Abstract
In May 2014 a permanent seismic monitoring system was deployed in Peace River Pad 31 to monitor areal steam conformance during pad re-development in this heavy oil field in Alberta, Canada. The dataset comprises a two-year monitoring period and was used within the Well and Reservoir Management framework to optimize production performance and increase field recovery. With seismic snapshots available daily, one area of investigation was to determine the monitoring frequency that maximizes Value of Information (VOI). A lookback study with a panel of independent experts showed that for the particular case of Pad 31, with very limited control due to the existing well completions, quarterly monitoring would be sufficient. Additionally, guidelines were developed for defining an effective seismic monitoring program (e.g., align monitoring with major field interventions, allow enough time for changes to be actionable, etc.). Although based on observations from the Pad 31 trial, these guidelines should be applicable to other thermal developments in heavy oil fields.
