex truncation patterns). The robustness of the algorithm is also independent from the quality
(presence of noise, misinterpreted reflectors) and scarcity of data.
Figure 2. Volume Based Modeling (VBM) examples of compressional and extensional models
Fault network Built horizon(s) Built zones
Extensional**

Extensional***
Compressional
** Physical (sandbox) models courtesy Fault Dynamics Research Group, Royal Holloway University of London.
*** Seismic data supplied by Geosciences Australia
Ability to handle complex fault networks

Because it is fully three-dimensional (3D), the VBM method is nearly insensitive to the complexity of the fault
network and enables accurate construction of very complex structural reservoir models.

Figure 3. Examples various structural scenarios - built using VBM
Extensional structure** Compressional Structure Extensional structure***
** Physical (sandbox) models courtesy Fault Dynamics Research Group, Royal Holloway University of London.
*** Seismic data supplied by Geosciences Australia
Modeling of geological sequences:

All conformable horizons belonging to a macro-layer are treated as a single conformable sequence. These are then
modeled simultaneously by VBM; as several iso-values of the same implicit attribute. This approach prevents
situations of horizons crossing each other, which is a common problem with surface-based modeling techniques
especially in cases of thinly layered reservoir.
Figure 4. Conformable sequence modeling using VBM
H1
H2
H3
As all of the horizons are contained within a single 'conformable sequence', the geometry of each final horizon is
constrained by all input horizons, without the need for using isochore or isopach modelling.
Sparse data handling

All horizons within a defined ‘geological sequence’ are conformable to each other using the VBM algorithm. A
single data-point (e.g., a well top) can be used to define a horizon in a sequence and is enough to control the
thickness between this horizon and other horizons, located both above and below. Therefore, VBM presents the
ability to construct consistent models whose only input may be a single seismic horizon interpretation (or even no
seismic interpretation at all) and a sequence of sparse data points or 2D lines; without the need for explicitly
computing thickness maps. As computation of the iso-stratigraphic property field accounts for the geometry of all
horizons, is continuous across the Structural framework, discontinuous across faults, and is such that it minimizes
variations of dip and thicknesses, it will naturally produce horizons that fit all input data points, that preserve the
integrity of the stratigraphic column, that yields consistent thicknesses and fault displacements.

Proportional layering
Using the Volume Based Modeling method to create a new proportional/conformable horizon means simply
extracting an additional iso-surface of the implicit function. Because the iso-stratigraphic property is designed to
be discontinuous across faults, it automatically calculates the correct fault throw amount needed. This means that
complex faulting is no longer a problem when attempting to calculate consistent thicknesses across them.
Moreover, thickness discrepancies and/or variations that are commonly seen across faults, often as a result of
calculating isochores from well-tops, can now be avoided as the calculation of an isochore map is no longer a
mandatory requirement. Instead calculation of consistent stratigraphic reservoir thickness this can easily be carried
out by adding a single well top (or a 2D seismic interpretation) to define the new proportional layer.
Figure 5. Simple scenario (A) and scenario complicated by faults (B)
A B

A. Simple scenario: The intermediate horizons can be easily extracted from the iso-stratigraphy property
generated using only two input horizons, no isochore/isopach workflow required.
B. Scenario complicated by faults where isochore computation is not straight forward: The intermediate
horizons can easily be extracted from the iso-stratigraphy using the same workflow as in simple scenario.
No extra input/work required.
Fast model update

The Two Steps modeling workflow includes:
• Fast generation and update of coarse scale model, allowing interpretation issues to be fixed.
• Refinement and zone creation, once satisfactory quality has been achieved
Thin layer handling

The VBM method now allows building thinly layered reservoir models and incorporating all geological zones
identified form well data into the stair step grid.

QC Manager
A new tool allowing QC of the quality of the fault interpretation prior to the construction of the horizon surfaces
has been introduced.
Structural Framework QC Manager is a tool designed to identify algorithmic and intersection failures in the Fault
framework model of the Structural framework. The new tool presents all of the identified error information that is
associated with each problem (reported by Fault Validation and/or Horizon Modeling) and presents them in a
user friendly spreadsheet format.
The Fault validation process can be found by using the right mouse button menu on the Faults folder of Structural
framework in model tree (or directly on a fault in the 3D window).
Figure 6. Access to the validate fault model process

The fault validation can be performed at any point during the fault modeling. For example, when the fault network
is very complex and represented by more than 50 or few hundred faults, then validator can be run several times,
during or after major faults modeling and after adding all minor faults.
Figure 7. QC Manager Window

Structural and Fault Analysis
2013.1
The 2013 release brings new features and improvements in the following areas of structural and fault analysis:
• Structural framework fault tools
• Pillar faults tools
• Seismic horizon interpretation, point and surface data
There is now quick access to all operations on faults (structural framework and pillar grid), seismic horizon
interpretations, surfaces and points from the right-hand mouse button. This functionality is available from within
3D windows and from the data objects in the Input and Models panes.

Fault plane diagram view
This new functionality is available through the right-hand mouse button on an individual structural framework
fault, pillar grid fault or stairstep fault (in the Models pane or the 3D window). When selected, a new 3D window
opens and the fault of interest is displayed in a fixed orientation normal to the general fault strike. All calculated
fault properties can be displayed in this view.
Structural framework fault tools

Asperity identifier
The operation highlights areas of rapid 3D geometric
variation on structural framework faults. The fault
asperities and asperity corridors properties highlight
potential relay zones on continuous mapped faults.

Edge detection
The edge detection operation has been improved
on structural framework faults. The edge detection
property provides fault interpretation quality checks
and indicates potential relay zones and fault
intersections.
Pillar fault tools

Grid permeability modification
The grid permeability property can be modified to model

the impact of distributed deformation or fractures around
larger-scale modeled faults. A more accurate
representation of the zone of deformation has now been
included.
Fault permeability prediction: user-defined relationship

A flexible user-defined fault permeability property is provided for the calculation of fault transmissibilities,
transmissibility multipliers and potential flow indicators. The fault permeability is specified in relation to two
predefined fault properties. The relationship between the resulting fault permeability and the two input fault
properties is defined via a standard Petrel surface.
Seismic horizon interpretation, point and surface data

Distance to failure on points
A Mohr–Coulomb failure criterion can now be applied to assess the potential for failure on points based on an
applied far-field stress. The operation returns a distance to failure property.
Isochore gradient
The existing isochore operation on horizon interpretations and

surfaces has been extended to also calculate the isochore
gradient. This property can provide a clearer indication of
inconsistencies in the data.

Geophysics
2013.5
Volume attribute: Phase shift (full trace)
A new volume attribute with enhanced method (Full trace calculation) is introduced. The calculation is done in the
frequency domain and provides enhanced support for low frequencies, typical in broadband data.
2013.4
Seismic Smart Folders
You can now dynamically display the seismic data listing in your project based on a range of attributes, including

vintage, domain, acquisition date, and line geometry. The new Seismic Smart Folders in the Favorites pane allows
for flexible organization and quicker access to your seismic data inventory, benefitting 2D seismic data listings in
particular.
In the example below, the Input pane on the left shows a typical tree structure as the project is populated with an
increasing number of seismic datasets. Data is typically received and loaded grouped by surveys and vintages. The
Favorites pane on the right shows the same inventory of seismic datasets sorted in a user-preferred hierarchy. This
tree structure is dynamic and responds to your selected preference of attributes and their sorting order. A full
listing and explanation of the available attributes is described in the online help. In the example below, the same
2D lines are now listed by line geometry names, with available vintages grouped below them.

Figure 8. Favorites pane showing an instance of the Seismic Smart Folders hierarchical tree

Geobody Interpretation
In a probe's Opacity tab, you now have zoom capability. Using the new 10% opacity mode, you can focus the
vertical scale to the 0-10% opacity zone for detailed work.
Figure 9. The new 10% opacity mode allows for detailed work within the 0-10% opacity zone

Seismic compression
Compression information
In the Statistics tab of the Settings dialog for compressed seismic cubes, you can now find information of the
applied compression quality parameter (SQNR) and the ratio of file size compression achieved.

Option for better fidelity
A toggle option is available to output seismic compressed with maximum fidelity (instead of the requested
compression quality) for bricks at the survey edges and bricks containing dead traces. Use this option to address
the cosmetic artefacts in volume attributes generated from compressed seismic. See the toggle option tooltip for
details.

Licensing
Reconnect seismic and Seismic compression no longer require a Seismic Interpretation license module to run.
2013.3
Surface attributes: resample option
There is now an option to resample the input seismic trace prior to surface attribute computation to mitigate
artifacts arising from the discrete nature of seismic, particularly in areas of dipping seismic reflectors.
A new tab, “Resample parameters”, is available for the following five attributes: RMS, Average Magnitude, Mean
Amplitude, Positive to Negative ratio, and Average energy.
Figure 10. Surface attribute process dialog

The default is not to perform trace resampling.
As an example, setting input seismic to be resampled at “4x” will create 4 times the number of original sample
points within the specified time window of interest, prior to computing the surface attribute. These resampled data
points are regularly distributed within the time window.
This resample option will be extended to the full range of attributes in future releases.

Interval velocity maps
In the 2013.2 release, you could create Interval velocity maps for the existing velocity model. The 2013.3 release
presents an additional option to create Interval velocity maps while you are running the Velocity Modeling process.
These output maps can be used for QC purposes.
The Interval velocity maps option now is available from the Velocity Modeling process.
Figure 11. The velocity modeling process dialog

This option creates an interval velocity map for each zone in the velocity model. An Output Interval velocity map for
each layer is stored under the output velocity model, under the Horizons in the Models tab.

Figure 12. Output internal velocity maps

If you have run the velocity map once on a particular model and later rebuilt the model (select Apply in the Make
velocity model dialog), the maps are rebuilt automatically.
Keyboard shortcut key - Shift + E

The shortcut key Shift + E can be used to access the “Select a single point” icon.
A new icon called “Select a single point” was presented in the 2013.1 release, but no shortcut key was assigned to
it. In this release, it can be accessed via the shortcut key Shift + E.
Seismic volume rendering

Ray casting technology is now used for volume rendering of seismic cubes. This enables rendering techniques like
depth effect for crisper and more continuous amplitude visualization.
2013.2
Multi-Z Interpretation
You can now create a Multi-Z interpretation object, which can handle Multi-Z interpretation values. The Multi-Z
interpretation workflow is part of the Seismic interpretation process. Interpretation is done on 2D lines, inlines,
crosslines, random lines in 3D window or a traditional 2D interpretation window. Multi-Z interpretation can be
created and stored in an Interpretation folder in the Input tab.

Figure 13. Multi-Z interpretation in the Interpretation window (Data courtesy of WesternGeco Multi Client services)

Figure 14. Multi-Z interpretation in 3D window (Data courtesy of WesternGeco Multi Client services)
Normals are represented by vectors on each Multi-Z interpretation point showing the direction of an object
(inwards, outwards). “QC normals” option is the part of the data QC and can be used for checking the normals
consistency. The following example represents a top salt interpretation, where the normals are inconsistent in the
central portion of the points set. Red points show that a Multi-Z interpretation has the normals downwards when
they should be upwards.

Figure 15. Normals QC (Data courtesy of WesternGeco Multi Client services)
The Multi-Z interpretation is a manual process. However, a user can snap a secondary Multi-Z interpretation to the
primary one while interpreting. The ability to snap helps to avoid vertical mismatches at the crossing point of the
same Multi-Z interpretation interpreted, e.g., on INL and XLN.
The following example represents the same Multi-Z interpretation that is interpreted on INL and XLN. The higher

intersection point is not snapped and creates a vertical mismatch at the crossing point. The lower crossing point is
snapped and has one value.

Figure 16. Snapping (Data courtesy of WesternGeco Multi Client services)

Apart from the commonly used arithmetic-, replace-, eliminate-, etc., operations, Multi-Z interpretation has
additional operations in the Seismic operations folder. These operations allow being able to assign normals or
create new Multi-Z interpretation by using other type of data.

Figure 17. Seismic operations
Final Multi-Z interpretation can be used to create a triangle mesh. Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Figure 18. Multi-Z interpretations (Data courtesy of WesternGeco Multi Client services)

Triangle Mesh
Triangle mesh represents a triangulated surface which can be created from a Multi-Z interpretation. You can now
create the triangle mesh from the Multi-Z interpretation object. The option is available through the Settings/
Meshing tab on the Multi-Z interpretation.

Figure 19. Meshing tab
There are three modes available, depending on the resolution of a Multi-Z interpretation. A new triangle mesh will
be created and stored in a Triangle Meshes folder in the Input tab.

Figure 20. Triangle Meshes folder in the Input tree
A “multi z values” triangle mesh created from “multi z values” interpretation, as well as a “single z value” triangle
mesh can be integrated within a Structural Framework using the WesternGeco Seismic Velocity Modeling plug-in.
This enables to build velocity models to be consumed by imaging workflows.
Figure 21. Triangle meshes (Data courtesy of WesternGeco Multi Client services)

Interval velocity maps
You can now create Interval velocity maps for the existing velocity model. These output maps can be used for the
QC purpose.
The Interval velocity maps option now is available from the Settings for an output Velocity model, Operations
tab/Velocity conversion folder/Interval velocity maps.

Figure 22. Operations tab for the velocity model

This option creates an interval velocity map for each zone in the velocity model. An Output Interval velocity map for
each layer is stored under the output velocity model, under the Horizons in the Models tab.

Figure 23. Output Interval velocity maps

If you have run the velocity map on a particular model once and later rebuilt the model (select Apply in the Make
velocity model dialog), the maps are rebuilt automatically.
Seismic Reconstruction – 2D
Unconformity handling
The seismic reconstruction 2D process now allows you to define the geological type of horizons in order to handle
unconformities such as erosional surfaces, resulting in chrono-stratigraphic displays of seismic sections.
The geo-mechanically based seismic reconstruction 2D process now allows you to define the geological type of the
input horizons/surfaces through the stratigraphy column in the Reconstruction 2D process or in the settings of an
existing reconstruction model. The types of horizons/surfaces that can be defined are Conformable, Erosional,
Discontinuous and Base.

Figure 24. New options to define the stratigraphy type of the input horizons in the Settings
for the reconstruction model or in the Reconstruction 2D process

With the option to flatten on one or more horizons of different types, you can now generate chrono-stratigraphic
displays of seismic sections.
Figure 25. Seismic reconstruction of complex geology leading to chrono-stratigraphic sections

(data courtesy of Geoscience Australia)

Seismic Compression
Compressed ZGY Cube
A process launched from the context menu of a ZGY volume will allow you to compress the volume. The
compression is a “lossy” method, and will be governed by the compression-noise level that you allow the operation
to introduce.
The compression process for ZGY cubes only requires one parameter as an input: the Signal to Quantization Noise
Ratio (SQNR, with dB unit). The “Noise” mentioned here is not the one contained within the original seismic
volume (cf. acquisition/processing noise), but the one that would be introduced by the compression algorithm itself.
A high SQNR implies low compression factor, and vice versa. A relationship between the latter and the
compression factor can be estimated from within the dialog of the process (see the following information).
The function (cf. compression factor = f(SQNR)) is unique per seismic cube and is sensitive to the nature of the
seismic signal (e.g., whether you have a large amount of heterogeneity in the signal/amplitude/wavelet, or
whether the reflectors are homogeneous. Seismic volumes with high information content will compress less well
than volumes with lower information content, given the same SQNR setting.
You then need to adjust the compression process based on the workflow (e.g., Structural Interpretation vs.
Quantitative Interpretation).

See the online help for details and guidelines on usage.
Figure 26. Compression of ZGY volume. Process Dialog

SEG-Y 2D Toolbox
Scaled Shot points: The Toolbox is now able to load SEG-Y files containing scaled shot point numbers. The
integer part of the shot point values are typically located in trace header byte locations 197-201 with corresponding
multiplication scalars values located in bytes 201-202. Upon reading SEG-Y files, the integer and the scalar values
are multiplied to produce decimal shot point numbers. Such files can also be loaded via File > Import SEG-Y
Seismic data (*.*).
Seismic Well Tie

Sonic Calibration > Polynomial fit
This option is recommended when the checkshot used for the calibration of the sonic is quite nosy. Polynomial fit
correction smooth the differences between checkshot (time-depth) pairs and the integrated sonic log, estimating a
polynomial drift curve to honors the knee points without fitting the noise.
This new option is located under the Options tab in the Sonic Calibration and Integrated seismic well tie studies.

Polynomial fit correction (using a least squares approach) smooth the differences between checkshot (time-depth)
pairs and the integrated sonic log, estimating a polynomial drift curve to honors the knee points without fitting the

noise.
By default, the system suggests an order based on the number of knee points divided by 2. However, you can
manually set it (1≤order≤20).
Compared with the existing options (Linear and Cubic), Polynomial fit creates a smoother correction curve, so the
Calibrated Sonic and the output Interval Velocity present a “gentle“ transition.

Synthetic Generation > Time varying wavelet

This tool is useful to address the phenomenon of decrease of frequencies and amplitudes at deeper seismic data.
Time varying wavelet may be useful to apply existing wavelets over different time intervals to generate a synthetic.
The character of seismic data varies as time increases, with deeper data generally having lower frequencies and
amplitudes. It may be useful to use different wavelets over different time ranges (gates) to generate a synthetic.
With time varying wavelet, the interpreter can use various existing wavelets and taper types to create a time
varying wavelet.
New functionality can be accessed in the Input tab of the Synthetic Generation and Integrated Seismic Well Tie
studies:

When the Time varying wavelet radio button is selected, the correspondent icon is active and you can launch the
Time varying wavelet settings.
In the time varying wavelet dialog, you have to specify time ranges or time intervals over which a series of

wavelets can be used for the generation of the synthetic. You can create up to 10 different time ranges
represented in a dynamic table.

Each time interval is defined by:
1. A wavelet, dropped from the input pane by the blue arrow. Once the wavelet is dropped, the UI informs
you the length of it.
The wavelet used can be Deterministic, Statistical or Analytical.
If the wavelet is modified, the system will present a warning image indicating that “the selected wavelet
was modified”:
2. Start/end times (in ms) for each individual gate (time ranges) over which individual wavelets will generate
the synthetic. Minimum time interval is 4 ms and gaps between time ranges are not allowed.
3. Taper: Taper types supported are:
a. Trapezoidal
b. Cosine
c. Cosine squared
d. Hanning
e. Hamming
f. Blackmann
g. Papoulis

h. Minimum energy moment
i. Minimum amplitude moment
4. Taper Length: is a time in milliseconds over which the gate is gradually smoothed to its edges This
parameter shall be an integer value with maximum limits of the smallest time range. This value should be
multiple of wavelet sample rate. If you insert a value that is not valid, it will update automatically to the
greater valid value.
When applying the taper, it will be centralized by the transition between two time ranges with half of the
Taper length at each side.
The Taper length of the first and the last intervals will be cropped by the start and end times of the RC log
respectively.

The synthetic generation is performed for each wavelet with the entire RC log. This will result in n different
synthetic seismograms (where n is the number of time ranges). These synthetic seismograms are cut to respect the
range you specify, plus the half taper length in each boundary.
All the wavelets are re-sampled to the same sample rate of the one with the lowest sample interval.
Synthetic seismogram is generated using the highest resolution.

Wavelet Toolbox > Wavelet Average
Wavelet average is a new algorithm under multi-wavelet methods of the wavelet toolbox. It calculates an average
wavelet from a set of wavelets that you selected. You can define the length and sample interval of the average
wavelet and you also have an additional option to invert the polarity of the resultant wavelet.
Wavelet average is a new option on the wavelet toolbox. In the parameters area, you are requested to select, as
input, a list of wavelets to be used for the average calculation.
You can use Analytical, Deterministic, and Statistical wavelets for the average calculation.
The input wavelets can have any sample interval between 1-16 ms and lengths up to 8 seconds.
The wavelet average method will automatically compute and plot the result just after the first wavelet is selected
as input. It is displayed in dark blue. When all inputs are removed, no wavelet is plotted.

An option to invert the polarity of the average wavelet is also included.
Log Conditioning Behavioral Change

Draw
Usability improvements to present depth intervals and log values during the editions. Additional parameters have
been added to the Log Conditioning > draw user interface to show the start and end depth interval and the value
under modification during the manipulations.
In order to allow you full control of the log manipulations, additional parameters have been added to the interface
of Log Conditioning > draw to show the start and end depth interval and the value under modification during the
manipulations.

2013.1
SEG-Y 2D Toolbox
The SEG-Y 2D Toolbox is intended to be used with 2D SEG-Y files that cannot be loaded correctly using Petrel’s
standard SEG-Y import tools.
A major focus is in handling of 2D navigation data. The SEG-Y 2D Toolbox will work with navigation data from
multiple sources, including:

• A variety of external text files formatting having either fixed number of characters per field, or files where
fields are delimited by a specific character, for example Tab, comma, or semi-colon in Excel’s
comma-separated (CSV) save formats, and UKOOA standard formats including longitude and latitude
coordinates
• Loading of seismic vintages onto 2D seismic lines that already exist in the Petrel project
• Offset-VSP seismic, where you specify a surface location, (for example a well surface location), the
azimuth, and a fixed distance between traces
• Linking to coordinates of a polyline set
Additionally there are SEG-Y override functionalities which allow handling of files containing:
• Missing or erratic trace information (for example navigation, cdp/sp relationships, zero value, or duplicate
nav/sp/cdp)
• Trace-varying attributes, for example trace-length, time-of-first-sample (TOFS), number of samples per
trace, coordinate scale factor
• High-resolution seismic (typically site surveys) with sample rates in microseconds
•

Traces flagged as “dead”
• SEG-Y Rev1 formatting with extended EBCDIC headers
The SEG-Y Toolbox workflow comprises two phases:
1. Editing of the original SEG-Y header and sample values. The input SEG-Y file will not be modified at all
and will remain in its original form. Instead a new processed SEG-Y file will be created.
2. Subsequent loading of the new processed SEG-Y file into Petrel.
The following processing is applied to the new copies of the input SEG-Y files:
• Move trace header values from non-standard locations to the places where Petrel expects to find these
values
• Convert IBM 32-bit float values to IEEE 32-bit float
• Merge-in trace coordinates from external source as requested
• Apply header and value overrides as specified
• Pad with empty traces or cut traces as required to make a new seismic vintage geometrically consistent
with an existing line
• Pad with empty samples when loading trace-varying time-of-first-sample (TOFS)
• Pad with empty samples when loading variable trace length
• Convert coordinates to store with a scalar factor of -100
• Convert shotpoints to store with a scalar factor maximum of -1000
• Clip extended EBCDIC headers (the toolbox does not yet write extended EBCDIC headers)
• Convert coordinates and units, if different, to the project CRS and units settings
• Record original CRS information and toolbox processing time-stamp into the last three lines of the EBCDIC
header
This release of the toolbox is not intended to replace the existing standard Petrel SEG-Y loaders. SEG-Y files with
correct header information should continue to be loaded via either File > Import > SEG-Y seismic data or File >
Import > SEG-Y seismic data with preset parameters.

Figure 27. SEG-Y 2D Toolbox is launched from Tools > SEG-Y 2D Toolbox

Figure 28. Graphical display of header values and the interactive Navigation file handling dialog
Figure 29. SEG-Y override functionalities

Horizon Autotracking
Simplified GUI
The GUI has now been simplified into two tabs, Parameters and Constraints, while adding two new parameters.
Figure 30. The simplified autotrack GUI

Augmented Tracking Algorithm
Historically the auto-tracker has been amplitude driven, where seeds with larger amplitudes are ranked high.
A new Priority parameter was introduced to regulate the priority queue of seed points for the expansion process.
It now offers three algorithm options:
• Amplitude – Prioritizes picks of higher extrema for early expansion, leaving lower extrema picks to
expand later.
• Proximity – Prioritizes picks with shortest expansion paths over picks with longer expansion paths.
• Amplitude&Proximity – Corresponds to a priority combining the first two methods.
The default value is Amplitude&Proximity, which offers both high quality growth and influence of close
proximity to seed points.
Figure 31. The Autotracker: Distance attribute maps showing comparative

tracking results of the three seed priority methods

Dip Variation
The Crossline and Inline trace-windows have been enhanced to provide live update for each pick made in the 3D
window or Interpretation window. The live diagram displays five traces along the section centred on the seed trace
picked. This allows for easier and more precise settings of the dip when tracking slopes.
Figure 32. The trace-window dynamically updates to indicate the reflector dipping along the inline
Wavelet Correlation

The autotracker sometimes suffered from progressive seed tracking, as tracking progressed to larger distances
away from the starting seeds. A new Correlate with parameter was introduced and offers two options:
• Seed trace – Calculates the cross-correlation value with waveform from seed trace
• Adjacent parent – Calculates the cross-correlation value with waveform from adjacent parent trace
Cross correlation with Seed trace has a quality range from 0 to 1.0, while cross correlation with Adjacent parent
trace has, as previously, a smaller range from 0.75 to 1.0. In the following case, the waveform of adjacent parent
trace would have drifted from the original seed trace with increasing distance.
Figure 33. The new simplified autotrack GUI

The correlation window has been enhanced to update dynamically as you click on a seed in the 3D or Interpretation
windows. The picked seed position (Inline, Crossline, Z) is indicated, while the live diagram displays the window
lengths used and the correlation results of the picked trace with its adjacent four traces in the following order: t(j-1),
t(j+1),t,t(i-1),ti(i+1).
3D Snap
A new 3D Snap button was introduced. Previously it was necessary to set several parameters to perform 3D
interpretation snapping. Now you can set the Max. vertical delta search window parameter, the desired
seedpoint collection under Seed/Locking, and click 3D Snap to snap the horizon interpretation.

With this new functionality, the None parameter for “Quality expansion” and the “Adjust seed points” options are
no longer necessary and have been retired.
Seeds/Locking
The Seeds and Locking mechanisms have been combined into a common GUI, and restrictions for the data-types
and tracking mechanisms supported by each mode was clarified.
Figure 34. Combined Seeds/Locking GUI
For more information on smaller updates and details on tracking algorithms, refer to the dialog tooltips and online
help.

Meta Data
Meta Data Tab
Meta data can be used for multiple purposes, such as filtering, searching, and grouping. It can be populated and
consumed by other processes, such as Pre-stack seismic interpretation (for example partial stack generation),
inversion, etc. You can specify acquisition date, wave type, stack details, and processing details used during
seismic data processing.
Meta data works for both 3D and 2D seismic data. You can manually specify parameters applied for seismic data
during the processing.
Figure 35. Meta data tab

Survey Manager
Processing details specified in the Meta data tab can be displayed in the Survey manager.
Figure 36. Column selection to display in Survey manager

Figure 37. Processing details in Survey manager

Two new filters have been added to the Survey manager: Filter on domain and Filter on type.
Figure 38. Two new filters in Survey manager
Composite Lines

Automatic Creation for Non-Intersecting Sections
The composing process now allows you to jump from a given section to any other sections in the Petrel project
without the ladders needing to intersect. The shortest path will be computed and a “jump” is automatically made.
Figure 39. Automatic creation of a joined Composite Line for lines that don’t intersect
User-Defined Creation for Non-Intersecting Sections

In case the proposed “shortest path” is not the most suitable, you can now connect two intersections together by
manually drawing the “jumper.” Care has been taken to make the workflow as seamless as possible using the
least amount of mouse interaction in the most logical fashion.

Seismic Calculator
Access to Index (i,j,k)
The calculator now gives you access to all seismic samples in a 3D neighborhood. Previously you could only access
seismic samples within current trace, using a 1D offset, expressed by the variable K. Offsets can now be expressed
fully in 3D using i,j,k-indexes. For example, you can now write my_seismic(-2,-2,+3) in order to read a sample with
a small (hard-coded) three-dimensional offset.
Chained Expressions
Chained expressions introduce great improvements to the calculator, especially in combination with the spatial
operator. You can now use calculator output as input to a new expression. This opens possibilities to quickly
calculate self-composed attributes like spatial smoothing, curvature, and many more.
Multi-Threaded
The seismic calculator has been parallelized and now supports multi-threading for increased performance. Multi-
core workstations can experience a speed-up by a factor of 10 or more in certain scenarios.

Figure 40. Chained expressions in the Seismic calculator
Inspector Updates
Increased Horizon and Fault-Interpretation Support
You can now manipulate style settings for seismic horizon interpretation objects in the Inspector. Horizon
tracking parameters can also be set directly by the Inspector. The same features are supported for fault
interpretation objects.

Geobody Interpretation
New Ray Casting Engine
The Geobody volume interpretation in Petrel now has a rendering engine. Geobody probes and extracted Geobodies
are now rendered by Open Inventor (OIV) using a ray casting-based approach. This technology upgrade is an
important step, bringing the 2D and 3D window into a unified OIV stage. This is a step change in volume
interpretation for Petrel, and opens huge potential in terms of visualization quality and new and enhanced
functionality.
Figure 41. Geobody probe (left) and an extracted Geobody (right)

Improved Visual Quality
The visual quality has never been better for probes and geobodies. The OIV technology delivers sharp and refined
probes and bodies, with a depth perspective that is highly improved over that seen in previous versions. There is
now advanced shading and use of lighting-enable interpreters to view seismic data in new ways.
Figure 42. Extracted geobody Petrel 2011 (left), and extracted geobody Petrel 2012.5 (right)

Figure 43. Geobody probes displayed with Probeblaze (new display style introduced in Petrel 2012.5)
Full Resolution Extraction

The geobodies extraction process can now be performed in full resolution. This means that the segmentation will
be done in the same resolution as your seismic and not limited to the resolution in the active window. The
extraction will use all the samples from the seismic, even though your displayed probe has not reached full
resolution due to graphic-card limitations. This can be achieved by performing the extraction on the CPU rather
than the GPU. The CPU does not have the same memory limitation as seen on the GPU, but it will use more time to
complete the extraction. Extracting in full resolution prevents potential “blocky” results when extracting geobodies
from large probes or seismic volumes.

Extract beyond Probe Boundaries
The extraction process is no longer limited to the displayed probe. By switching on Extract beyond probe
boundaries, you can perform a segmentation of the full (multi-volume), based on the opacity and blending
settings. This is a great way to expand an extraction to pick from the entire seismic cube if the initial probe
extraction gave good and expected results. It is also possible to extract from all displayed probes in the scene at
once.
Leveraging the GPU and Scales

The latest Geobody version is leveraging all the GPU cores available on high-end graphic cards. Rendering
geobodies is a resource-demanding process. However, you can now be sure to get the best experience possible out
of available hardware. We recommend that geobody interpretation be run on high-end desktop workstations with a
NVIDIA Quadro® K-series graphic card or better.
Feature Description Notes Misc

Rendering engine Geobody Interpretation now uses New visual quality. Ray New hardware
Open Inventor as rendering engine casting technology. requirements. See

Improved GPU below & Release notes
utilization. for details
Full resolution Extract Geobodies in the same Uses mainly CPU to
extraction resolution as input seismic. perform extraction.
Removes “blocky”
results as seen
previously due to GPU
memory limitations
Unlimited Previously there was a limit of 256 Excessive amount of
Geoblobs Geoblobs within a Geobody. This Geoblobs can affect
limitation is now removed performance
Extract all visible Extract from all visible probes in Uses threshold and
probes the scene opacity function from
the probe where the
extraction was triggered
Disregard probe Extract based on Requires full resolution
boundaries Extract based on extraction
opacity/bleeding from the
displayed probe but uses full
(multi-) volume seismic
Memory settings This due to one unified rendering Seismic texture cache
shared with engine in the 2D and 3D canvas size is set in System
seismic texture Settings, Seismic tab
cache size
Convert to seismic Converts a geobody probe into a
(extract value) seismic volume and brings value
from the seismic directly

Required Hardware – Graphics Card
Please notice that the hardware requirements have been adjusted for Petrel 2012.5 and newer releases.
Recommended NVIDIA Quadro K5000-series and beyond (Kepler) Desktop edition
Medium NVIDIA Quadro K4000 or NVIDIA Quadro 6000-series (Fermi) Desktop edition
Minimum NVIDIA Quadro 4000-series (Fermi) Desktop edition
For more details, see the Petrel 2013 Installation Guide.
Optimal Microsoft Windows Environment

Starting with Petrel 2012.5, both the Windows Aero and Classic themes are supported. For graphical intensive
operations, like Geobody Interpretation workflows, it is advised to activate a Windows Aero theme.
NVIDIA Driver setting

For optimal performance working with geobodies it is recommended to use the specific NVIDIA Driver setting “3D
App Visual Simulation”. This setting should be set in the NVIDIA Control Panel (Launched by right clicking in your
Window desktop).

Light Tool
The Light Tool is an easy-to-use pop-up dialog that is available in 2D and 3D windows and in immersion mode. It
gives you capability to add and manipulate light sources to enhance geological features. These light sources can
have different colors and can be moved both by varying the elevation as well as the azimuth.
Illumination techniques empower the interpreter to focus on particular structural elements by utilizing different
light sources at different elevations and azimuths. Depending on the information to be obtained or filtered, the
structurally oriented directional light sources are capable of clearly enhancing or suppressing information extracted
from the seismic subsurface response or gridded topographical expressions.
Typical Usage
The Light Tool can be used in several different scenarios. Here are some examples of data where adding colored
light enhances visualization:
• Seismic amplitudes (intersections)

• Volume attributes applied on seismic

• Gridded surfaces (topographical lighting)
• Geobodies
Figure 44. Lighting applied to a regular 3D seismic amplitude cube. Two lights have been added,
green to highlight the layers and red from the side to enhance the vertical faults.

Figure 45. Light Tool applied on a geobody probe

Light Tool Features
Feature Description Misc
Interactive dialog Add light sources, manipulate color, Dialog can be collapsed/expanded
azimuth and elevation
Toggle bump mapping and Easy access to essential buttons to
headlight options get the most out of the light tool
Supported by multiple Seismic intersections, gridded

objects surfaces, geobody probes
General Depth Conversion

When running General depth conversion in the Volume Attributes process, it is now possible to define an
output range. A higher resolution output dataset can be achieved by specifying a desired Top depth/time and
Sample interval combination. Bottom depth/time is calculated such that the number of samples in the output
dataset is the same as the input dataset.

Volume Attributes
3D Edge Enhancement
3D Edge Enhancement is a volume attribute filter which performs an edge enhancement within seismic data. This
attribute has proven useful in enhancing edge detection for any surface, including faults and discontinuities.
Although similar to Edge Evidence (Boe, 2012), 3D Edge Enhancement applies its filter in planes in a three
dimensional environment instead of in lines. In addition, the plane is then applied in rotations (restricted by you) to
filter in all directions and angles.
3D Edge Enhancement improves edge detection by comparing and summing the values of the surrounding pixels
along a plane on the edge-detected cube. After this, the mean of the values is displayed on the output cube. This
process is repeated for each pixel, for all directions and angles for the planes. The resulting cube would enhance
the larger and planar features, while smaller features such as noise are smoothed away.
The parameters set for this attribute include the manipulation of the horizontal and vertical radii, in addition to the
strike and dip ranges and the maximum and minimum values. The radii are used to calculate the total size of the
filter through: (2 × 𝑟) + 1
The larger the radii selected, the more compute time is necessary. However, by limiting the dip and strike ranges, it
will take less time to compute. Strike is computed from the Inline direction. The computation of dip and strike
angles assumes an isotropic sampling rate where the intervals between pixels are the same in all three
dimensions. The strike and dip angels also limit the rotation of the plane.

Figure 46. Parameter settings for 3D Edge Enhancement

Figure 47. Time-slice, west, with edge enhanced cube (left) and edge cube (right)
Figure 48. Effects of minimum and maximum strike. Left: 158, 180. Middle: 103,134. Right: 62, 87

Figure 49: Effects of the horizontal and vertical radius on time slice, west. Left: 6, 2. Right: 27, 12

Grey-Level Co-Occurrence Matrix (GLCM)
GLCM is a method first introduced by Haralick et al. (1973) and later applied to seismic data by Reed & Hussong
(1989) and Gao (2003). This method amplifies geological features such as mass transport complexes, channels, and
dewatering structures that have lateral patterns that exceed mere edges. GLCM is a matrix transformation of the
frequency, in which different combinations of voxel amplitude values occur.
Four parameters need to be defined after constructing GLCM: the quantization level of the image (levels), the size
of the moving window (lateral and vertical), the direction and distance of voxel pairs (split), and the statistics used
as a texture attribute (algorithm).
Figure 50. Parameter settings for the GLCM attribute
The parameters are divided into five main categories that directly relate to the required factors mentioned above.
The Algorithm parameter selects the desired algorithm to calculate the statistic, based on the co-occurrence
matrix. The upper- and lower-amplitude limits should be defined by you, as these differ for different datasets. The
Levels parameter controls the levels of quantization in the definition of the co-occurrence matrix. The actual
numbers of levels is set at 2𝑛 where n is the selected parameter in the 8-bit grey scale. For the direction and
distance of voxel pairs, the Split parameter is used. It is dependent on the size of the moving window, which is
controlled by the Lateral-&-vertical window parameter, where the half-window size is defined to calculate the
co-occurrence matrix.

Figure 51. Original seismic, where area of interest shows edges of the salt layer

Figure 52. GLCM output cube, where stratigraphy is clearly highlighted

Log Conditioning
Petrel 2013 introduces two new functionalities in the Log Conditioning module:
• Co-blocking: The algorithm uses as a reference a log and blocks the others taking in consideration the
same depth position for the blocks.
• Draw: Replaces log values with values interpolated between start and end depth selected.
Seismic Well Tie

Track Manager

Track Manager gives you the ability to select tracks to display from the respective processes (Sonic
Calibration/Synthetic Generation/Integrated Synthetic). It is a complementary option to the Well Section Window
Template > Settings.
Track Manager can be accessed in Seismic Well Tie Process > Track Manager.

The tracks can be hidden/posted by selecting the toggle button; the positioning of each track is still controlled by
Well Section Window Template.
Seismic Track
Seismic track allows the visualization of seismic sections in the Well Section Window. Use this track to display
Inline, Xline or 2D seismic sections available in the project. In this environment, the visualization of seismic and its
attributes can be fully adapted to your preferences (position, number of traces displayed and other settings).
Seismic track can be added by going to Well Section Template > Settings > Add Track > Seismic (SWT).

Seismic track also gives you the ability to display the well trajectory, 2 logs and a synthetic seismogram.
Copy from Template

Once starting a new study, you now have the option to use other Well Section Window Templates and copy them
to use with the current study.

Simultaneous Display of Time and Depth Tracks in Default Templates
With this version, the default templates used in the Seismic Well Tie include the display of both Time and Depth
tracks in the Well Section Window.

Synthetic Generation Process:
Interval Velocity Manipulation
You now have the option of Editing/Manipulating the interval velocity and, on-the-fly, check the impact on results.
The interval velocity values can be graphically edited in the Well Section Window. You can manipulate and delete
interval velocity sections. Additionally, the velocity manipulation can be restricted to vertical or horizontal
directions.

QC Interval Velocities
The Synthetic Generation process now adds 2 new tracks for QC of the edits on the synthetic: QC Interval Velocity
track (displaying Input Interval Velocity versus edited/output Interval Velocity) and Drift track, displaying the time
shift applied to the synthetic to tie to the seismic. Those tracks will guide you along synthetic generation process
and velocity editing.

Any log as input for RC calculation
To calculate Reflectivity Coefficient (RC), you now can use “any log” as a “pseudo acoustic impedance” log to RC
calculation. This option will extend the possibility of RC calculation when a limited set of logs is available in the
project.

Correlation Tab
The Correlation Tab has been augmented to include the following:
• Trace Options: You can now select where data correlation will start. The options provided are: Match
Seismic traces (to that used in the seismic track), User-defined traces or Single trace (average seismic
trace defined by a radius around the well).
• Phase Mistie: This new option calculates not only the level of correlation considering time shifts in the
synthetic, but also in the wavelet’s phase.
The wavelet is rotated 360 degrees (with a 1 degree step) and at each rotation, the correlation between
synthetic and seismic is calculated. Final output of this process is the optimum phase rotation to be applied
to the wavelet when the maximum correlation between synthetic and seismic was found.

Reflection Coefficient Modeling
The Reflection Coefficient (RC) Modeling tool is used for studying tuning effects. It can help to improve
understanding of the correlation between depth logs and seismic data.
RC Modeling can be accessed during the Synthetic Generation Process and allows the user to select/unselect RC
areas or individual coefficients and see the results as a partial synthetic.
Each component (positive and negative) is the result of the convolution of the active wavelet with a reflection
coefficient. The partial synthetic trace is the sum of the positive and negative components.
This process permits you to better understand how those coefficients impact the synthetic response, as well as
giving the ability to filter problematic areas from your synthetic.

Correlation Track
Correlation Track has been improved and now displays time lag labels in the Well Section Window. This tool helps
you find the optimum time shifts in the synthetic to get the maximum correlation with the seismic. Despite being

displayed in a track, the index of this function is not TWT, but Time Lag.
Wavelet Toolbox
• Wavelet Toolbox – Isis Time/Isis Frequency methods for Determinist wavelets

Petrel 2013 adds 2 new algorithms to extract Deterministic wavelets using Reflectivity and seismic data:
ISIS Time and Frequency. The selection of the method depends on the degree of correlation between the
seismic data and the reflectivity log.

• Wavelet Toolbox – Invert Polarity
Allows you to invert polarity for Analytical wavelets. This option is shown under Parameters for Analytical
wavelets in the Wavelet Toolbox.

Wavelet Toolbox – Visual control of Extraction window in WSW
Extraction windows in the reflectivity and the seismic for deterministic wavelets can now be visually
adjusted directly in Well Section Window by using the slide bars. This option gives more flexibility and
control to get the correct time frame to extract wavelets.

Integrated Seismic Well Tie – Single template
In the previous versions of Petrel, the Integrated Seismic Well Tie study presented the sonic calibration and
synthetic generation templates under the same WSW. In the current version, the Integrated Seismic Well Tie study
uses one single template. The sonic calibration and the synthetic generation are executed in the TWT domain.

The settings for the Well Section Template for an Integrated Seismic Well Tie Study are shown below.

Color Table Enhancements
Local Legends
For data objects that have a color table, you can now display local legends in 2D or 3D windows. Right-click the
object, then click Create new local color legend.
Figure 53. Creating a color legend for display in a 2D window

You can create multiple local legends. These will be placed next to each other. Local color legends are created as a
window object that is local to the data it was selected for. They can be switched on or off in the display window’s
Settings dialog. Local legends are saved with the window layout, in the Window pane under the Legends folder,
as illustrated below.
Figure 54. Local legends for a 3D window, as stored in the Windows pane

Minimum and Maximum Color Template Settings
By default, data objects have a predefined global color table. The global color table can be overridden to create a
local color table for the object. This is controlled from the object’s Settings dialog. On the Colors tab, choose one
of the following initial min/max settings:
• Same as global color table
• Set to object’s data limits - Set the range to match the object’s data limits.
• Keep previous local color table min/max – This option is only available if a local color table was
previously created.

Global Seismic Color Table Template Enhancements
The global seismic color table templates (located in the Templates pane and the Seismic color tables folder)
allow you to define opacity curves and set the min/max values for the color range at the template level. This
enables you to easily set predefined opacity curves or min/max values for the color range for each object, rather
than doing this for each object sharing the global color table. The following figure shows the new capabilities in
the settings dialog of a global seismic color template.

Geophysics: Seismic Well Tie
2013.4
Depth Seismic Calibration
Application of Seismic Well Tie to calibrate depth domain seismic data
Use synthetic seismograms to extract the seismic/synthetic depth correction at different depths of the well and
apply these values for depth seismic calibration in the Make Velocity Model process (Z to Z). Depth correction can
also be applied to interpretation using the Make/Edit Surface process.
The use of Pre-Stack Depth Migration (PSDM) seismic data has become popular in recent years. With Depth
Seismic Calibration, we are proposing a new tool that, by the generation of synthetic seismograms, the interpreter

can extract the depth differences between the synthetic seismogram (generated from the logs) and the seismic
volume (in depth). The depth corrections are preserved as a new attribute under Well Tops and can be used
thereafter in other Petrel processes (such as Velocity Modeling or Make Surfaces) to correct previous
interpretations or the seismic volume in those areas where well data is available. During the session, a visual
stretch/squeeze of the seismic data is executed, so you can, on the fly, see what the impact of the corrections is
over different seismic sections. This process does not replace the need of an exhaustive re-processing stage of the
seismic data, but it provides you with a straightforward method allowing you to continue the work while the new
volume is re-processed.

Geology
2013.4
Surface intersections
Improved calculations for a surface with a vertical plane, this addresses display issues of surfaces in the
interpretation window.
2013.3
Backward compatible projects
We have addressed a compatibility issue between 2013.2 and 2013.1 that may have occurred when using

Annotation Style. Some projects saved in 2013.2 will not be able to be opened in 2013.1. Open these projects in
2013.3, save, and then open in 2013.1.
Checkshot loader
When importing checkshot data exported from GeoFrame, where the file contains a header, units can now be reset
and user-specified units can also be stored for use in the next import activity.
Well log calculator

There is now a seamless workflow when generating logs for bulk wells with the calculator operations in Workflow
editor, so that you no longer need to delete the logs prior to operation rerun. The well log calculator no longer fails
to overwrite existing logs.
Well tops attributes

When computing zone thickness by using a Boolean log filter in well tops attributes, zero values are no longer
produced if there are three rows in the spreadsheet. In such cases, Petrel now correctly computes the first filter
interval as well as the end of each interval.
Well tops editing in 3D windows

In edit mode, you can now delete well tops horizons selected in a 3D window.
Well section window display

You can no longer create incomplete input data, which would otherwise result in project corruption. This fix will
not correct an already corrupted project, but you can manually delete the incomplete point from the well trace
spreadsheet, then save the project before visualizing in the Well section window.
Transferring wells with RPT

Petrel no longer crashes if you open and close RPT multiple times when transferring wells across projects.

Log visualization in 3D and Interpretation windows
There are no longer log visualization problems in the TWT domain when you work in 3D or Interpretation windows.
In prior releases, a shift resulted from the use of only time samples from trajectory points. Now all time samples
interpolating the trajectory at each sample are used to visualize in the TWT domain
2013.2
Multiple LAS Importer
Time series logs introduced in the 2013.1 release were created by a manual workflow: after importing regular logs
and inserting and editing the time step attribute in the log attributes spreadsheet, you could then create individual
time steps from global time series log operations tab. In the 2013.2 release, a new LAS importer allows you to
simultaneously import both regular and time series logs in the same GUI.
The LAS importer now handles simultaneous import of time series and regular logs. This reduces time spent
creating time series logs with the manual workflow implemented in the 2013.1 release. The manual workflow,

which is still available, requires that you first import regular logs into your Petrel project and then create time
series logs from the regular logs.
On the Data tab of the new LAS importer dialog, you can switch on Automatic matching to import only regular
logs, or you can select the Specified option to import both time series and regular logs for matched (property
template based on log name) and unmatched (property template based on unit) sections.

When using the multiple LAS importer:
• Time series logs with the same name and template are overwritten, but different time steps are
appended. The multiple LAS importer supports different date formats, as long as the time step and date
format correspond to the parsed date format.
• When importing multiple LAS files, the last file selected should contain most or all the attributes selected,
because it will be loaded first.
• A time series log that has the same template and name as a regular log will have (t) as suffix to the name,
for example Gamma (t) for time series log and Gamma for the regular log.
• The global time series log is listed in the Well manager spreadsheet if the Show well log option is
selected.

After importing, you can:
• Visualize the time-step logs using the time player in 3D, 2D, Map, and Well section windows and in the
intersection plot viewport
• Convert imported time-series logs to regular logs from the context menu for each Time step log in the well
tree
• Synchronize your time-series logs using RPT or Studio
See the online help topic, “Importing and Converting Multiple LAS Files” for the detailed procedure.
Stratigraphic chart – duplicate column/copy zone

Duplicate column allows you to create an exact copy of a column and place it to the right of the source column. If
there an empty column already exists to the right of the source column, it will be populated with the source
column.
Copy zone option allows you to copy a zone over to the next column along with the bounding events. It requires an
empty interval on the destination column where the zone is being copied.
Well labeling – trajectory point

A new option on the Trajectory point drop-down menu is added to give you the possibility to snap the label to the
mid-point of a well trace based on the horizontal projection on the map window. This option is called THL Center
which stands for True Horizontal Length.

Fault modeling
In the 2013.1 release, a restriction was placed on the type of the polygons you can select to convert to faults in a
fault model. You can select all the types starting with the word “Fault” to convert to a fault. This restriction is
retained in the 2013.2 release.
2013.1
Several enhancements were made to Stratigraphic charts and labeling, and there is now a new process for volume
calculations based on gridded surfaces. This release also delivers several client requests related to data
management of well objects. If you work with thousands of wells—for example in a shale gas portfolio—you can
now classify well attributes by color. You can also view and manipulate many more geology objects directly from
the Inspector window and see those changes reflected dynamically in your display window.
Map-based Volume Calculation

If you want volume estimation without creating a model or a 3D grid, the Map-based volume calculation
process calculates the volumes of an interval bounded by two gridded surfaces. The calculations result in a
volumetric case in the Cases tab and a spreadsheet report. The process can also output the intermediate results
used for the calculations.

Figure 55. Map-based volume calculation process window

Process Dialog
The Map-based volume calculation process dialog allows you to define zones and their input in a classic Petrel
table. On the Output tab you can modify the style of the output spreadsheet and other intermediate data. You also
have an option for using boundary polygons to refine the calculation regions.
Reporting
The Map-based volume calculation process outputs the results in the volumetrics spreadsheet in different
formats. The case is also saved in the Cases tab, where you can access the reporting options by right-clicking on
the case.
Workflow Editor
The Map-based volume calculation process is fully supported in the Workflow editor. You can use variables
and object variables to automate the workflows for map-based volume calculations. A number of other commands
provide functionality for extraction of volumes from saved map-based volume calculation cases.

Stratigraphic Charts
Several enhancements improved the stratigraphic chart functionality. As before, you insert zone boundaries as
events with an age value, to form the data used in the stratigraphic chart display window. In the new data model,
each stratigraphic column is represented as a column object in the tree. You can insert a sub-column for each
column or subdivide the intervals in that specific column.
Two formats from StrataBugs are now supported: .xml and .dex. You can also import Petrel 2012 stratigraphic
charts using the format put in place specifically for those charts.
Figure 56. New stratigraphic chart design

Chart Tree
In the Input pane, the tree contains data used to render the chart in the display window. In Petrel 2013, you create
one column for each stratigraphic column in the chart. The sub-column allows you to subdivide the intervals in each
column. Changing the column names is now easier with direct update in the display.

Figure 57. Subdivided column intervals
Spreadsheet

Enhancements to the stratigraphic spreadsheet allow you to perform almost all the actions you perform in the
Input pane. You can navigate through columns to add or remove events and zones, the age value and the type of
events are also editable.
Figure 58. Stratigraphic columns spreadsheet
Display
With the new display style, you have more control over the look of the chart. You can access the controls for
display settings by double-clicking columns in the tree and clicking the Style tab. See Figure 54.

Well Labeling
While the Map is window active, you can now access well labeling by right-clicking the Wells folder and clicking
Labeling settings. The dialog controls are more accessible, and several new controls were added to the Style
tab.
Figure 59. Adding or deleting events and zones and editing well age and type

Rotation
Using this feature, you will be able to rotate the label to align it along the well trajectory. You can also use the
slider to make more adjustments.
Background
If this feature is switched on, the label will be filled with a solid color. You can modify the color source as well as
the transparency.

Geology Inspectors
The Inspector window acts as a heads-up display for essential information about the object pointed to in the
display window. Collapsible tabs dynamically update as you pick different object types. Use Inspector to view
statistics and change common settings quickly, rather than opening a Settings dialog. To open the Inspector,
click View>>Inspector on the main menu.
Inspector now supports quick viewing and updating for these object types:
• Fault model
• Skeleton
• Horizons
• Fluid contact
• Well tops
• Well logs
• Well trace
• Point well data
• Checkshots

• Horizons
For example, the Inspector displays information for the well trace of regular and producing wells (not newly
designed wells), well logs, well tops, point well data, and checkshots when these are visualized in a 2D or 3D
window. You can view general information and statistics, modify style settings, and launch the spreadsheet
without accessing the object data tree. See the online help topic “Inspector Windows” for descriptions of the
generic and object-specific Inspector tabs.
Figure 60. Fault Model Inspector (left) and Skeleton Inspector (right)

Figure 61. Horizons Inspector (left) and Fluid Contact Inspector (right)

Figure 62. Well Trace Inspector, showing expanded tabs and the RGB color selector

Figure 63. Well Tops Inspector (top left). Trace Inspector (top right) shows shortcut to spreadsheet display (bottom)

Well Header Latitude and Longitude
You can now import and export latitude and longitude data for well headers. This new functionality aids people
working with producing fields and unconventional wells, where the well coordinates may only be stored in
latitude/longitude instead of XY coordinates.
To import well data in latitude/longitude, you must set the coordinate reference of the project. Once imported, well
header data is stored in the Well attributes subfolder under the main Wells folder. These ASCII files contain
attributes displayed in columns in the well head import dialog. Petrel creates several default attribute columns, but
you can add an unlimited number of custom attributes. An attribute can be one of these types: Boolean, string,
continuous, discrete, or date.

Figure 64. Importing well header latitude/longitude data

If your well header file has both XY and latitude/longitude coordinates, by default Petrel uses latitude/longitude to
import the well header.
For more details on how to import and edit well headers with latitude/longitude coordinates, see the Core online
help topic, “Importing Well Headers.” For directions on exporting latitude/longitude, see “Exporting Well Headers.”
Time-Series Logs
Time-series logs allow production engineers to create, visualize, and evaluate repeat logs recorded in days or
hours, with a maximum of 20 repeats. The logs help identify critical reservoir intervals that return poor quality data,
thereby isolating potential candidates for reservoir analysis.
Petrel time-series logs were added to supplement point well data used in repeat formation tester workflows for
reservoir engineering. In the Input pane, a time-series log icon is marked with a log template icon overlayed with a
clock symbol, for example for a well section time-series log.
Whenever there are changes in global well logs used in creating time-series logs, either by import of new logs or
after modifying a resistivity log using the calculator, the local time-step log must be updated to reflect those
changes.
Time-step objects can be visualized in 2D, 3D, Map, Well section, and Intersection windows. The global time
player is used to play through the different time steps. To visualize and play through time steps in an Intersection
window, first create and activate the vertical well intersection or general intersection plane. Playing through the
time-step logs helps to identify logs with wrong data samples. You can selectively delete the interval or reload the
log data after editing the extraneous sample points. This could aid in the isolation of reservoir intervals with poor
data quality and the selection of the best reservoir interval for analysis.

The local time-step log can be converted to a regular global log. Right-click the local time-step log and click
Convert to a regular log. This creates a static time-step log that behaves like a normal global well log in the
well. The parent global log may be deleted to avoid duplicating project data.
Figure 65. Visualizing a time-step log

Time-Series Logs Supported in Vertical Tracks
In the Well section window, time-series logs are supported in vertical tracks:
1. Open the Settings dialog for a cross section template and insert a new track on the Well section
template tab.
2. Right-click the track, then click Time series log.

3. Select the template of the time-series log.
4. Play the first, current, or last track using the time-step drop-down menu and the time player.

Coloring Time-Series Logs
To color a time series log in a Well section window:
1. Open the Settings dialog for a cross section template.
2. On the Well section template tab, right-click a time-series log track.
3. On the Curve filing sub-tab, click (or add) the color fill.
4. Choose one of the following fill styles: As property, Selected, As defined, White, Black.
5. Vary the color intensity using the Transparency option.

Well Log Attributes
User-defined well log attributes and a new log spreadsheet help you to manage log data for large projects.
Attributes can be Boolean, continuous, discrete, date/time, string, or special time-step attribute. They are stored
under the Global well logs folder in the Log attributes subfolder. When you open or upgrade a Petrel project, the
Log attributes subfolder is empty. Log attributes can be transferred to and from Petrel projects using RPT and
Studio for Petrel.

You can create a log attribute in several ways:
• From the default folder storage location, by right-clicking the Log attributes subfolder under the Global
well logs folder
• From the LAS file import dialog, using settings on the new Log Attributes tab
• By syncing attributes using the Reference Project Tool (RPT) and Studio for Petrel.
The log spreadsheet uses icons and special features to manage log data. The spreadsheet updates dynamically, as
you edit wells and well log names in the Input pane. The arrangement of attribute columns in the spreadsheet
always corresponds to their order in the Log attributes subfolder. To open the spreadsheet, right-click this
subfolder and click Log attributes spreadsheet.
Well log attributes and logs are synced using the Reference Project Tool. Log values for all log attributes
common to the two projects are copied. Values for matching log attributes in the target project are
overwritten. If there is a modification to log attributes, the transfer dialog window indicates which well log is
newer. Copying log attributes and well logs in copy mode will not change the well logs in the RPT transfer window
until data is synced. The copy mode provides a canvas from which to compare modified data against the original.

For more details, see the Geology online help topic “Log Attributes” and related procedures.
Figure 66. Log attributes spreadsheet
Well Tops Filtering

You can now filter the Well top spreadsheet to show only a portion of a large well top collection. The filtered
data can then be dynamically visualized in your active display window. An Interpreter filter subfolder is defined
during projects upgrade from versions prior to Petrel 2013.
In addition to filtering on wells and surfaces, you can filter user interpretations. Under the main Well Tops folder,
the Interpreter filter subfolder captures the interpretations using the IDs assigned automatically when anyone
creates or edits well tops. If you are importing well tops from outside Petrel, the interpreter ID can be created
during import or added later to the Well Top spreadsheet. In this spreadsheet you can create, edit, copy, paste, and
rename interpreter IDs.

Figure 67. The interpreter “Marit” is defined in the project
Example Filtering Settings

In the next two examples, you can see how the spreadsheet changed when we asked to see only a small subset of
the original well top data.

Figure 68. Unfiltered well top spreadsheet

Figure 69. Well top filter dialog controlling spreadsheet display

In the following example, well tops were filtered by wells and surfaces, and then the resulting spreadsheet was
applied to the active display window, in this case, a Map window.
Figure 70. Well top spreadsheet with filters applied to an active Map window
For more details and procedures, see the Geology online help for “Filtering Well Tops.”

True Horizontal Length Index
True horizontal length (THL) is length measured along a plane or level ground. At every point along the length, the
line tangent to the level surface must be horizontal. THL is equivalent to the X-axis of a flattened vertical well. A
new THL index supports drilling on real time projection workflows involving long offset drilling. In such cases,
staying in the target reservoir is important for geosteering.
Two workflows for generating logs using THL as depth are implemented in this release:
• Generating a log using THL as the geometrical variable
• Generating a THL log from a well top continuous attribute
By calculating the THL point for the corresponding MD, you can generate a log for the entire length of a well in the
vertical, deviated, and horizontal sections. During geosteering this is important in the horizontal section of the well,
where data manipulation using true vertical depth is a problem because of repeat depths. To create a THL log for
the entire well path without repeated depth:
1. Right-click the Global well logs folder and click Calculator. If you launch the calculator by right-clicking a
specific well log, calculations will only affect the local log.

2. In the calculator, click the Geometry button, and in the geometrical function list click Thl().
3. Edit the expression field to insert your THL log name in front of the expression, for example:
My_THL_log=THL().
4. Click ENTER to execute the expression and add the log to your tree.
A log created from a well top attribute at zone level, with THL as depth scale, gives the calculated thickness per
zone and the corresponding MD. During geosteering, this provides information about the thickness of the reservoir
interval in the horizontal section. Wells are more easily positioned to maintain the well path in the horizontal
section.
For more details, see the Geology online help topic, “Creating THL Logs from a Well Top Attribute.”
Well Usability
Coloring by Attributes
Data managers working with unconventional wells and shale gas extraction frequently perform classification
workflows. When thousands of wells are involved, coloring wells by attributes before visualizing in 2D, 3D, and
Map windows vastly improves identification and interpretation.
Fig 25 highlights the main settings. See the Geology online help topic, “Coloring Wells by Attributes” for how to
assign colors, add the information to the Well manager spreadsheet, and display the wells by color in a Map
window.

Figure 71. Setting attribute colors on wells

Using Folders in the Log Calculator
Log calculator statements can be written to sample from the Global well logs folder, or any sub-folder, and then
output new logs to a new folder structure. This means you do not need all logs to exist in the Global well log folder
before writing calculator statements.
Launch the calculator by right-clicking one of these folders and clicking Calculator:
• From the Global well log folder - Creates a calculated log for all wells in the project, provided the logs
being sampled exist in the well.
• From a local log in the well tree - Creates a calculated log in the selected well.
For more details, see the Geology online help topic, “Specifying Log Calculator Folders.”
User Defined Patterns

Two additional user-defined patterns are now available for discrete color templates. If you define patterns in the
Petrel installation director, under Resources/Patterns/UserPatterns.xml, they can now be selected as patterns
in a discrete color table and be used in a Well section window.
In addition, pattern display in a Well section window was improved. There is now better tiling with almost no
mismatching joins.

Geology: Wells
2013.4
Well log calculator
Previously, it was possible to experience workflow interruptions when using the Workflow editor to create
thousands of wells, rename them, and use the log calculator to create multiple well logs for each well. The
interruption was caused by memory consumption. This issue has been fixed and the workflow now runs to
successful completion.
Loading production log

When loading a production log containing perforation data, the importer can now distinguish between the different
wells without giving MD ranges an overlap error.

Log version collection
When loading logs with similar names associated with the same template (for example Cal and Cali associated
with the Caliper template), the Get unique name function failed. This was corrected, and now a unique number is
appended to the name (for example Cal, Cal1, Cal2 or Cali, Cali1, Cali2) to ensure that every well log name is
unique.
Well top filter folder

Broken links between well tops interpreter attributes and the interpreter filter folder will be repaired automatically
when a project is opened in 2013.4. We are continuing to investigate the root cause of why the disconnect takes
place. If the disconnect continues to occur in 2013.4, save and reopen the project to automatically repair the
attribute.
Spatially unaware wells

In 2013.4, attributes in the well trace spreadsheet relative to True North will no longer be exposed for spatially
unaware wells. The information in the AZIM (TN), DX (TN) and DY (TN) columns was previously copied over from
the grid north columns. This may be misleading, but had no effect on the x, y, and z values at all. Wells that are
spatially unaware will continue to be classified as such when transferred via RPT.

Well Section Window
2013.3
Reference Project tool
The transfer of Well section windows and cross section objects is now possible using the Reference project tool
for Petrel project versions 2013.1 and onwards. You need to upgrade your projects to at least the 2013.1 version to
use this feature.
2013.1
Enhanced Cross Sections Object

In Petrel* 2013.1, the Cross sections object (X-section) is independent of the Well Section Window (WSW), with an
enhanced process to define its geometry, storage, and overall handling.
In addition to previously supported functionality, a cross sections object can now be created from the Map window,
copied, pasted, renamed, and deleted from the Input pane, displayed in any WSW, and edited graphically in the 2D
or Map window. New style settings options are also available.
Creating X-sections
When you create an X-section, a new object will be created in the Input tree in the Cross sections folder. The X-
section settings will manage the well hinges that define the X-section geometry in the Definition tab. Therefore,
you will no longer need to go to the Well Section Window (WSW) settings dialog box to reorder, delete, or add
new well hinges to the X-section. Also, the Well section template will be set from the same dialog box. Only
domain and scale will be handled from the WSW as a result of the decoupling of the Cross sections and the WSW.
Figure 72. X-section settings (left) and Well section settings (right)

To create X-sections:
1. Open a new Well Section Window and display wells from the Input pane.
2. Digitize the X-section in a 2D/3D/Map window by activating the Well Correlation process and using the
new process tools.
• When the Well Correlation process is active in a 2D or Map window, the following icons are
available to create and edit the X- section geometry.
- Add well hinge to active x-section ( ) allows you to add the wells that will define the X-
section geometry. You can click the well path, the well symbol, or the well top.
- Edit well hinge of active x-section ( ) changes the well reference of an existing hinge or
allow you to insert a new well between two existing hinges of the X- section geometry. You can
drag the fence to a new well and click the well head.
- Delete hinge ( ) removes a hinge from the active X-section when you click the well head.
• If you want to create or edit an X-section in a 3D window only the modes Add well hinge to active
x-section and Delete hinge will be available.
By default, a Well Section Window will be created once the cross section geometry is defined. However,
this setting can be changed by turning off the option from the Well Correlation process dialog box.

3. Create a new X-section object from the Insert menu or right-click the Cross-sections folder and select
Create x-section. This will add an empty X-section to the folder.
You will be able to:
• Digitize the cross section geometry using the well correlation tools in a 2D, 3D, and Map window.
• Manually add wells to the geometry in the Definition tab in the X-section settings dialog box.
• Right-click the new X-section and select Create new Well section window, and then turn on
wells in the Input tab.
Configuring X-section Style Settings in a 2D or Map Window

Style settings are now supported for the X-section when it is displayed in a 2D or Map window. You can customize
the color, line width, and line type in the Settings dialog box, in the Style tab. You can also select to show and
configure the hinges as points. Displaying hinges as points may allow for better precision when editing.

Figure 73. Plane settings for an X-section

Opening a Well Section Window
When you create a Well Section Window, you can choose between displaying an existing X-section or creating a
new X-section. You can also select if you want to use a new or an existing template.
Figure 74. New well section window settings
Any X-section can be displayed in any Well Section Window, and the template will be tied to the object not to the
window.

Deviated Display
The Well Section Window now supports a deviated track display for wells in an X-section. The Well section
template has been expanded to include settings for the deviated track.
You can enable Deviated display for the X-section wells in the X-section settings dialog, on the Definition tab.
Alternatively, click Show deviated boreholes for the associated X-section ( ) on the toolbar.
Figure 75. Hinges settings

By default, the deviated display is turned off, but it can be shown for all wells or specific wells in the window.
Every well has one template that it uses, and the template controls both the vertical and the deviated style. Default
projection is orthogonal for the first and last well, and it is based on the bisecting angle of the plane for all interior
wells. In addition to orthogonal and bisectional projection, you can also manually specify a projection angle.
In the X-section settings dialog, on the Deviated track tab, are options to display the projected borehole path,
color options, and style options for rendering the well in front of or behind the X-section fence.
For the track settings, you can apply transparency to the entire display, or to specific tracks from the Well section
template. The track border and deviated header are turned on by default. In addition, the deviated header supports
a Static width and a Dynamic width that adjust when track width varies.

Figure 76. X-section track settings

Index tracks, as well as continuous and discrete logs are supported for the deviated tracks in the Well section
template. You can manually add these tracks by updating the template. Adding logs to the deviated tracks from the
Input pane is also supported. Changes to the style for deviated tracks can be done manually from the Well section
template or from the Inspector. Interactive features such as resizing the tracks and curve fill are not currently
supported.
Figure 77. Well section template

When you add Well Tops to a template, they will be visible on the deviated display. All markers will be rendered
perpendicular to the projected borehole. Stratigraphic and facies interpretation are limited to the vertical tracks,
but will automatically be updated in the deviated tracks.
Figure 78. Well tops visible on deviated well display

Time Series Log
The Well section template now supports the new Time series log in the Well Section Window. Like regular logs,
Time series log can be turned on from the Global well log folder or manually added to a Well section template.
Displaying theTime series log in the Well Section Window will also launch the time player, and a time step log will
remain visible until a change in the time player moves it to the next step. However, Time series log do not currently
support interactive editing.
Figure 79. Time series log

Exploration Geology
2013.2
Exploration Geology was previously a plug-in requiring installation after a full Petrel installation. The plug-in was
installed through the Ocean plug-in manager in 2013.1 and earlier versions of Petrel. From 2013.2 onwards,
Exploration Geology is a module on the Petrel platform, which is included in the full installation of Petrel.
Acquiring the right acreage and drilling the best prospects are the two main investments impacting exploration
success. Understanding key risk factors is crucial in making these investment decisions. The Exploration Geology
module provides workflows to support these decisions for regional and prospect-level evaluation—from early
phase exploration to appraisal.
These workflows enable you to:

• Evaluate the key components of exploration uncertainty.

• Assess plays with results connected directly to interpretations.
• Generate prospects incorporating play level assessments.
• Perform estimates of chance of success and probabilistic volumes.
Since the results are linked to data and interpretations, there is easy reference to the input geology, rapid updates
with new information, and consistency across evaluations.
The module additionally enables you to gain a contextual understanding of the burial history, source rock
maturation, hydrocarbon expulsion potential and changes to properties over time in the reservoir and overburden
through 1D Petroleum Systems Modeling, using the same simulation algorithms as used in the petroleum systems
modeling software PetroMod. The 3D geocellular model for full dynamic forward modeling of geological processes
in PetroMod software can also be constructed on the Petrel platform. Post-simulation results—transferred to the
Petrel platform—enable further, contextual understanding of source rock maturation and hydrocarbon flow-path
migration processes.
Compatibility between Exploration Geology (plug-in until version 2013.1, module version 2013.2), Petrel, and
PetroMod software:
Petrel 2012 Petrel 2013.1 Petrel 2013.2 PetroMod 2012 PetroMod 2013
Exploration Geology Yes No No Yes No

2012.2 plug-in
Exploration Geology Yes Yes No Yes No

2013.1 plug-in
Exploration Geology No No Integrated No Yes

2013.2 module module
(built in Petrel
2013.2)

For more details on the following new features and on the use of the Exploration Geology module in general, see
the online help.
Petroleum Systems 1D and 3D

Lithology Database
A new set of lithology templates has been added to the Petrel templates to be used with the Exploration Geology
modules. Lithologies are needed to define the facies of the zones or layers of your petroleum systems model. The
lithology information will be used by the simulator to calculate generation, migration, and accumulation of
hydrocarbons.
The notion “facies”, as it is used in PetroMod, has a different meaning than that of a purely sedimentary (or
tectonic, geochemical, etc.) facies. In PetroMod, the term "facies" includes both lithology and source rock property
information on TOC content and distribution, kerogen type and petroleum generation kinetics. In the PetroMod
simulator, a source rock can only be assigned when a kinetic reaction has been defined for a facies and positive

non-zero values appear in the TOC and HI cells for that facies.
You can add the lithologies in the Define facies table process via a drop-down menu. This drop-down menu is
now linked to the Petrel templates, not to the PetroMod lithologies via active link.
All standard PetroMod lithologies are now part of the Petrel templates. If you modify or create new lithologies in
the PetroMod Lithology Editor, you need to merge the PetroMod lithologies with the Petrel lithologies. Your user-
defined lithologies will then become part of the Petrel database. Once they have been merged, you do not need the
link to the PetroMod project anymore. Currently, you can only edit the lithologies view their settings in the
PetroMod Lithology Editor. Please refer to the PetroMod Lithology Editor User Guide for more information.
Caution: Each time you change the user-defined lithologies in PetroMod, you need to merge the PetroMod
lithologies again to update the Petrel lithology database. The Petrel lithology database is not an active link to the
PetroMod lithology database.
Invasion Percolation Simulations now visible in Petrel

You can now view the accumulation results of PetroMod 3D invasion percolation calculations in Petrel using the 3D
link.
Separation of “Ages and facies table” into chrono-stratigraphic column and facies
definition table
Ages, facies, and default lithologies have been defined and assigned within Petrel and transferred to the PetroMod
“Ages and facies table”. This process has been split: You can now create a chrono-stratigraphic column, define the
facies in the facies definition table an d connect the data in the Make 1D or Make 3D petroleum systems model
process.
Petroleum systems processes enable construction of 3D geocellular models in Petrel prior to export to PetroMod
petroleum systems modeling software for dynamic forward modeling of geological processes in sedimentary basins
over geological time spans. To utilize the Petrel model in PetroMod, it needs ages, and the facies data need to be
refined with geothermal, paleo-geometry, etc. data.

The following information gives you an overview of the simplified overall workflow. For more details, see the
online help.
1. Connect the Petrel project to a PetroMod project (mandatory for 3D models, optional for 1D models) if you
want to use user-defined lithologies and kinetics built in PetroMod.
2. Build a chrono-stratigraphic column from chrono-stratigraphic charts.
3. Define the facies.
4. a) Create a 1D petroleum systems model by connecting the chrono-stratigraphy and the facies table with
well and facies information and by assigning facies and depth values through the Make 1D petroleum
systems model process.
b) Create a 3D petroleum systems model by connecting the chrono-stratigraphy, the facies table and a
simple grid with HI, TOC, and facies information through the Make 3D petroleum systems model process.
5. a) Prepare the 1D model for simulation by creating boundary conditions (heat flow, sediment water
interface temperature, paleo water depth) via the Make time trends process. Then assign them, define the
output and simulate the model. This is through the Make 1D petroleum systems simulation process.
b) Export the 3D petroleum systems model to PetroMod for further refinement and simulation in
PetroMod.

6. View the output in Petrel.

Modeling
2013.3
Dual Scale Reservoir Modeling Workflow
A new dual scale reservoir modeling methodology brings significant benefits for the Geologist and the Reservoir
Engineer:
• Build a first model grid at the simulation grid resolution so that the geologist and reservoir engineers
together identify the structural resolution necessary to capture the dynamic reservoir behavior
• Refine the grid, without changing the structure, in order to maximize the accuracy of well log upscaling &
property population at the appropriate fine geological grid resolution
• Maintain explicit mapping between coarse and fine grid for fast accurate upscaling of grid properties.

The following lists the technical benefits inherent in this workflow:
• Rigorous alignment between fine and coarse grids, without the need for geometry comparisons between
the two grids.
• The bulk volume mismatch between coarse and fine model is minimized by design.
• Each fine cell contributes to no more than one coarse cell, minimizing sampling errors.
• Mapping from the fine cell center to the coarse cell center required for transmissibility-based upscaling
also dramatically speeds up the averaging.
“Refinement” process in Corner Point Gridding folder

The new Refinement process can be found in the Corner Point Gridding folder. The global grid can be refined here
by specifying I, J and K refinement parameters. A new grid will be created in the Models pane with I, J and K
mapping properties linking cells of input and output models.
”Mapping with properties” sampling method in Scale Up Properties

A new sampling method is introduced in the Scale Up Properties process to support the Dual Scale workflow.
Three properties in I, J and K directions have to be provided to maintain the relationship between the coarse and
fine cells, so that a refined cell is mapped back to the original coarse cell that produced it. On top of increased
accuracy, a considerable speed up in calculations is achieved.
Scale up well logs

Scale up well logs zone correction
When running the scale up well log process, if the horizons of the 3D grid were not perfectly tied to the well picks,
there was no guarantee that the correct data was upscaled in each zone. In the 2013.3 release, a zone correction
option has been added to ensure that the upscaled well data is correctly mapped to each zone.
When running the upscaling with zone correction ON, the input well log is internally translated and re-scaled so
that the correct data is upscaled in each zone, according to the interpreted stratigraphy and even if the model is not
properly tied at the well. (The original input log remains untouched.)

Property Modeling
2013.1
Data Analysis
Enhanced Variogram Analysis
The variogram analysis of the Data analysis process was redesigned and offers greatly improved performance.
The new, intuitive interface offers several easy-to-use features:
• Nested variogram model and fitting
• Model-dependent estimation of search cone parameters
• Data decimation
•

Enhanced variogram computation performance
• Enhanced search cone display
Performing a variogram analysis that fits your data can now be achieved quickly and easily with only a few mouse
clicks. Also, large datasets can be analyzed in a few minutes, thanks to the new data decimation feature.

For more details, see the Modeling online help topic, “Variograms Tab (Data Analysis).”
Petrophysical modeling
Property Modeling with Nested Variogram
The use of nested variogram from data analysis is enabled in all modeling processes:
• Trend modeling (discrete)
• Facies modeling
• Petrophysical modeling
It is only possible to create a nested variogram in the Data analysis process, and then to use it in any of the
processes mentioned above. Nested variogram parameters are also available as read-only in the Modeling Input
Parameters editor for discrete property.

Workflow Editor
Multiple 3D Grids Handling – Scenarios Uncertainty
To enable accounting for structural uncertainty, the With 3D grid command was upgraded to handle multiple
grids.
An object variable can be inserted in the With 3D grid command and must refer to 3D grids. The workflow will
then run only on the referenced grids. To run a workflow with multiple grids, the specified grid and the reference
grids must follow these constraints:
• Zone structures must be identical for all grids
• When used in the workflow, property names and contact sets must be unique

For more details, see the utilities section of the online help and the Workflow editor topic, “Workflow Editor
Processes Pane.”

Object Variable Enhancements
Several enhancements for object variables were introduced in Petrel 2013. Object variable can now be used to
define the following parameters:
• Local Varying Azimuth in the Facies and Petrophysical modeling processes
• All trend/co-kriging inputs in the Facies, Petrophysical, and Trend modeling processes
• Continuous property distribution functions in the Petrophysical modeling process
• Fluid contacts and input properties in the Volume calculation process
For more details, see the utilities section of the online help and the Workflow editor topic, “Using object
variables.”

Reference List Enhancements
To enable scenario-based uncertainty in the Workflow editor, the Set reference list command was upgraded to
handle numerical and string variables as well as object variables.
In combination with the 3D grid uncertainty developments, the enhanced reference list allows building a whole
new range of uncertainty workflows based on discrete scenarios instead of random realizations.
In the following simple example, the same petrophysical model is run four times in a loop with four different
variogram scenarios.

For more details, see the utilities section of the online help and the Workflow editor topic, “Workflow editor
variable commands.”
Facies Conditioning Variable Enablement

In the Workflow editor, it is now possible to use object variables for facies conditioning in both facies and
petrophysical modeling. Inside the Workflow editor instance of the modeling process dialog, a variable name can
be selected from the property list.

For example, this new feature allows you to run the same conditioned petrophysical model on multiple facies
scenarios inside the Workflow editor.
MIP for Facies Modeling

The Modeling Input Parameters (MIP) editor was introduced for discrete properties in Petrel 2012. In Petrel 2013, it
is now possible to edit Facies modeling parameters from the MIP in the Workflow editor by pressing the MIP
button on the Facies modeling command.
Alternatively, parameters can still be changed in the Facies modeling dialog by double-clicking Facies
modeling or the property name. For more details, see the Modeling online help topic, “Modeling Input Parameters
Editor.”

For more details, see the Modeling online help topic, “Modeling input parameters editor” and the sub-topic, “In the
workflow editor.”
Object Modeling
Body Shape Enhancements
The Fan lobe (formerly Deltaic/alluvial fan) and Oxbow lake body shapes in Object modeling have been modified to
offer more flexibility.
It is now possible to select the radial profile geometry of the Fan lobe from among the same four options used by
Ellipse shape: Sharp edges, Rounded, Rounded base, and Rounded top.
In addition the Tapering parameter has been added, to allow the lobe to thin longitudinally.

The shape of the Oxbow lake has been changed from an open U-shaped half ellipse to a closing three-quarter
ellipse. The new shape is a more realistic representation of an abandoned meander and offers more possibilities in
terms of customized shapes.
An additional the Channel width parameter allows you to modify the width of the channel independently of the
dimensions of the abandoned meander.

For more details, see the Facies Modeling online help topic, “Settings in Object Modeling.”
Reporting Enhancements
The output messages for object modeling have been clarified and improved to include detailed result fraction and
geometry statistics per body. This information is now also stored in the Comments tab of the property and
updated every time the property is re-run.

Geometrical Modeling
Seismic Resampling Performance Enhancement
Seismic data or its derived attributes are often used as soft probabilities to condition petrophysical property
models. The introduction of the continuous Trend modeling functionality in 2012.1 allowed creating trend
properties by combining multiple inputs, thus increasing the need for bringing seismic data into 3D models. Seismic
resampling is a computer intensive process and, until 2012.1, it was not using the parallel processing abilities of
modern computers.
The seismic resampling in Geometrical modeling has been made significantly faster through full parallelization
of the algorithms and seismic data access. The table below shows the compared run times between versions for
resampling a 9Gb ZGY cube in a 5 million cells model, using a 32 cores machine :
Method 2011.2.7 2012.4 2013.1

Intersect (Default) 30min 25min 35s
Exact 19h30min 85min 78min
.

Model Extraction from Inside Polygons
The ability to extract part of a model inside a polygon has been added to the Output tab of the 3D grid Settings
dialog. All properties from the original grid will be copied to the output grid.
A new workflow editor command (Operations\Model extraction\Output part of grid inside polygon) allows
automating the operation for multiple polygons.

For more details, see the Core online help topic, “3D grids – Output tab.”
Make Thickness/Proportion Maps Operation

The operations Make thickness/proportion maps and Make thickness/proportion maps (for each zone)
were added to the Settings dialogs for all discrete properties. Click the Operations tab and expand the Make
map from property folder.

The Make thickness/proportion maps operation allows you to compute individual maps for all or some of the
codes of a discrete property. This operation can be used to generate maps such as facies, net sand, and net pay.
For more details, see the Core online help topic, “Operations tab (Individual Properties).”

Facies Probabilities Calculation
The new Facies probabilities operation allows you to compute facies probability properties from multiple facies
realizations. It is located in the Operations tab of the Settings dialog for the 3D grid’s Properties folder. The
probability properties can be used for quality control, for assessing the spatial uncertainty of the facies distribution,
as trends in the model, etc.

Modeling Processes Active 3D Grid Switching
It is now possible to switch the active grid without closing and re-opening the modeling processes. When a
modeling process is open, a different 3D grid can be made active by clicking its name in the Models pane. The
open process then refreshes and the modeling parameters for the first property of the newly activated grid are
displayed.
NOTE: Parameter changes that are not saved or not run in the previously active grid will be lost.
When any modeling processes are open, you can now also:
• Copy a grid
• Delete a grid
• Copy properties of the active grid
• Delete properties of the active grid
Inspector for Properties

The Properties Inspector adapts the generic Inspector window to reflect commonly used statistics and settings for
discrete and continuous property in the active window. It provides a quick access to the following information:
• Cell statistics
• Cell value edition
• Color template edition
• Property display style

For more details, see the online help topic, “Property Inspector.”
Model-Dependent Default Variogram Ranges Switch

Default variogram ranges calculated from the model dimensions were introduced in 2012.1. In 2013.1 it is possible
to disable the automatic default ranges computation in the System settings of Petrel or through Petrel’s
configuration file. A button in the variogram tab of Facies and Petrophysical modeling will then allow the model-
dependent defaults to be computed manually.
For more details, see the online help topic, “General Information on Property Modeling.”

Fracture Modeling
2013.2
Petrel 2013.2 is introducing a new geomechanically-based solution to the fracture modeling field, for constraining
the Discrete Fracture Modeling (DFM). This module is based on the iBem3D (Poly3D) engine and aims at computing
maps of both natural fracture orientation and density trends from computed stress field by using observed major
faults (Petrel seismic – structural framework) and observed fracture data.
Geomechanical method
Geomechanically-based driver for constraining fracture modeling in Petrel
This module brings a new geomechanically-based driver for constraining the existing create fracture network

process. The main idea behind this technique is to model the perturbed stress field directly linked to the active
fault under applied tectonic stresses. These tectonic stresses, through geological time, can be deduced from an
inversion using the fracture data and the faults model or, if well known, can be directly imposed. From this
perturbed stress field, on each point of a selected grid, it is then possible to extract geometrical characteristics of
potential natural fractures developed inside this perturbed stress field. A calibration with observed fractures along
the wells is applied in order to provide a calibrated computed density of the fractures. At the end, these
characteristics can be directly used in the create fracture network process to generate a discrete fracture network.
The process for generating such a driver is conceptually simple: first, you need a faults model coming from a
structural framework and fracture data (associated with wells for this release), and, secondly you need to run a
forward modeling using a tectonic stress (imposed or inverted).
Figure 80. Fault framework, fracture data and generated discrete fracture network

Comparison of data and computed fractures
As each fracture data has its corresponding computed attributes (Dip azimuth, dip angle), you can use the rose
diagram in the Well Section Window (WSW) in order to compare the fracture data and the computed fractures.
Figure 81. Rose diagrams or Fracture data and computed fractures on the WSW
Fracture Computed Fracture Computed

data fractures data fractures

Computing map of fractures trend orientation
You can use a grid horizon in order to compute chosen attributes, such as stress or strain tensor, displacement,
principal strain or stress. On each point, potential fracture characteristics are computed and can be displayed on
the grid horizon, for example, vector display for fracture strike.
Figure 82. Vector of joint strike and associated discrete fractures network
Joint strike vector map Discrete Fractures network map

Discrete Fracture Network
This geomechanically-based driver provides all necessary inputs for creating a discrete fracture network. Using
failure criterion for the particular type of fracture, the computed state of stress on each point will provide the
computed fracture trends and calibrated density with the fracture data along the well.
The created discrete fracture network will follow this fracture density map and the fracture orientation trend as
illustrated in Figure 81.
Figure 83. Computed and calibrated Fracture density and Discrete fracture network

Workflow illustration
Figure 84. General workflow for the module

Main Benefits of the Geomechanically-Based DFN Driver
Classical fracture analysis
This method is based on a statistical analysis of the fractures sets in terms of orientation. The user defines a
fracture set for each apparent orientation using a stereonet representation. In the following example (Figure 83),
this leads to the generation of two fracture networks based on two apparent fractures sets.
Figure 85. Computed fracture strike and corresponding DFN using classical approach
Set 1
Set 2

Fracture orientation maps used to drive DFN
Geomechanically-based approach
Assuming that the observed fractures develop during one tectonic event around active faults, there could be only
one set of fractures for this tectonic event, even though the combined rose diagram displays two orientations. The
corresponding fracture network (see Figure 84) created from the perturbed stress field is very different from the one
using the classical fracture analysis approach.
Figure 86. Computed fracture strike and corresponding DFN using geomechanical approach
Set 1
Set 1
Fracture orientation maps used to drive DFN

Well Design
2013.3
BHA display in Well section window
You can now hide a BHA display in the Well section window by clearing the depth settings for the BHA. You can
also display the BHA as a depth line by setting the same start and end depths.
2013.1
Well Plan Inspector

Style Tab
On the Inspector Style tab, you can edit the styles for Well plans, the Control points and Design points.
The style settings on the Inspector Style tab is synchronized with the settings in the Well plan settings
dialog box.
Object Settings Option Details

Well plan Symbol • To edit the Well plan symbol style, select the Symbol check box.
• Position to display the symbol: Top, Centre, Base, or Surface.
• Size: move the slider to set the symbol size. The preset range is from 1 to 2000.
Label • To edit the Well plan label style, select the Label check box.
• Position to display the label: Top, Centre, Base, or Surface.
• Size: move the slider to set the label size. The preset range is from 1 to 2000.
To freeze the size of label regardless of zoom in or out, select the 2D check box.
Path • To edit the Well plan path style, select the Path check box.
• Size: move the slider to set the path width. The preset range is from Narrow to Wide.
• Color By: As well, Specified, Black, DLS, White, or Z value.
Control Symbol • To edit the point symbol style, select the Symbol check box.

point and • Size: move the slider to set the symbol size. The preset range is from 1 to 2000.
design point
Label • To edit the point label style, select the Label check box.
• Size: move the slider to set the label size. The preset range is from 1 to 2000.
To freeze the size of label regardless of zoom in or out, select the 2D check box.
• Property: Azimuth, DLS, Inclination, MD, TVD, or All.
• Position: Left or Right.
Constrained 3D Editor Tab

On the Inspector window Constrained 3D Editor tab, you can view and edit the well plan data.

• The data highlighted in blue color can be edited. The data are highlighted based on the profile selection in
the Well path designer. The selection can be made by clicking on any row that is part of the profile of
interest in the Well path designer spreadsheet or by clicking this profile in the well plan displayed 3D
window.
• The information displayed in the tab shows only the attributes of the design point for the selected profile.
• Computation Status: Success or Fail indicates the well plan computation status.
• The unit system in Petrel Project settings are used to display the data.
• For some of the curve profiles, the warning indicates that you need to select a value from the drop-
down list.
Importing Data from COMPASSTM EDM File

Now you can import EDM file data (Survey, Plan, Prototype, and Target) from Landmark's COMPASSTM 2003 and
TM
R5000 software product. (COMPASS is a registered trademark of Landmark, a subsidiary of Halliburton.)

Importing Survey Options
In Petrel 2013, when importing Surveys from WITSML or EDM files, you have the options to select the method to
be used to compute the survey points during importing.

When importing Surveys from WITSML or EDM files, there are two options available:
• Six-value method: Compute with MD, INCL, AZIM, NS, EW, TVD as input. This is usually for the second
hand data. This is the preferred way to compute the trajectory if it is unknown which computation method
was used in the source survey. This option will use AZIM(TN), NS(TN) and EW(TN) from input data as
known data and other trajectory values will be calculated by Azimuthal-equidistant method.
• Three-value method: Compute the absolute positions (X, Y, Z) of well path points using MD, INCL, AZIM
as input. This is the preferred way if the source trajectory is computed using minimum curvature
algorithm (*).
(*) Minimum curvature algorithm: Between two neighbor points the curve follows a circular ARC.
When importing Surveys from WITSML files, you also have the options to select the MD and TVD elevation
reference:
• Kelly bushing (KB)
• Mean sea level (MSL)
• Other: type the offset distance to the MSL

EDM Data Index Item Manager
You can manage the EDM data source files in EDM data index item manager. Open the Petrel Tools
menu and click EDM data index item manager. The EDM data index item manager dialog appears.

• To add a new EDM data source file, click .
• To remove an EDM source file, select the item and click .
• To refresh the index status, click .
The system will refresh the status based by checking
o if the source file has an index
o if the source file still available
o the last modified date of the source file.
status indicates that the index is good. No need to re-index the file.
status indicates that the EDM source file has been changed after last indexing or the
Corresponding Petrel CRS has been changed. You need to re-index the EDM file.
• To index or re-index an EDM source file, click the Index button for this file. For the
new project in the EDM file, you need to select the Corresponding Petrel CRS accordingly
and then click Index button .
• To expand all the EDM files to see the projects inside, click .
• To collapse the entire index, click .
• To re-index all the changed EDM source files, click .
• To re-index all the EDM source files, click .
• To remove all the EDM source files, click .

WITSML Risks Importing for Multiple Wells
Well Design allows you to import risks for multiple wells in WITSML 1.3.1 or 1.4.1 format.
To import risks to multiple wells
1. In Petrel Input pane, right-click the root Wells folder and click Import (on selection).

The Import file dialog box appears.
2. In the Files of type list, click Drilling risks (WITSML)(*xml), and then select the risk WITSML file to
be imported.
3. Click Open to see the Well matching dialog box and remove or change the automatic mapping.

There are two columns in the table.
• Wells in file: This column lists all the wells in the risk WITSML file.
• Project wells: This column is to be filled with the matching wells in the Petrel project.
If the wells in the WITSML file have the same names as the wells in the Petrel project Wells folder, the
wells with the same names will be mapped automatically, although you can change this.

4. Map each well in the WITSML file to a well in the Petrel project. To do this, select the destination well
in Petrel Input pane and click the corresponding blue arrow button to add it to the Project well column.
If the well in the WITSML file is not mapped to any Petrel project well, the risk data for this well will not
be imported.
5. Click OK to start importing.
During importing, Petrel system checks for duplicated risks using the risk name, type and depth. If
there is any duplicated risk in the matched Petrel well, the Duplicate risk dialog box appears,
displaying the risk name and project well name.

Production
2013.3
OFM
Importing from OFM
OFM calculated fields can be imported. OFM calculated fields can now be mapped to Petrel variables for import
using the OFM Data Connector.
Petrel 2013.1 OFM Data Connector Templates

Well mappings are preserved when an OFM Data Connector template from a 2013.1 project is used in a 2013.2
project.

Production Analytics
Split Sets
Split sets can make the round trip from 2013.2 to 2013.1 and back to 2013.2. Split sets can be created in Petrel
2013.2 and can be opened by users in Petrel 2013.1. These split sets can be manipulated by the user in 2013.1 and
changes will be accessible to the user in 2013.2.
Well Deliverability
Petrel Projects with TUFFP Flow Correlations
Because the TUFFP Unified 2-phase v2007.1 flow correlation is no longer supported by Petrel and PIPESIM, you will
receive a warning message if you try to open a Petrel project that was saved with a TUFFP Unified 2-phase v2007.1
flow correlation. In 2013.3, the TUFFP Unified 2-phase v2007.1 flow correlation is replaced with a default flow
correlation.
2013.2
New Production Analytics
The Petrel combined core license enables new features including abilities to manually back allocate, visualize
completion level data in the well section window, and generate grid and bubble maps of production data.
The features of the production analytics module include:

• A new production track has been added to the well section window capabilities.
• A production mapping process for generation of production data grid maps.
• A production bubble mapping process for generation of at-depth bubble maps.

• The split set and split set manager functionality to allow for manual back allocation of well level
production data to completion level by time and phase.
Production Bubble Mapping Process

You can post production bubbles at depth and play through time. The new process introduced for generating bubble
maps of production data (well level data, completion level data, and virtual sets) makes it easier for you to visualize
the production data you want at various aggregation levels, such as, completion, well, and zone. The picking mode
is the same as that used for the results charting and analysis process.
Production Mapping Process

You can generate grid maps for production data and play them through time. The new process introduced for
generating grid maps of production data makes it easier for you to visualize the production data you want at
various aggregation levels, such as, completion, well, and zone. The picking mode is the same as that used for the
results charting and analysis process. The production mapping process utilizes a nearest neighbor algorithm to
quickly generate grid maps of the production information.
Production Track for Well Section Windows

You can post completion level data in a track alongside log and cross section in the production track for the well
section window. There are four pre-defined templates that allow you to display rate-time, cumulative-time graphs
or pie charts at the perforation and play them through time next to the well configuration and any necessary log
information. Behavior of the track is similar to the tadpole or comment track.

Split Set and Split Set Manager
The Split set and Split set manager allow you to manually allocate well level production to the completion level.
Use the Petrel Split set manager to back allocate the wellbore production to the completion levels by splitting well
level observed data sets into completion intervals called split sets. One of the most important daily practices for
the Reservoir and Production Engineer is allocating the produced volumes back to the reservoir. This practice is
fundamental for many reasons: Material balance, Injection efficiency and Voidage Replacement Ratios
calculations. This practice is sometimes complicated, especially when you are producing from many reservoirs or
layers within the same wellbore. To that end, we are introducing the Split set and the Split set manager into Petrel.
You can manually enter completion level factors for the entire completion or by phase. You can then apply this split
set to a well level observed data set to create a derived completion level data set and use this for visualization.
OFM Data Connector

Import Completion Level Data with the OFM Data Connector
The OFM Data Connector has been modified so you can now import the completion level data from OFM into

Petrel. This creates a data association between the OFM completion and the Petrel perforation, which can then be
used for visualization and analysis.
The streamlined UI for the OFM Data Connector allows the user to map to different data levels for well information
and production histories. You can now map to the completion level or to the traditional well level. The UI is
responsive to well selections and provides a wizard type format to assist the user in mapping OFM completions to
Petrel completions.

Import Well Annotations with the OFM Data Connector
The OFM Data Connector has been modified to support the import of well annotations from OFM for posting on
rate time plots generated with the Results charting and analysis process.
As in OFM, you can explain anomalies in production plots with explanations from well notes. For example, as
shown in the screenshot, you will see markers where events have taken place in the lifetime of the well that will
give you context for a well’s behavior. The OFM Data Connector UI has been modified to allow the mapping of the
notes table from OFM.

Support Full Flow Path in VFP Simulation
In well models where the completion depth is above the bottom depth of tubing or any completion tool depth, the
flow path from completion depth up to the well head is considered in the same way it is considered for Nodal
Analysis calculations. The resulting BHP pressure in the VFP table is calculated in the tubing the same as it is
currently calculated in PIPESIM.
The default reference depth value, the shallowest completion not squeezed, takes into account the entire well
model as it is configured by the user and all downhole tools within the well model are enabled for sensitivity
purposes.
If the reference depth is modified by the user, the well is treated as a modified well model where the model ends
at the modified depth value and only the downhole completions tools down to the modified reference depth are
displayed for sensitivity purposes.

Support Gas Separator and Viscosity Correction in ESP
When sensitizing on ESP in a VFP simulation, you can choose to include a gas separator and apply viscosity
correction. Petrel assumes the efficiency is 100%.
Import Well Location from PIPESIM if the Well Location is

Defined in GIS
When importing PIPESIM data to Petrel, if the well location is defined in the PIPESIM GIS component and you
select a CRS in Petrel, the well head location is converted to the selected Petrel CRS. Otherwise, the well head
location in Petrel defaults to (0,0).

Well Deliverability
2013.1
Petrel Well Deliverability 2013 allows you to:
• import well models from PIPESIM
• perform flow correlation data matching on wells
• create VFP tables within Petrel and use them in existing RE workflows (such as development
strategies/field management and Uncertainty and Optimization) as part of workflow-enabled steps within
Petrel
• consume IPR curves from manually inputted well test data as well as IPRs generated from a reservoir
simulator
• create and display the results of Nodal Analysis cases either to distinguish if the well is operating at its

optimum level or to generate the conditions at which the well will operate at its optimum level.
Flow Correlation Data Matching

This feature allows you to optimize Flow Correlation for vertical and deviated wells in order to enhance the
accuracy of pressure and heat loss calculation along the well model. Set of 20 vertical and 17 horizontal flow
correlations can be compared and optimized to enable selection of the concluding curve that best suits field
conditions. With FCDM Case, several sources for pressure and temperature data can be used: survey analysis DTS,
PLTs, observed dataset at BH and TH, etc. This process will optimize vertical and horizontal flow correlation for a
single and multiple wells within one single set-up. . You also have the ability to auto-commit the lowest RMS flow
correlation to or to manually commit the appropriate FC to its corresponding well model (Allow the user to make
decision).
Inflow Performance Relationship (IPR)

User-Defined IPR Model
User-based Inflow Performance Relationships for oil, gas, and water or for an IPR result from a reservoir simulator
such as ECLIPSE or INTERSECT can be retrieved manually in the User-defined IPR. Easily copy and paste data from
®
a text type file or Excel spreadsheet type data.
The IPR model compares the bottom-hole flowing pressure of a well with its production rate. Combined with
NODAL* analysis techniques, the IPR helps to determine the optimal production scheme (most efficient flow
rate), design production equipment, and simulate artificial-lift systems.
Calculated IPR Variables from Well Test Data

Multi-rate well test data can be used to match the inflow to actual measured data, in addition to using standard
IPR equations.
In the IPR Model Manager you can derive the IPR model based on well test data, to better represent well
performance. The values corresponding to well test data are plotted along with the IPR curve, so you can check the
quality of the IPR curve. The closer the data points are to the curve, the better the model is.

Two types of well test analyses are supported: Multipoint and Isochronal. Multipoint is a short-term test
used mostly in the field. Isochronal is a long-term test wherein the time needed to get a static reservoir
pressure governs the duration.
By automating the iterative calculation process, time is saved in finding these values:
• AOFP
• Well PI
• Constant C
Vertical Flow Performance (VFP)

VFP Workflow Step Enabled
VFP table collection cases can be inserted under Workflow Editor to create multiple workflows for a project and
store them for running later. By enabling VFP under Workflow Editor, distinctive VFP table are automatically re-
generated for each scenario of well configuration. You can perform several simulation cases or development
strategies for as many as infinite combination of well configuration without the need of modifying manually the
well model.

Automated association of distinctive updated VFP table with its correspondent well configuration will be carried
out under development strategy process.
VFP in Uncertainty and Optimization

You can carry out Uncertainty and Optimization analysis in Petrel taking into account several well configuration and
fluid properties associated to a well. This process is facilitated by having enabled automatic VFP table creation as
a function of well configuration and/or fluid properties scenarios. Since VFP table is enabled into the workflow
editor Uncertainty and Optimization studies can be carried out thoroughly.
VFP for Injector Wells

VFP tables for water and gas injection wells can be created in Well Deliverability for Petrel 2013.1.
Support for Electric Submersible Pump ESP

Hydraulic table calculation can account for the effects of artificially lifting the well by ESP. The performance curve
is created with sensitivity analysis on various parameters such as well head pressure, water cut, gas ratios and
liquid or gas or mass flowrates and ESP parameters such as frequency and stages.

6. To resolve a risk duplication, select one of the following actions and then click OK or OK for all:
• Do not load this risk
• Override the existing risk
• Load this risk with a new name
Click OK to apply the action to this specific duplicated risk. Click OK for all to apply you selection to all
duplicated risks.
Set Plan as Active Work Step

The Set plan as active command can be found in the Workflow editor. It is under the Well path design
(new) folder of the Operations tab. When this command runs, the selected plan becomes the active plan for
its parent borehole.

Reservoir Engineering
2013.5
Use default calculation in simulator now exports skin factor
The Skin factor for well completion specification data now correctly exported
In previous releases, setting Well connection factor options (on the Define simulation case process, Strategies
tab) to "Use default calculation in simulator", in addition to using the default values for the transmissibility factor
(COMPAT item 8) and effective Kh (COMPAT item 10), the default skin factor (COMPAT item 11) from the
simulator was used.
When using this option in Petrel 2013.5, the default values for transmissibility factor and effective Kh are used, but

the user-entered skin factor is now exported to be used by the simulator when calculating connection
transmissibilities.
Correct activity value exported for ACTNUM

The correct cell activity value for thermal runs is exported for simulation. In previous releases for thermal projects
running ECLIPSE, any cell activity settings other than 1 (cell is active) or 0 (cell is inactive) were lost on export. This
meant that activity values of 2 (rock volume only) or 3 (pore volume only) were lost and would be reported as a
value of 1 (cell is active). This issue has been resolved and the correct cell activity is exported for simulation.
Partial export now creates correct START date in ECLIPSE

dataset
Partial export now exports the user-entered, non-default START date rather than the default START date.
In previous releases, when using partial export on a case having a development strategy using a non-default start
date (that is, not 01 JAN 1980), the START keyword in the RUNSPEC section was incorrectly exported as 01 JAN
1980. This behavior is corrected in Petrel 2013.5.
In order for a partial export to correctly export the entered START date, you should first carry out a full export of
the incorrectly-exported case. The partial export relies on information exported during a full export, and without re-
exporting the START information, will still be exported incorrectly.

2013.3
Exporting multiple realization cases
Exporting multiple realization cases no longer include the MULTREAL keyword when exported outside either the
Workflow editor or Uncertainty and Optimization process
From Petrel 2013.3 onwards, multiple realization cases exported outside either the Workflow editor or
Uncertainty and Optimization process no longer include the MULTREAL keyword, and will not use a Multiple
Realization license in ECLIPSE. If you want to run multiple cases that are all associated with each other in a
"multiple realization" relationship, you must export the cases from either the Uncertainty and Optimization
process or Workflow editor.
Specifying the simulator version when exporting a data set

containing the WSEGVALV keyword

If your version of ECLIPSE is earlier than 2013.1, you must specify the simulator version when exporting a data set
including the WSEGVALV keyword.
From Petrel 2013.2 we make use of a new keyword item added to the WSEGVALV keyword in ECLIPSE 2013.1. The
new item is at position 10 of WSEGVALV and allows the maximum cross sectional area of the device to be
specified. This allows a valve to be partially open when first introduced to the simulation as the simulator now
knows the current open area (item 4) and the fully open area (new item 10). WSEGVALV item 10 is only available in
ECLIPSE 2013.1 or later; if you want to use an earlier version of ECLIPSE with Petrel 2013.3, you must explicitly
specify the ECLIPSE version on the Advanced tab of the Define Simulation Case process.
2013.2
Changes to INTERSECT Support in Petrel
When you install Petrel 2013.2, you have the choice between installing the connector to INTERSECT 2012.2 or
INTERSECT 2013.1. The connector is that part of Petrel that creates Field Management strategies and exports
INTERSECT simulation cases. The default choice is to install the connector to INTERSECT 2013.1, the newest
release of INTERSECT. You can later change the connector by using the Modify option in the Petrel E&P Platform
installer.
The INTERSECT 2013.1 connector provides an enhanced Field Management feature that allow the import of a Field
Management strategy into Petrel, and the export of a strategy for review and use in an INTERSECT simulation run.
In addition to the existing supported completion types, the Field management process can now be used to create a
strategy utilizing the new sliding sleeve devices in multi-segment wells.
In addition, in your INTERSECT simulation cases you can now include the new INTERSECT 2013.1 functionality,
which was previously only available for ECLIPSE cases.
• You can use two-phase black oil fluid models
• You can specify the use of the Forcheimer equation for non-Darcy flow using the check box option on the
Function tab of Define Simulation Case dialog. This is relevant for non-laminar flow regimes, for example, in
high flow areas around fractured wells

• You can include gas adsorption functions which can be created in the Rock Physics process. These models are
needed, for example, when simulating shale reservoirs.
Correct specification by Petrel of valve pipe diameters may result

in changes to the frictional pressure drop
WSEGVALV pipe diameter and cross-sectional area are taken from the device’s inner diameter or the constriction
diameter (whichever is the greater), rather than using the WELSEGS-attributes.
The WSEGVALV keyword generates pressure drops due to both the constriction and friction within the device. The
frictional component is generated using a pipe diameter and cross sectional area as specified on the WSEGVALV
keyword (items 6 and 8). These items were left at their default values. Under these circumstances, ECLIPSE uses
the diameter and cross sectional area of the segment defined in WELSEGS, where the diameter and cross sectional
area set to those of the constriction. Any calculated frictional pressure drop was therefore artificially too big;
especially when the constriction was particularly small.
This calculation error has been resolved by specifying the pipe attributes directly on WSEGVALV as either the inner

diameter/cross sectional area of the devices’ tubing (see the device attributes in the Completions Manager) or the
maximum constriction diameter/cross sectional area, whichever is the larger (the latter is just to protect against a
pipe that is smaller than the constriction which ECLIPSE does not allow). Tubing diameter is generally large
(several inches) and so results in a negligible frictional pressure drop across the valve. This change affects Nozzle
ICDs (NICD), Annular and Inline flow control valves (AFCV/IFCV).
Unrecognized summary results are now visible in the Results

pane
Unrecognized summary results are now listed in the Results pane, and can be viewed through the Results
Charting and Analysis process. These identifiers are now imported and are visible under the Other folder of the
Results pane. These identifiers are listed by their identifier name used in the data files.
Improvements to the reference valve calculation when

converting to simulation design
Completion design operations that make use of the 'physical valves equivalent' attribute – allowing a single device
to represent any number of physical valves on export to the simulator – now have all WSEGVALV and WELSEGS
items scaled correctly.
Certain completion design operations make use of a device attribute called ‘physical valves equivalent’. This
attribute allows a single device to represent any number of physical valves on export to the simulator and is
defined by scaling the simulator keyword attributes for that device by the number of physical devices it is
representing.
In previous versions, not all keyword items (in particular 'maximum cross sectional area' on WSEGVALV and
'segment cross sectional area' and 'diameter' on WELSEGS) were scaled correctly, potentially resulting in the
current cross sectional area in WSEGVALV being larger than maximum specified. This difference would cause the
simulator to fail with an error, and has been resolved by this change.

2013.1
Behavioral Changes
VFP Tables with GRAT ALQ Type Unit Measurement
If your project contains VFP tables with an ALQ type GRAT, prior to upgrading to 2013, you will need to export
those tables and re-import in the new version of petrel after upgrading the project.
Before the 2012.1 release, VFP tables with an ALQ type GRAT were imported using the IGLR and TGLR units
3 3 3
(that is, MSCF/STB field or sm /sm metric). The import now uses MSCF/day field units or SM /day metric units to
match the treatment in ECLIPSE
Non-midnight Time Steps in Existing Projects

Improvements that optimize project load in Petrel 2013 mean that time step information is read from the RSSPEC
file, rather than Restart files. RSSPEC files produced by 2013 simulators contain both date and time information,
unlike previous RSSPEC files, which contain date information only.

Most existing projects will have all time steps at midnight, in which case this change is not a problem. These
projects will benefit from the project load speed improvement.
For existing projects with non-midnight time steps, the time steps will now be assumed to be at midnight. In Petrel
2012 there was already a problem with non-midnight time steps for summary results, so this workflow was already
problematic. These issues have been resolved in Petrel 2013 for newly created projects.
If you have an existing project with non-midnight time steps that you would like to open in Petrel 2013 without
losing time information, delete the RSSPEC file from the relevant simulation case directory and it will be
regenerated with both date and time information. This is not done automatically because some information (that is
not used by Petrel) is lost during the regeneration process.
Pressure Equivalent Radius r0 Exported for OPEN Connections Only

In previous releases, there was an inconsistency in the export of the pressure equivalent radius (r0) data to the
COMPDAT and COMPDATL keywords. If r0 is not explicitly exported, the value is set by ECLIPSE to the cached
value for the cell in question, if this has been defined. Petrel explicitly exported a value for the pressure equivalent
radius of zero for SHUT connections in COMPDAT but not in COMPDATL.

The net result of this is that:
• For normal cells r0 is set to zero for SHUT connections.
• For LGR cells r0 can be set to a previously calculated value (that is, for an OPEN connection at the cell
earlier on). Since connections can be forced open by the simulator (for example, by using the WELLOPEN
keyword), this behavior is considered to be correct. Therefore, the explicit export of r0 to COMPDAT is now
performed only for OPEN connections.
Longer Lines Written to ECLIPSE Deck Files

Petrel now uses a higher limit for writing lines to ECLIPSE deck files (132 characters instead of 70).
If you re-export a simulation case in Petrel 2013 that shares Petrel generated deck files with a base case (and many
such cases do), the case will probably no longer share files with its base case. Re-export the base case, and then
re-export the derived case. File sharing will be restored.
Change of Default Number of Rows in Capillary Pressure Tables in Make Rock Physics
In previous versions of Petrel, by default the capillary pressure table contained twice as many rows as the relative
permeability table. The number of table entries should generally be set to the same value for capillary pressure and
relative permeabilities in order for the combined table exported to simulators to match the tables seen in Petrel.

On Upgrade
The current (2008.1–2012.1) behavior is conserved by default. On upgrade, if you open Make rock physics on an
existing saturation subject, populate the relative permeability, table entries field with the existing tables entries
value (N), and populate the capillary pressure table entries fields with 2N.
When Make rock physics is opened and Create new used, the auto-populated default values enter the same
value into both the relative permeability table entries and the capillary pressure table entries fields. After this, you
can independently change the values and thereby revert to the 2008.1–2012.1 behavior if required.
License Module Changes

The following license changes have come into effect with Petrel 2013:
• The Make Contacts process is now available through both Geoscience and Reservoir Engineering Core
licenses. This means you are now able to use the process where only the RE core license is available. As
in previous releases, the Make Contacts process is available through the Geoscience Core only or
Combined Core licenses.
• A new, single-license module, called Combined Assisted Matching and Production Forecasting has been
introduced in 2013.
As the name suggests, this provides access to all the history matching and optimization functionality in
Petrel. It is equivalent to having both the Optimization and History Match Analysis modules in previous
releases of Petrel.
• The Optimization license module has been renamed Production Forecasting Optimization to clarify the
workflow types enabled by this module.
Note: Access to the history matching objective function is no longer available when using the Reservoir
Engineering Core license only with the Production Forecasting Optimization module. To use the history
matching objective function, you either need the Combined Assisted Matching and Production Forecasting
license module, or the History Match Analysis license module.
Performance Improvements
Numerous targeted performance improvements have been made to Petrel Reservoir Engineering, as follows. The

benefits depend on the hardware specification of the machine used, for example memory, graphics card, and disk
access speed.
The following operations are faster for models with many cells:
• Loading simulation results (especially with a .GRID file over the network).
• Picking a cell in a 3D window to view the cell information in the status bar.
The following operations are faster for models with many wells:
• Displaying summary vectors using the Results charting and analysis process.
• Displaying all wells in a 3D window with simulation results present.
• Switching between 3D windows with simulation results present.
The following operations are faster for models with many LGRs:
• Displaying LGRs in a 3D window with simulation results present.
• Updating the LGR stepping toolbar when displaying a property for the first time.
The following operations are faster for cases with many 3D report steps:

• Loading the project.
• Displaying a property for the first time.
• Displaying Composite Saturation.
• Creating a 1D filter.
• Displaying generated streamlines.
The following operations are faster for INTERSECT cases:

• Exporting a case using a development strategy with many wells.
• Copy case and Insert restart case.
The following operations are also faster:

• Importing an ECLIPSE data file containing large numbers (thousands) of keywords.
• Displaying a simulation log with many messages when the simulation has failed.
• Closing the Results charting and analysis process.
• RESQML file import and export for typical models. The improvements are most notable for grids which are
not highly faulted, or where a large number of grid properties are used.
Documentation
Following on from the 2012.1 restructuring of the reservoir engineering sections of the online manual, the following
areas have been refreshed in 2013:
• Wells & completions
• Uncertainty & optimization

Results Charting and Analysis
Within this process, Petrel now provides five picking modes, that is, five different ways to plot data. The splitting
modes provide numerous ways to organize your charts. There are three new chart tools are available: Well player,
Case player, and the Charting window inspector.
New Plotting Data Options

Picking modes are the methods of selecting data in Results charting and analysis to plot against each other.
The following modes are available:
• Data vs. time – Plot 2D results and observed data on the y-axis against time or date on the X-axis.
• Data vs. time (additive) – Extension of Data vs. time. You can make a selection and add this to the
results with one click. You can then select and add different properties, building up a more complex
custom plot. This plot type displays the following buttons in the dialog:
 Add Lines – Adds the current selection to the Selected series list, provided it is not already there.
 Delete highlighted – Deletes highlighted series in the select series pane, customizing your
selection further.

 Delete all – Clears the selected series. Use this if you need to start your plot again.
 Clear all – Clears all selections made everywhere, except for selected series.
• Scatter by time – Plot two data series from the same source (case / observed data set) and identifier
(well / group / field) against each other. Each point represents a single identifier at a single time, with X
and Y values representing the values of two different properties.
• Scatter by identifier – Plot multiple time-based data series from the same source (case/observed data
set) against each other. Each point represents a single identifier at the time selected in the Time player.
• Simulation vs. observed – Plot data from one or more cases against an observed data set to analyze
any differences. The graph plots data at a particular time step, chosen using the time player. Each point
represents a single identifier for a single property at a single time. The Time player can be used to play
the data through time.
The Y value is chosen from a simulation case and the X value is chosen from the observed data set. Any
points on the X=Y line are exact matches. For points below the line, the observed quantity is larger than
the simulated quantity. For points above the line, the observed quantity is smaller.

Splitting Options
Use the Split by: list in the Results charting and analysis dialog to specify how to present your charts.
The options, which depend on the picking mode selected, are listed below.
Option Produces
Don't split Only one chart.
Source One chart for each selected source.
Case One chart for each selected case.
Property A chart for each selected property.
Primary identifier A chart for each selected primary identifier (for example, well)
Quantity A chart for each quantity that the selected properties have. For example,
"Cumulatives", "Limits", and "Rates" will each produce a different chart.

Series A chart for each series.
Source type A chart for each type of source. The possible types (which may not all be present in
every project) are "Simulation", "Simulation collection", "Proxy collection",
"Development strategy", and "Observed".
Secondary A chart for each secondary identifier. Series without any secondary identifiers are all
identifier placed on a separate chart.
Measurement A chart for each distinct measurement available for the selected properties, for
example "Liquid flow rate", "Gas flow rate" and so on.
Property A chart for each distinct component available for the selected properties.
component
Combined This useful option attempts to group commonly related items in the same charts.
Phase A chart for each distinct phase available for the selected properties.
Production type A chart for each distinct production type of the selected properties. Possible values are
"Production", "Injection", and "General".
Well Player
The Well player buttons appear on the plotting toolbar when it is possible to move between identifiers in a chart.
You can move between identifiers when data for just one primary identifier, probably a well, is plotted. Identifiers
which have no data are excluded. Suppose you have three wells, P1, P2 and P3 and your chart is showing data for
P1. Clicking the Move forwards ... button displays data for P2; clicking it again shows data for P3.
The Well player is only available for the following picking modes:
• Data vs. time.
• Data vs. time (additive).
• Scatter by time.

NOTE: If the Results charting and analysis dialog is open when you use these buttons, the dialog reflects
your identifier selection.
The buttons are:

• Move forwards through identifiers - moves forward one identifier. This displays the next identifier
(if one is available and has data to display). The display wraps around all available identifiers at the same
level.
• Move backwards through identifiers - moves back one identifier. This displays the previous
identifier (if one is available and has data to display). The display wraps around all available identifiers at
the same level
• Jump to specific identifier - shows a list of identifiers. Select the identifier you want and click OK
to display it on the chart. You can use the Filter field to reduce the number of identifiers to select from.
As you enter characters in this field, identifiers which do not match them are removed from the list.
Case Player
You can change the selected source for a single chart, or the sources for all the charts in a study. You can change
sources independently of each other.

To do this:
1. Choose one of the following:
• To change the selected sources for a single chart, right-click the chart in the Results pane and select
Replace source.
• To change the selected sources for all the charts in a study, right-click the study in the Results pane
and select Replace source.
A table is displayed with a single row per source, showing:
• Chart - the chart in which the given source is used.
• Picking mode - the picking mode used to create the chart.
• Source- the source to replace in that chart.
• Target - the source to replace the above source with.
2. Specify the target to use to replace any particular source. You can change the sources independently of
each other. Repeat this for each source you want to change.
3. If you want to replace sources for all charts in a study, select Lock sources between charts of the
same plot type. With this option selected, changing the target on one row automatically changes the
target for any rows which use the named source and plot type.
4. Click OK to replace the sources.
Charting Window Inspector

In a charting window, you can use the Inspector to examine values on the chart. It has three modes, crosshairs,
general, and continuous.
The Inspector is available for all charts, but operates differently depending on the chart's picking mode. The
Inspector collapses data into the most suitable form for display.

Crosshairs Mode
This is the default mode for charts produced using the Data vs. time and Data vs. time (Additive) picking modes, the
only modes it is available for. When you click on a chart, a vertical slice is taken and values from this displayed in
the Inspector, for example:

If you switch off Crosshairs mode, the Inspector reverts to General mode.
General Mode
This is the standard General mode, where the Inspector displays data for the closest point to the cursor location,
that is, for one primary identifier.
For charts that do not have a Crosshairs mode (Scatter by time, Scatter by identifier, and Simulation vs. observed),
this is the default mode.

Continuous Mode
This is the standard Continuous mode. The Selection and Window linking options are not available in a charting
window.
After you enable Continuous mode, you do not need to click on the chart; the Inspector is updated as you move
your mouse over the chart. This works with crosshairs enabled or disabled, and across all plotting modes.
Date/Time Format
The format of the date/time displayed is set by the chart theme. In most cases this might be “auto” which results
in the generic MM/DD/YYYY HH:MM style display of time. If you want a more specific date/time format, you must
change it in the chart theme settings.
Sliding Sleeve and FCV Simulation

In Petrel 2013, sliding sleeve and FCV control data can be imported from a file. A new rule controls sliding sleeve
completions' open/closed status over time from historical observations.

Import of Historical Sliding Sleeve Data from New File Format
You can import control data for sliding sleeves and Annular Flow Control Valves (AFCVs) from a file.
The imported data appears in the Input pane, stored in a folder called Device control data under Global
completions in the Wells folder.
1. Expand the Wells folder in the Input pane.

2. Right-click the Global completions folder and select Import (on selection).
3. In the Import file dialog, select Sliding sleeve history data (ASCII) (*.ssd) in the Files of type: list.
Browse for the sliding sleeve history file you want to import, and click Open.
4. The Import sliding sleeve history data dialog opens. Its Wells tab lists the well names obtained from
the file, and the wells that exist in your project.
NOTE: If Petrel cannot find a match for a well name in the file, the data for that well is ignored.
5. To view the information on a well, click it in the Petrel well trace column, and select the well from a
drop-down list.
6. Review the Unknown data tab. This is where any data in the file that Petrel cannot interpret is shown.
Edit the file as required.
7. You can choose to import the data into a new Sliding sleeve history data set, or merge the data into an
existing set. Use the Create new and Merge with options at the top of the dialog.
8. If you want to build well completions from the SlidingSleeve section of the file, select the Build
well completion from Sliding Sleeve data check box. This check box is disabled if the file does not
contain SlidingSleeve sections, or if the Merge with option is used. If this option is not selected,
Petrel expects to find completion devices on the wells in the Input pane with the same names as those
given in the file.
9. Click OK to import the file. Check the message log for any issues and make corrections if necessary.

Sliding Sleeve Device Control Data File Format
Use this file format to import Sliding Sleeve Device (SSD) or Annular Flow Control Valve (AFCV) control data into
Petrel.
Example Format
WellDef "P9" {
MDUnit=ft
SlidingSleeve { -- Optional section
ValveType "SSD" -- Optional, determines type of device to build, SSD by default
-- Name StartMD EndMD
“SSDA” 5640 6000
"SSDB" 6000 6400
"SSDC" 6400 6950
}
SlidingSleeveStatus {
DATE 1-Feb-2000
-- Name FractionOpen
"SSDA" 1.0
"SSDB" 1.0

"SSDC" 1.0
DATE 1-May-2000
“SSDB” 0.00
}
DATE 1-Jul-2000
"SSDA" 0.02 -- Value reflects leaking device
"SSDB" 1.00
"SSDC" 0.00
}
} -- End of P9 definition
Format Requirements
If you choose not to build the completion from the file contents, each well's completion (including all SSDs and/or
AFCVs) must have been defined in Petrel before the file is imported. Petrel uses the well and device names in the
file to identify each completion device and associate the device 'status' data with it.
When mapping the file contents to an existing Petrel completion, if a well and device name pair cannot be matched
to a Petrel completion device, Petrel writes an error message to the log window.
The WellDef, SlidingSleeve and SlidingSleeveStatus sections must be scoped with curly brackets '{ }'. If
names contain spaces they must be within quotes, otherwise quotes are optional.
MDUnit
The Measured Depth (MD) unit, either “m” (the default) or “ft”. If this is omitted from a WellDef
section, the previously encountered MDUnit value (if there is one) in the file is used.

SlidingSleeve
This section defines the Measured Depth intervals that flow through each sliding sleeve device. This
section is optional and is only used if you choose to build a functional well completion from the file
contents, in which case the well completion is built based on this section, using the following rules:
• Each line in the SlidingSleeve section defines both the well MD interval that flows through a
device (StartMD to EndMD) and the location of the device (at StartMD).
• A sliding sleeve device with default parameters is placed at every StartMD in the section. A default
tubing string is added, extending to the most upstream EndMD within the section.
• A packer is placed at every StartMD and EndMD depth.
• The well is cased to the most downstream packer.
• Well intervals must not overlap each other.
ValveType (optional)
By default the completion is built with SSDs. To build another type of controllable device, change this
value. Currently the only supported device types are SSD and AFCV.

SlidingSleeveStatus
This section defines when devices are controlled and to what setting (fraction open). There are two items:
• DATE – This must come first. All devices are assumed fully open at their start date, unless stated
otherwise in the well's earliest SlidingSleeveStatus section. When mapping the file contents
to an existing Petrel completion, if data is given for a device at a DATE that is earlier than the
completion device's start date, the data is ignored and a warning written to the log window.
• FractionOpen – If a device is not specified in a section, its FractionOpen remains unchanged at
that time. If the value is outside the range 0.0 to 1.0, the value is constrained within that range and a
warning is written to the log.
Comments
All text on a line that follows two dashes '--' is treated as comments.
Sliding Sleeve History Development Strategy Rule

This new rule controls sliding sleeve completions' open/closed status over time from historical observations. It
must be used in conjunction with the Multi-segmented well option.
Wells
Drop in a well or folder of wells from the strategy tree. For this rule to work correctly, all wells with sliding sleeve
control should be segmented using Define well segmentation and the segmentation set used when building the
simulation case.
Sliding sleeve history data set

Drop in the set of imported sliding sleeve control data from the Input pane. This can be found in the Device
control data folder under the Global Completions folder.

Shift
Choose one of the following:
• No shifting - all dates at which the sliding sleeves are 'controlled' are injected into the simulation
timeline. This is the recommended approach as it is not possible to average out these discrete changes to
the sliding sleeve status.
• Shift - control data are shifted to the previous reporting date in the simulation timeline. If the device is
controlled more than once in a report interval, the first control state in the interval is shifted to the start of
the interval. If the following report interval has no control data, the last control state in the interval is
shifted to the end of the interval. If any control data will be lost as a result of the above, a warning
message is written to the simulation log on export.
Connection Factor Enhancements

Connection Factor Calculation Options
Petrel 2013 now offers five options for how the calculation of connection factors between the well and the
reservoir should be done. The three methods from the ECLIPSE suite Schedule application are supported, and in

addition you have the option to default the calculation to the simulator for those simulators that can calculate the
connection factor internally.
The calculation method is selected from the Well connection factor options field on the Strategies tab of the
Define simulation case process. The options offered are:
• Calculate using E300 method (Petrel default) - the net-to-gross value is used as a multiplier on the Z
component of the well penetration vector through a cell.
• Calculate using E100 method - the net-to-gross value is used as a multiplier on the Z component of the well
penetration vector through a cell and as a multiplier on the height of the block.
• Calculate using scaled permeabilities - the net-to-gross value is used as a multiplier on the X and Y direction
permeabilities.
• Use default calculation in simulator - Petrel does not calculate and export values for the following data. It sets
the values in the simulation input files to the simulator default code, for example '1*' for ECLIPSE.
Transmissibility factor for the connection.
KH.
Skin.
Pressure equivalent radius.
• Look up from grid property – the connection factor is looked up directly from the specified input grid property.
Connection factors for wells within an unstructured grid are always calculated using the Scaled permeabilities
option. In a case where structured grids contain unstructured LGRs, any connection factors calculated for the LGRs
use the Scaled permeabilities option.
When the Use default calculation in simulator option is chosen, the well bore diameter is not set to the default
because the ECLIPSE 100 default value is undefined

Visualizing Well Connection Properties
When available, the Connection transmissibility factor (CF) and Effective Kh (KH) are loaded and displayed as
dynamic 3D simulation results. This is currently only supported for ECLIPSE simulation cases.
For cells connected to one or more wells, the corresponding well connection property is displayed. For any other
cells, no property is shown. In cases where more than one well is connected to a single cell, only one value is
displayed.
To obtain the required data from the simulator, select Grid properties in the Define simulation case process
Results tab, 3D simulation results sub-tab.
Like other dynamic 3D simulation results, these properties can change with time step, for example if a connection
is squeezed. If a well connection is completely shut, no CF or Kh property for that connection is shown.
NOTE: Existing projects are not automatically upgraded to include these dynamic results. If you wish to
load ECLIPSE results for an existing project, reload the simulation results for a case.

This example shows the display for the Connection transmissibility factor:

Capillary Pressure and Relative Permeability Tables
Independent Creation and Editing
In previous versions of Petrel you could not separately control the editing of the capillary pressure and the relative
permeability functions within a saturation function when the Make rock physics process was run. In 2013.1 you
have this separate control.
The Make rock physics process is used to make changes to functions that are generated from correlations, for
example to change the Corey coefficients of a relative permeability function or the exponent b of the J-function
correlation J = a.eb.Swat. Unless the Use correlation or Use J-function options have been ticked for that part of
an existing saturation function, Petrel does not change it. In this way you can within the same Petrel saturation
function, use relative permeability and capillary pressure / J function functions that are created by Petrel from
correlations and defined by entering the tables directly in the spreadsheet view
This is valuable when for example you wish to run uncertainty on your relative curves generated by Petrel from
correlations, but have fixed capillary pressure functions defined in tables that you do not wish to be changed.

Change of Default Number of Rows in Capillary Pressure Tables
In previous versions of Petrel, by default the capillary pressure table contained twice as many rows as the relative
permeability table. The number of table entries should generally be set to the same value for capillary pressure and
relative permeabilities in order for the combined table exported to simulators to match the tables seen in Petrel.
On Upgrade
The current 2008.1- 2012.1 behavior is conserved by default. On upgrade, if you open Make rock physics on an
existing saturation subject, populate the relative permeability, table entries field with the existing tables entries
value (N), and populate the capillary pressure table entries fields with 2N.
When Make rock physics is opened and Create new used, the auto-populated default values enter the same
value into both the relative permeability table entries and the capillary pressure table entries fields. After this, you
can independently change the values and thereby revert to the 2008.1- 2012.1 behavior if required.
Enhanced ECLIPSE Deck Import and Export

Header Information Written to all ECLIPSE Deck Files
Header information is now written to all ECLIPSE deck files exported by Petrel.
Previously, Petrel only wrote header information into exported *.GRDECL files. It now writes such information
into all exported deck files (that is, *.DATA, *.INC, and *.GRDECL).
Support for SKIP/ENDSKIP Keywords

SKIP and ENDSKIP are now supported when importing ECLIPSE decks into Petrel. However, there are some
limitations at present:
• Skipped keywords are not reported as skipped when importing decks, they are just silently ignored.
• SKIP100 and SKIP300 are not supported.
• Skipped sections cannot be edited using Petrel's keyword editor (as they are not loaded).

Support for PATHS Keyword
Keyword PATHS are now supported when importing ECLIPSE decks to Petrel. ECLIPSE data sets containing PATHS
keywords can now be imported to Petrel.
NOTE: PATHS keywords are not generated in exported data sets, but can be added as user keywords.
Support for Non-Darcy Flow Forchheimer Correction

The Forchheimer correction to the Darcy fluid flow equation takes into account the inertia effects due to high
velocity flow that may occur in high permeability regions such as fractures. The correction adds an additional term
to the equation with a coefficient called the Forchheimer parameter.
There is a new field and checkbox Use non-Darcy flow (Drainage relative permeabilities only) in the
Functions tab of the Define simulation case process that enables you to select this option and enter the
Forchheimer parameter β. Units are entered in atma.s .g (known as Forchheimer units). Petrel exports the more
2 -1
general VDFLOWR keyword in all cases.

NOTE: For the Petrel 2013 release, this is an ECLIPSE only functionality. INTERSECT 2012 and earlier
versions do not support non Darcy flow and will ignore this option if used. However, non-Darcy flow will
be supported for an INTERSECT case for INTERSECT 2013.1 (and later versions) through the Petrel
2013.1–INTERSECT 2013.1 connector upgrade that will be release with INTERSECT 2013.1
Precision Changes for Keyword Export

Numeric Precision in Templates
The numeric precision for each template can be set, either in terms of the number of significant figures or the
number of decimal places. A maximum precision of eight decimal places or eight significant figures can be set.
The Numeric precision field in a Petrel template can be used to control:

• The precision with which numerical values are displayed in Petrel dialogs.
• The precision with which some values are written to file by some Petrel exporters.
The default precision for most templates is two or four decimal places. This works well for many, but not all, cases.
Examples of where more precision is required include the following:
• For unconventional fields, a higher precision and use of significant figures is required to represent
nanoDarcy permeabilities.
• For some simulation cases, the rock physics functions require higher precision to correctly simulate multi-
phase flow within the reservoir.
Controlling Numeric Precision for Export

The numeric precision for each template can be set, either in terms of the number of significant figures or the
number of decimal places. The default precision for most templates is from two to four decimal places and these
values work well for many, but not all, cases. You can set a maximum precision of eight decimal places or eight
significant figures.
The Numeric precision field in a Petrel template can be used to control:

• The precision with which numerical values are displayed in Petrel dialogs.

• The precision with which some values are written to file by some Petrel exporters. For example, templates
control the export precision for those parts of simulation case files that most often need user control,
either to preserve information by increased precision, or to reduce the volume of the exported files by
reducing the number of digits written to file.
NOTE: Not all numbers in a simulation case are controlled by the template. See Templates used by ECLIPSE
keywords for the details of which templates map to which ECLIPSE keyword item in the ECLIPSE file format
and ECLIPSE simulation case exporter.
For example, for unconventional fields where permeability magnitudes are of the order of nanoDarcies, the default
four decimal places would result in zero values being shown and exported. When importing an existing ECLIPSE
case, it can be critical to preserve the full precision of the original keyword arguments when converting these to
Petrel subjects and then exporting the converted case. Examples are the values within the relative permeability
tables where the step from zero to "not quite zero" is critical for controlling the phase mobility and hence simulated
breakthrough behavior.
Templates Used by ECLIPSE Keywords

The following tables list the templates used by various ECLIPSE keywords.
The Petrel template can be used to control the precision with which some values are written to file by some Petrel
exporters.
Grid Templates
The numeric precision of some Grid keyword items is controlled by templates. The table below shows which
template controls the numeric precision of each Grid keyword item. All other Grid properties use the
template assigned to grid property.
NOTE: Where no item is specified, the template applies to all items in the keyword.
Keyword Item Template

COORD Distance
HXFIN Fraction
HYFIN Fraction
HZFIN Fraction
MAPAXES 1 to 6 Distance
MULTX Transmissibility multiplier
MULTY Transmissibility multiplier
MULTZ Transmissibility multiplier
ZCORN Elevation depth

Rock Physics Templates
The numeric precision of the following keyword items is controlled by templates. The table below shows which
template controls the numeric precision of each keyword item.

DIFFCBM 1 Diffusivity
DIFFCOAL 1 Diffusivity
JFUNCR 1 Oil-water surface tension
2 Oil-gas surface tension
LANGMEXT 1 Pressure
2 Coal gas volume per mass
LANGMUIR 1 Pressure
2 Gas concentration

SGFN 1 Gas saturation
2 Gas relative permeability
3 Capillary pressure
SGOF 1 Gas saturation
2 Gas relative permeability
3 Oil relative permeability
SOF2 1 Oil saturation
SOF3 1 Oil saturation
SWFN 1 Water saturation
2 Water relative permeability
SWOF 1 Water saturation
2 Water relative permeability

Rock Compaction Keywords

ROCK 1 Pressure
2 Rock compressibility
ROCKPAMA 1 Bulk modulus
2 Compressional modulus
ROCKPAME 1 Bulk modulus
2 Compressional modulus
ROCKTAB 1 Pressure
2 Pore volume multiplier
3 Transmissibility multiplier

Development Strategy Templates
The numeric precision of the following keyword items is controlled by the templates shown.

GCONINJE 4 Oil injection rate, Water injection rate, Gas injection
5 rate
6 Reservoir injection rate
7 Fraction
13 Fraction
Gas injection rate
GCONPROD 3 Oil production rate
4 Water production rate
5 Gas production rate
6 Liquid production rate
14 Reservoir production rate
15 Fraction
17 Enthalpy flow rate
GCONSALE/GRUPSALE 2 Gas production rate
GCONSUMP/GRUPFUEL 2 Gas production rate
GECON 2 Oil production rate
4 Water cut
5 Gas-oil ratio
6 Water-gas ratio

GEFAC 2 Uptime fraction
GLIFTOPT 3 Gas injection rate
GPMAINT 5 Pressure
7 Simulation time
GRUPFUEL/GRUPSALE 2 Gas production rate
LIFTOPT 1 Gas injection rate
WCONINJE 5 Gas injection rate, Oil injection rate, Water injection
6 rate
7, 8 Reservoir injection rate
10 Pressure
11 Gas-oil ratio, Oil-gas ratio
Gas-oil ratio, Oil-gas ratio

WCONPPROD 4 Oil production rate
8 Reservoir production rate
9 Pressure
10 Pressure
14 Molar rate
16 Pressure
17 Relative temperature
18 Enthalpy flow rate
WCYCLE 2 Simulation time
3 Simulation time
4 Simulation time
5 Simulation time
WDRILTIM 2 Simulation time
WECON 2 Oil production rate
4 Water cut
5 Gas-oil ratio
6 Water-gas ratio
11 Water cut
13 Gas-oil ratio
15 Relative temperature
WECONINJ 2 Water injection rate, Gas injection rate, Oil injection
rate

WEFAC 2 Uptime fraction
WELDRAW 2 Pressure
WELLWAG 11 Pressure
12 Pressure
13 Pressure
14 Pressure
WELSPECS 5 Elevation general
WELTARG 3 Pressure, Water injection rate, Gas injection rate, Oil
production rate, Water production rate,
Gas production rate, Liquid production rate, Reservoir
production rate, Pressure, Relative temperature
WINJTEMP 3 Relative temperature
4 Pressure

5 Molar enthalpy
WLIFTOPT 3 Gas injection rate
5 Gas injection rate
WTEST 2 Simulation time
5 Simulation time
Fluids Templates
The numeric precision of the following keyword items is controlled by the templates shown.

COMPVD 1 Elevation general
4 Pressure
MW list Molar mass
MWS list Molar mass
PCRIT list Pressure
PCRITS list Pressure
RTEMP 1 Absolute temperature
TCRIT list Absolute temperature
TCRITS list Absolute temperature
TEMPVD 1 Elevation general
2 Absolute temperature
ZMFVD 1 Elevation general

Wells and Completions Templates
The numeric precision of some wells and completions keyword items is controlled by templates. The table below
shows which template controls the numeric precision of each keyword item.

COMPDAT 8 Connection transmissibility
9 Completion diameter
10 Permeability-length
11 Skin
14 Drainage radius
COMPDATL 9 Connection transmissibility
11 Permeability-length
12 Skin

15 Drainage radius
COMPSEGL 6 Measured depth
7 Measured depth
10 Measured depth
11 Measured depth
COMPSEGS 5 Measured depth
6 Measured depth
9 Measured depth
10 Measured depth
COMPVE 8 Measured depth
9 Measured depth
10 Measured depth
HEATER 5 Enthalpy flow rate
7 Heat transmissibility
HEATERL 6 Enthalpy flow rate
8 Heat transmissibility
MULTX, MULTY, list Transmissibility multiplier
MULTZ
WELPI 2 PI gas
WELSEGS 2 Measured depth
3 Measured depth
WELSEGS 13 Completion area
(thermal) 14 Thermal conductivity matrix-fracture

15 Thermal conductivity matrix-fracture
WELSEGS Record 5 Measured depth
list 6 Measured depth
8 Roughness
9 Completion area
WSEGAICD 5 Completion depth
WSEGHEAT 5 Thermal conductivity matrix-fracture
WSEGLABY 6 Completion area
7 Completion depth
8 Completion depth

10 Roughness
WSEGSICD 5 Completion depth
WSEGVALV 4 Completion area
Field Management
Drag and Drop Modes in the Field Management Dialog
Petrel 2013 introduces two drag and drop modes in the Field management dialog. You can:
• Drag from the Toolbox onto the Strategy pane. This is the same as right-clicking the node and selecting
New and a child node. When you start to drag an item from the Toolbox, nodes that you can drop it into
turn green. If a node which the item can be dropped into is currently hidden (as its parent node has
collapsed children), hovering the mouse over the parent node highlighted in green causes that node to
expand.
• Drag and drop between nodes in the Strategy pane. When a node is dragged from one parent node to
another, if it can be dropped into a property on that node, the node expands showing the list of properties
that the node can be dropped into. This is the same as selecting the target node, and then using the drop
control for the property on the Properties pane.
Drop Mode Active

When you are about to add entities to the Entity list field of an item in the Properties pane, clicking in the entity
list field highlights the entities that can be dropped in. At this point, you are in "drop mode" and a Drop mode
active button appears in the Strategy pane.
To exit drop mode, click Drop mode active. From this point, entities can no longer be dropped in. To reactivate
drop mode, just click in the Entity list field again.

If you want to change the behavior of the drop mode, you have the following options:
• Cancel drop mode after drop - drop mode ends once an entity has been dropped using the blue arrow.
• Alter background color in drop mode - changes the background color of the Strategy pane when in
drop mode.
Entering an Expression as Text

You can enter an expression name as text, and then replace the text with a reference to the expression. To insert
an expression, say as a constraint in a guide rate balancing action.
• In the Constraints field, enter the name of an expression in the format "Expression('<Expression
name>')". For example, for an expression named "New Expression 2", you would enter:
Expression('New Expression 2').
• Click Switch to expression reference adjacent to the field to replace the text with the expression
itself.

Creating a Region List for a 3D Property
You can create a region list based on any "region" 3D grid property. The created regions can be used in
expressions.
1. In the Strategy pane, right-click Regions then select New and Create 3D property region. A New
Region List entry is created.
2. Select the New Region List entry. In the Properties panel, drop the 3D property to use into the Grid
region property field. A region is created for each region defined in the 3D grid property. The region list
is named to match the selected 3D property.
Field Management Options

Use the Options button on the Field Management dialog to configure aspects of its operation. The options appear
in a list when you click the Options button, except for Switch to IX World tree view, which is itself a button. By
default, only the first three options listed below appear.
• Always show advanced fields – Select this if you want the Advanced pane to be expanded whenever
a node is selected in the tree. Otherwise, the Advanced pane is only expanded if it was expanded for the
last selected node.
• Cancel drop mode after drop – If selected drop mode ends once an entity has been blue arrow
dropped.
• Alter background color in drop mode – Changes the background color of the tree panel when in drop
mode.
• Show hidden nodes & fields – Select to show hidden items.
• Show programmatic nodes & fields – Select to show these items.
• Show partner nodes & fields – Select to show partner items.
• Switch to IX World tree view – Click to show the tree in INTERSECT format.

Enabling the full set of options
To access the other options, edit the FMOptions element in the PetrelConfiguration.xml file.
CAUTION: Take great care editing this file.
The FMOptions element has three attributes, shown on the left of the table. Their effect is shown in the body of
the table (y makes the UI item visible).
Effect
Show partner Show hidden Show programmatic Switch to IX
nodes & fields nodes and nodes & fields World tree view
fields (button)
Attribute PartnerEnabled y
FMSchemaViewEnabled y

HiddenNodesEnabled y y y
Support for INTERSECT Workflows

Petrel 2013 is released with a connector to the latest version of INTERSECT, that is to INTERSECT 2012.2.
Note these INTERSECT 2012.2 features are supported in the Petrel 2012.3 update release and later updates of
Petrel 2012
Support for Temperature vs. Depth Tables (TEMPVD) in INTERSECT

Support for temperature vs. depth tables has been extended to INTERSECT cases for Compositional and Thermal
models where Temperature can be set as a user function. The TEMPVD keyword is not written to the intermediate
ECLIPSE deck; instead the data is communicated to INTERSECT via the TEMPI property in the GSG file.
Modeling Fault Threshold Pressure

Petrel, through the Petrel-INTERSECT connector, supports the modeling and simulation of fault threshold pressure.
There are two options:
• Constant fault threshold pressure, that is, a single value across the whole fault. This is equivalent to the
THPRESFT keyword support in the existing Petrel-ECLIPSE workflow.
• Variable fault threshold pressure where, using the Structural and fault analysis process, you can model
the variation in threshold pressure from the physical properties of a fault and pass this to the simulator.
This is a Petrel-INTERSECT only workflow that offers a more realistic approach to simulating the effects of
faults on reservoir behavior.
NOTE: Fault threshold pressure is not supported for stair step faults.

Figure 87. Variable fault threshold pressure

Studio
2013.4
Indexing Service
The indexing service now generates images for ZGY and regular surface, if they are missing from the database, so
that they can be rendered during the Find workflow in Petrel.
2013.3
Studio Database Compatibility

Petrel 2013.1, 2013.2 and 2013.3 can be connected to any Studio Database 2013.X. The following table shows the
details for the compatibility of the Petrel versions with the Studio Database versions
Studio DB Version 2012.3 + 2013.1 2013.2 2013.3
Petrel Version
2012.3 + YES NO NO NO
2013.1 NO YES YES YES
Web Map Gallery

A new Webmap Gallery has been added, which enables users to choose from a selection of pre-defined map-
services.

Data Synchronization
New options have been added to control what data is sent and received when a user executes the synchronization
process.
Users can set a filter to be used as a synchronization filter limiting what data will be synchronized between the
Studio Database and the users’ Petrel project.

Users can now control what new items get sent to the database by limiting the selection to one or multiple data
statuses.

2013.2
Studio Database Compatibility
Petrel 2013.1 and Petrel 2013.2 can be connected to any Studio Database 2013.X. The following table shows the
details for the compatibility of the Petrel versions with the Studio Database versions.
Petrel Version Studio Database Compatibility

Version
2013.1 2013.1 Yes
2013.1 2013.2 Yes
2013.2 2013.1 Yes
2013.2 2013.2 Yes
2013.1 2012.X No
2013.2 2012.X No
2012.X 2013.X No
Original CRS
Studio stores the Original CRS information and it can be retrieved from the Database to Petrel. The value of the

Original CRS is displayed in the Repository Data Table.

The following data types are supported:
• Wells
• Seismic 3D Survey, any folder with 3D data
• Seismic Cube
• Horizon 3D Interpretation
• Lines
• Boundaries
• Fault Sticks
• Fault Interpretation
• Regular Surface
• Points
• Polygons
• 2D Line navigation
• Custom domain objects
Option to enable/disable Seismic image generation during

transfer
When seismic data (ZGY/SEGY) is transferred to Studio, you have the option to enable the generation of a time
slice that is also sent to Studio. With this option enabled, when the repository is indexed, the seismic cube is
represented spatially by a bounding cube and a time slice at the mid-way point. With the option disabled, you will
only see the bounding cube.

Support of Raster Logs
Studio will support raster logs. Images will be stored externally and Studio will store the location of these files.
Send and retrieve of a well with these logs automatically transfer the custom logs under the selected well.
Enabling Well Tops Folder Synchronization Status

You can enable a synchronization status icon displayed for the Well Tops folder in the Database tool Project
and Repository trees. This icon indicates if a well top in the Well Tops folder has been added, deleted, or changed
in either your Petrel project or the repository since the last refresh of the Database tool.
Re-parenting of seismic interpretation

The re-parenting of seismic interpretation has been enhanced. You now have the ability to re-parent more than one
horizon at a time and to a survey that has a similar geometry (i.e., different CRS in the database). You can also re-
parent seismic interpretation to a survey in the database with a greater survey range.

2013.1
Studio Installer
Studio now has its own installer for the following components:
• Studio Manager - Includes previous data environment manager functionality (indexing), database
manager functionality and new data management workflows. This functionality replaces tools that were
previously listed under the Custom option for Petrel installation. New database configuration functionality
has also been added, which includes installation and upgrade functionality for your Studio Database.
Studio Manager is a licensed application with licensing options for Oracle® and Microsoft SQL Server®.
• Runtime Installer

For information on new features inside Studio 2013 (Database, Manager and Runtime), please see the Studio
Release Notes available with the Studio installer, which is available through the Software Download Center or the
Studio DVD.
Find
Saved Selection
You can now share a list of data items via email or a shared disk with other users. This facilitates a central team or
a specific data administrator to load data on someone’s behalf. It also allows certain data sources to be visible to
users while allowing control over how the data is loaded. It is also now possible to import data items using a
previously saved list.

User defined search result hierarchy
You can define several multi-level, customized tree views under Search results to arrange data items in a custom
hierarchy.

Favorites
You can now highlight one or more objects in the Search results pane that are contained within your local project
and then add them to objects in the Favorites pane.

General
Importing and Exporting Shape Files
When importing shape files to Petrel, shape files and attribute names can be greater than or equal to 8 characters.
You can now export Petrel object shapes to shape files, which can then be imported into other applications.
Map Service preview

When adding a new map service, you are now given a thumbnail preview.

Support for URLs in the Inspector
For Webmap services, the Inspector now supports URLs, where the underlying map service has defined the
attribute as a URL type.

Framework
2013.2
Spline/Linear interpolation switch for opacity curve
For objects that support templates and color tables, a new option in the color table editor allows you to switch
between linear and spline interpolation for the opacity curve. The default is spline interpolation, which was the
only option in previous version of Petrel. To use this option, open the object’s Settings dialog and click the Color
tab.

Rendering geo-referenced images in geographic space
In previous Petrel versions, images geo-referenced in latitude/longitude were often inaccurately rendered in the
large geographic areas, such as those used in regional exploration workflows. In the 2013.2 release, you can
replace latitude/longitude coordinates for geo-referenced images with a user-specified scheme. To do this,
explicitly specify four corners from the image CRS (by default, WGS1984), which can differ from your project’s CRS.
Rendering an image in a 2D or 3D window morphs it into spatial correctness by texture-mapping onto tiled grids.

General
2013.2
CRS Consolidation
Restructured Tools menu
A specific menu entry for the review and consolidation of the project Coordinate Reference System (CRS) has been
added. The project CRS can now be reviewed directly using “Project CRS review”. This option launches the CRS
Consolidation dialog with the project CRS in context. All CRS consolidation related menu items are now grouped in
a cascading sub-menu.
2013.1
User Interface
The Petrel 2013 release brings several enhancements to the general user interface: a unified help center, updated
window scheme and icons, and changes in the way the data tree synchronizes with actions in the display window.

Help Center
A new Help Center was introduced in 2013.1, putting all documentation associated with Petrel and your installed
Ocean Plug-ins in one place. The Help Center contains the latest Petrel documentation artifacts as well as
documentation from the two previous Petrel versions. It also features a universal search, capable of searching
through all installed documentation. In addition, you are provided with links to access the Support Portal, NExT
training portal, and the Ocean Store.

Display
The user interface was upgraded to a modern, fresh look by introducing a new color scheme and application
background, a new set of icons, and updated tooltips.
Figure 88. New Petrel 2013 user interface

Figure 89. Sample Petrel icons in 2012 (left) and 2013 (right)
Selection Synchronization to Data Tree

New functionality was added to the data tree, synchronizing it with selections made in the display window.
Previously the data tree only updated to reflect the selected object when using the right mouse button. By
introducing this behavior for left button actions, you can now see which object is selected in the display by looking
at the data tree. Petrel automatically scrolls and expands the tree as necessary. Right mouse button behavior
remains unchanged.

Activation Follows Selection
Many processes in Petrel work on the active object. A process is made active by selecting it in the tree or from the
right mouse button option, Toggle active in tree. In Petrel 2013 this was augmented so that selecting an object
in the window also makes it active. This slightly changes some workflows and makes others more efficient and
more ergonomic. The following example compares the steps required to change the relationship between fault A
and fault B when using the 2012 and 2013 versions of Petrel.
Petrel 2012 Petrel 2013
1. Right-click fault A. 1. Select fault A.

2. Click Toggle active in tree. 2. Right-click fault B.
3. Right-click fault B. 3. Click the desired action.
4. Click the desired action.
This behavioral change results in reduced interaction with the data tree. For example, if grid A and grid B are
displayed in the 3D window and you want to set the Property player direction:
• In Petrel 2012, you must make the appropriate grid active in the Model tab.
• In Petrel 2013, selecting the property in the 3D window automatically makes it active, and the Property
player is immediately available for that property.

Process-Dependent Window Activation Removed
The automatic activation and creation of certain window types for select processes is now turned off. This change
allows you to be in charge of such events. Examples of processes where this change takes effect are fault
modeling, pillar gridding, and automatic fault extraction. For example, Pillar gridding in 2012 automatically opened
a 2D window and populated it with the faults, trends and borders of the active 3D model. That could be confusing
when working with more than one 3D model. In 2013 the choice of window and selection of the data is left up to
you.
Visualization of Points and Polygons

New Point and Polygon Rendering
Points and Polygons are two of the most important data types in Petrel, and their display performance is critical in
2D and 3D windows. Many workflows utilize points (such as surface representations) or polygons (such as cultural
data with textured infill). Petrel 2013 introduces a new rendering algorithm for points rendered in 3D spheres. This
default display style replaces the existing 3D Sphere Style (selectable through the Settings dialog or the Point
Data Inspector window), and it utilizes graphic card hardware and memory for display purposes, boosting the
visualization performance significantly. Displaying point sets with >20 million points on a recommended hardware

configuration (essentially impossible on previous versions of Petrel) is now possible while still preserving full
interactivity in a 2D or 3D window.
Large cultural data sets consisting of thousands of polygons could cause severe performance issues in previous
Petrel releases. These are now solved by using graphic card hardware to display the data in the Petrel 3D or 2D
window.
These improvements allow you to continue working interactively in 2D and 3D windows while handling larger and
more datasets without compromising fidelity or accuracy.
Point and Polygon Editing Tools

The ability to create, edit, and select operations are now compounded into a single tool. This enables a more
seamless work pattern. The most significant changes are:
• A single polygon editing mode covers point and line selection, bounding-box selection, moving of points
and lines, and appending and inserting points (through a key modifier).
• Previously Petrel restricted interactions to the active object at all times. It is now an explicit setting of the
editing mode. This allows active object dependency to be turned off, thereby broadening the scope of
selection to include all points on visible polygons (similarly for points).
• Undo will always undo every change from the last interaction, regardless of how many polygons (or
points) was affected
You can find the tools in the Make/edit polygons process toolbar. Tools whose capabilities are subsumed into
the new modes are omitted.

Figure 90. Process tools in Petrel 2013 (top) and 2012 (bottom)
The following list summarizes the keyboard and mouse actions you now use to edit points and polygons:
• Select points –Click a point. To add or remove points from the selection, hold down Shift and click.
Selected points can be dragged in the 3D window, deleted, or acted upon by operations in the Process
actions toolbar.
• Select polyline – Click the line between points to select all points in the line.
• Select bounding box – Click the background to initiate a bounding box selection. To add or remove
points from the selection, hold down Shift and click.
• Deselect all points – Click the background to deselect all points.
• Add points to an existing polygon – With at least one point already selected, hold down Ctrl and click

a point to append it to the polygon. To insert a point between existing points, hold down Ctrl and Shift and
click a point.
• Make new polygon – If no points are selected when you start adding points, a new polyline will be
created in the active polygon. If there is no active polygon, a new one will be created.
System Enhancements
Refer to the Petrel 2013 Installation Guide for more information about the following improvements.
Startup Optimization
Petrel 2013 introduces a Startup Optimization setting which is enabled with the Petrel installer.
Figure 91. Petrel startup optimization setting in the installation GUI

The Startup Optimization runs a native image generator (Ngen) tool that improves performance of managed
applications. Ngen.exe creates native images—files containing compiled processor-specific machine code—and
installs them into the native image cache on the local computer. The runtime can use native images from the cache
instead of using the just-in-time (JIT) compiler to compile the original assembly.
Startup optimization is switched on by default. After Petrel has been installed and the system is idle, Ngen starts
to create native images and stores them on the local PC. This will only take a couple of minutes, depending on the
system load. The whole process is invisible to users, and the system controls when to create the native images and
when to use them.
Once the native images are created, they are used every time Petrel is launched and this improves startup
performance significantly. For further information please read the relevant section of the Petrel 2013 Installation
Guide.
Installation Progress
Petrel 2013 introduces a progress bar for the installation procedure, informing you about progress and status on
every installation step. In addition, a progress bar is shown when launching Petrel indicating the current task

executed while launching Petrel. This makes the Petrel installation a transparent process with immediate user
feedback.
Figure 92. Progress bar during installation and Petrel startup
Memory Monitoring
Physical RAM memory utilization is further increased with Petrel 2013. Many operations use the CPU and persist in
the machine’s physical memory (RAM). It is therefore useful to be informed about the utilization level of the
memory buffer, because the overall Petrel performance is affected when operating at memory-size limits.
Petrel 2013 introduces a monitor gauge in the lower-right menu bar. It measures current usage of physical RAM
memory. When usage reaches 90%, the monitor turns red to indicate that you should show caution when executing
further memory-intensive tasks. Petrel will not abort, but performance gradually degrades when consistently
operating > 90% memory usage. A gauge tooltip provides detailed information on the memory usage. Clicking the
RAM gauge is a shortcut to launching Tools>>Free memory from the main menu.

Figure 93. RAM Gauge with Tooltip
Version Identifier
Petrel projects stored on disks identify themselves through the name, extension, and Petrel icon. However, it is
often useful to know which Petrel version was used the last time the project was saved. Previously you needed to
open the project to discover this information. Petrel 2013 introduces a version identifier in Windows Explorer.
To enable display of the Petrel version:

1. Open Windows Explorer to your project directory, right-click any column heading, and click More.
2. In the Choose Details dialog, check the File version option and click OK.

Figure 94. Adding the File Version parameter to Windows Explorer
Once selected, the Petrel version displays in Explorer, as illustrated in the following example. The File Version
identifies Petrel projects from Petrel 2011 or later. From Petrel 2013 forward, minor versions (2013.x) are also
exposed.
Figure 95. Example File version displays for Petrel projects

Coordinate Reference System (CRS)
CRS Consolidation
You may need to reconcile Coordinate Reference System (CRS) data, if your project references external data
sources that are not represented in the Petrel CRS catalogs or naming errors are introduced into the catalog. The
CRS Consolidation process helps resolve such issues.

A representation of the user interface is shown above.
When importing data into Petrel, you choose the CRS that your data refers to by using the CRS selector. The
catalog choices are typically provided and maintained by your geodetic department using the Coordinate System
Manager in Studio* Manager.
Other data connectors or CRS definitions (for example, from OpenSpirit* Petrel Adaptor or Joint Ventures and
Partners), create data in Petrel with original CRS references to the external data sources. In this case, the new CRS
definitions entering your Petrel project may not be listed in the Petrel CRS catalogs.
CRS matching is complex. For data loaders and transfers, it is generally better to leave the CRS definitions as close
as possible to the original CRS and avoid matching. In the long run, however, it is not desirable to keep multiple,
synonymous CRS definitions in parallel. This is particularly undesirable in the Studio environment, where a CRS
must be present in the reference tables prior to data transfer.
Over time, human error may introduce undesirable CRS naming conventions, e.g., as the result of a typo in a name.
The CRS definitions then become replicated inside multiple Petrel projects. Corrections in the CRS catalogs address
the problem only for new projects and newly-loaded data. Existing projects continue to refer to the old, misnamed
CRS definition.

Use CRS consolidation to:
• Change non-standard CRS definitions to standard definitions
• Adjust local CRS naming conventions
• Correct typographical errors in CRS names, descriptions, datums, etc.
• Consolidate authority codes
Any Petrel user can submit a CRS consolidation request, which is then approved by a geodetic expert. This is a
four-step process:
1. In the data context of a Petrel project, users propose a new CRS definition for existing data. This is done
by selecting a CRS from the catalog. The proposals are gathered in a separate proposed CRS replacement
table. Once a set of replacements are proposed, the geodetic expert is notified about the proposals, for
example by email with attached proposed CRS replacements.
2. The geodetic expert reviews the proposed CRS replacements and validates them. The validated
replacement pairs are compiled into the approved replacement table, which is a separate data file. The
file format is xml, which can be edited by text editors or in Microsoft® Excel. The geodetic expert should
also review the description of the reason for the replacement, because the rational will appear in the data
history.

3. The approved CRS replacement table is deployed to Petrel users. The procedure depends on the
configuration.
4. After deployment, Petrel users can apply the CRS replacement by either interactive execution (logging into
the message window) or by a workstep in a Petrel workflow (logging into a log file).
Upgraded ESRI Projection Engine

Petrel 2013 deploys a new version (10.1) of the ESRI projection engine. The new version comes with a number of
new coordinate reference systems and transformations, as well as corrections for a few mistakes, which requires
that the Petrel coordinate reference system (CRS) catalogs have to be upgraded. This happens automatically the
first time Petrel opens a CRS selector or the Coordinate System Manager utility is launched. Petrel project data are
upgraded on the fly during project load.
Details:
• Catalog handling
o The <Petrel.exe-path>\xml\ CoordinateCatalogConfiguration.xml contains the definition of the
catalog location on disk/network as well as where the user and enterprise catalogs of previous
versions are expected.
o The <Petrel.exe-path>\xml\ESRI10AddOnsCatalog.ctl contains the new CRSs and transformations
known to the new ESRI 10.1 engine; the content is merged into the CRS enterprise catalog on
upgrade.
o Old Petrel projects and catalogs are updated when first loaded to Petrel 2013
 ESRI corrections are managed via upgrade files. These files contain the instructions
how to preserve the previous engine behavior. The upgrade files are deployed in:
 <Petrel.exe-path>\EsriCatalog\upgrade\CatalogUpgrade9.3.0.txt contains the
replacement instructions for project upgrades from Petrel 2010 to 2011/2012.
 <Petrel.exe-path>\EsriCatalog\upgrade\CatalogUpgrade10.0.txt contains the instructions
for upgrade from Petrel 2011/2012 to Petrel 2013.

• Upgrade
o Deprecated CRSs and transformations will appear with authority codes [PE_9_3_1, 999<previous
code>] or [PE_10_0_0, 999<previous code>] and carry the previous behavior. These items should
not be used for new projects. Sometimes the old definitions contain serious errors (unit issues,
wrong datum, etc.)
o Projects using deprecated CRSs must be reviewed. If the CRS was used to convert/transform
data into the project CRS the conversion/transformation has to be ‘undone’ by
converting/transforming from a project with deprecated CRS to a project with correct CRS. If it is
guaranteed that the ‘wrong’ CRS was never used for conversions/transformations, the definition
can be swapped using the CRS consolidation (see previous section).
o For further details please contact Support for ESRI upgrade documentation.

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What are some of the new structural modeling capabilities in Petrel 2013?

What are some of the new structural modeling capabilities in Petrel 2013?

What is Coordinate System Consolidation and how does it work?

What is Coordinate System Consolidation and how does it work?

Petrel E&P Software Platform 2013

What’s New Guide

Trademarks & Service Marks

An asterisk (*) is used throughout this document to designate a mark of Schlumberger.

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 2 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 3 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 4 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 5 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 6 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 7 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 8 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 9 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 10 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 11 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 12 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 13 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 14 3 March 2014

Volume Based Modeling Method

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Figure 1. Stages in the construction of a Volume based model (VBM)

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 15 3 March 2014

Fault network Built horizon(s) Built zones

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Ability to handle complex fault networks

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 16 3 March 2014

Extensional structure** Compressional Structure Extensional structure***

Modeling of geological sequences:

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Figure 4. Conformable sequence modeling using VBM

Sparse data handling

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 17 3 March 2014

Figure 5. Simple scenario (A) and scenario complicated by faults (B)

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Fast model update

Thin layer handling

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 18 3 March 2014

Figure 6. Access to the validate fault model process

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Figure 7. QC Manager Window

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 19 3 March 2014

Schlumberger Private – Customer Use

Structural framework fault tools

Petrel Platform What’s New Guide 2013 20 3 March 2014

Extensional structure Compressional Structure Extensional structure*