SEG EVOLVE Competition

A team of four M.S. Geology students and one Ph.D. Petroleum Engineering student from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s School of Geosciences and Department of Petroleum Engineering participated in the 2022 Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) EVOLVE Program.

The UL Lafayette team nicknamed “The Ragin Explorers,” composes of Pascal Ifechukwude Esenenjor (M.S., Geology, Team Captain), Juliet Chioma Aralu (M.S., Geology), Emmanuel Dudun Anireju (Ph.D., Petroleum Engineering), Henry Arhin (M.S., Geology) and Tolulope Ayobami Ayodele (M.S., Geology). The team’s faculty advisor was Dr. Rui Zhang.

Official Team Photograph of the Ragin Explorers

The Ragin Explorers was one of the 10 teams who completed the SEG EVOLVE program from the 11 teams invited to participate off the 20 teams who initially applied from across the world.

21 suites of well logs, 3D seismic data of about 1200km2 in area, checkshot data and biostratigraphy data of the Vermilion Area, Northern Gulf of Mexico, one of the most prolific basins in the world with known production of oil and gas, was provided for this study with the goal of recommending the “Best Investment Opportunity” to a board of potential investors.

The SEG EVOLVE program enlisted the help of many industry mentors to advise all the teams which included Chris Wojcik, Jim DiSiena and Mike Forrest and many more.

The SEG EVOLVE Program is a six-month annual prospective basin evaluation program designed to give students direct experience in conducting multidisciplinary subsurface integration projects using real-world seismic, wireline, core, production, and other data.

Depth Map of the Teams Best Investment Opportunity of the Vermilion Area

The program, which has Michael Forest, Arthur Cheng, ExxonMobil and Geophysical Purbutt Inc. as donors allow students to utilize modern technology such as locally installed Petrel and Techlog interpretation software for technical integration.

Similar to the renowned AAPG IBA Program, the EVOLVE Program also provides students with the ability to gain a fundamental understanding of the economics involved in prospecting by examining the study area from a petroleum engineering perspective. The team also carried out a CO2 mitigation plan in accordance with the UN SDG 13 (Climate Action) goal.

The team conducted their final presentation in May 2022 where a panel of judges representing various major companies around the world provided their expert opinion. The team was also invited to make a shorter, concise presentation focused on selling their main prospect at the 2022 AAPG/SEG IMAGE Conference.