New nodal systems for both land and marine deployment demonstrate that it is important that companies keep innovating and collaborating to improve oil and gas technologies.

There is a trend away from frontier oil and gas exploration towards finding more in less risky proven basins, fuelled by learning gleaned from studying the most successful petroleum basins in the world.

The Middle East is best known for its conventional oil and gas reserves, which have been a critical part of the world’s supply for nearly a century. Could the US shale revolution be transferred to the Middle East? Maybe – but geology is not the only factor in the shale revolution.

A new seismic survey and integrated study reveals hydrocarbon potential in the ultra-deep offshore Gabon petroleum systems.

This year Namibia has again moved into the spotlight as major oil companies increased their presence along the Namibian margin, with plenty of onshore hydrocarbon potential just waiting for adventurous explorers.

Activity from upstream operators is starting to pick up from the post-2014 oil slump. However, global discovered oil and gas volumes still lag far behind where they stood before the oil price drop.

Two discoveries in Guyana were announced on 16 September 2019, further progressing the exciting story of oil in South America.

Although the quantities discovered are relatively small, with estimates of between 20-60 MMbo recoverable, the well proves the presence of oil in the blocks north of the Wisting field, Barents Sea.

Cooper Energy have made a gas discovery in the large Late Jurassic–Cenozoic Otway Basin, Australia.

Although underexplored, two oil-bearing provinces have been identified in Cuba and there is plenty of open acreage available in the ongoing oil and gas licensing round.

This black shale has been known and exploited as a source rock for over 100 years, but in a potentially game-changing event, the first exports from the Vaca Muerta itself were delivered in June 2019.

The Faroe Islands are inviting oil companies to explore for hydrocarbons on the Faroese Continental Shelf.

TGS and PGS recently announced a joint multi-client High Density 3D project in the Jeanne d’Arc Basin offshore Newfoundland, East Canada.

The Caribbean currently offers an unprecedented number of hydrocarbon exploration opportunities, with promising potential in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Honduras, Nicaragua and The Bahamas.

There are wide lessons to be learned from the controversy over the origins of the enigmatic Cretaceous lacustrine carbonate reservoirs of offshore Brazil.