Guideline for Ensemble Data Sharing

What data is shared when ensembles are built currently varies greatly between licenses. Some share very little, others all data available. Both the sharing of too little and the sharing of too much data often leads to licensees being unable to execute their see-to-duty and to constructively participate in the decision-making process. Hence a cross-functional group have come together under the FORCE umbrella (Integrated Reservoir Modelling network group) to set-out guidelines which are agreeable from both an operator as well as a partner perspective.

Companies involved have been – in alphabetical order - AkerBP, ConocoPhillips, Equinor, Petoro, PGNiG, Resoptima, TotalEnergies, Vår Energi and Wintershall Dea Norge with facilitation from the Norwegian Offshore Directorate.

The document is written as a guideline rather than as a standard as each field / modelling project has different needs. It sets out what licensees should share and in what format. As it does not provide an exhaustive list of suggestions it should not be used as a limitation to what can be shared. During the process of writing the document it has become clear that ongoing collaboration between parties is the key to understanding rather than proscribed sharing and checklists.

As this is the first edition of this guideline document, the aim is to update and adapt this document after its first year in use (June 2024). If you have feedback, please contact a member in the workgroup as listed in the document. It is also possible to send feedback to postboks@sodir.no with "Feedback – Guideline for ensemble data sharing" in the subject box. In addition, the people involved in creating this document will actively gather feedback within their companies.

Link to the Integrated Reservoir Modelling network and the guideline