Analytics Magazine Analytics Magazine, March/April 2014 | Page 42

OI L F IEL D AN A LY T I C S Companies that unify their data to enable holistic analysis of all three domains will understand each of the three much more deeply than they do today. In addition, they will likely find hidden interrelationships that can only be guessed at today. (which fail with some regularity, bringing production to a halt), or to choose the best procedures to “work over” a well whose production has fallen due to causes such as sand accumulation or casing deterioration. Still, while analytics software can deliver significant value in each of these cases, it is important to keep in mind that these examples address the three domains – exploration, development and production – separately. Companies that unify their data to enable holistic analysis of all three domains will understand each of the three much more deeply than they do today. In addition, they will likely find hidden interrelationships that can only be guessed at today. Ultimately, these new and deeper understandings will improve exploration success, bring new efficiencies to the development phase, and increase the lifetime return on their assets and investments. Warren Wilson ([email protected]) leads Ovum’s energy team, focusing primarily on IT for upstream oil & gas. His research focuses on the ways in which leading-edge IT such as anal