Navigating the Decommissioning Glidepath: How Geoactive Can Help Support the Service Sector

Pressure to deliver safe and efficient decommissioning in ultra late life assets 

As the oil and gas industry contends with the realities of aging fields and declining production, late life asset optimization and well abandonment has become essential to ensuring companies plan for decommissioning effectively. Environmental scrutiny, regulatory pressures, and the sheer complexity of subsurface conditions have made efficient and responsible late-life operations and decommissioning a top priority. 

In the UK this challenge is increasingly falling on the service sector where the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has recently published its latest update on the UKCS Decommissioning Cost and Performance, highlighting that we are in the midst of a pivotal 10-year period where an estimated £27bn will be spent between 2023 and 2032.   

It is essential that the supply chain delivers effectively across the many challenges ultra late-life operations and decommissioning present and continues to be a world leader in this field.  With significant concern growing that deferral of decommissioning due to a contracting supply chain could add a further $5.5bn to the overall bill it is vital that companies like Geoactive step up and use their experience and software to support this effort. 

At Geoactive, we’re proud of our technical specialists in Petrophysics and Geomechanics, and our proprietary software, IP and IC. We help operators and consultancies tackle late-life production challenges and support the planning and execution of well abandonment, which accounts for nearly half of the UK’s total decommissioning costs.

Smarter ultra late-life asset optimization and decommissioning 

Optimizing late-life production and abandonment strategies depends on high-quality data and the ability to extract meaningful insights. With advanced subsurface analysis tools and fresh consultancy support, Geoactive empowers operators to uncover new efficiencies - backed by over 200 years of technical expertise and market-leading software development. 

Our consultancy provides a range of services across the petrophysical spectrum, from specialized log analysis, to cased hole interpretation to geomechanics, all of which can provide value to your teams and project. 

• Petrophysical evaluation: reliable log analysis using existing and new data within your well inventory can allow you to identify barrel add opportunities for cost efficient production optimization to help offset the decommissioning cost and identify shallow zones, zones of flow potential and caprock candidates as part of planning process.
• Cased hole log interpretation can help identify well integrity issues to ensure well abandonment costs are reliable and based on the best data available while primary barrier bond analysis (cement or shale) ensures your wells are reliably sealed.
• Geomechanics can establish caprock validity and the locations of geomechanical primary plug abandonment locations (MSAD) by analyzing caprock quality, pore pressure trends, and fracture gradients to ensure long-term containment. 

Collaborating with you in a world-leading venture

Abandonment isn’t just a technical endpoint; it’s a reputational milestone. Operators are expected to leave wells in a condition that reflects engineering integrity and environmental stewardship. Geoactive helps customers exit with pride, knowing every decision was backed by robust geoscience and forward-thinking software. 

So, if you’re ready to optimize your late-life asset management decisions and abandonment planning, then please get in touch. Ask me how our subsurface consultancy services can bring a fresh perspective and lasting confidence to late-life asset decisions.