June 2011, Vol. 6 http://europe.aapg.org/ http://www.aapg.org/europe/newsletters/index.cfm TABLE OF CONTENTS PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE President’s Message 1 Dear Reader, ExxonMobil, Shell, Total, MOL, Centrica, Nexen, Sterling, R&D Projects 2 Petrom (OMV), RPS Energy, Baker Hughes, Maersk, Hess, Controls on Natural Gas This is my final Newsletter Statoil, Serica Energy, BG Group, and the UK Scout Group. Seepage message because my term Our thanks go to these organisations, without whose as President of the support we would not be able to run the competition. I Exploration Country Focus 5 European Region expires at believe that the industry is becoming aware of the huge Romania the end of June. Vlasta value of the competition and as it grows I hope that more Dvořakova will take over companies will want to become sponsors. We had a panel of Conferences and Seminars 8 from me and I will continue 8 excellent judges who were very impressed by the event, as Past President for a the enthusiasm of the teams and the quality of the technical Student Chapter & IBA 14 further two years. It has presentations. I encourage you to visit the AAPG European been an honour and a pleasure for me to serve the Office section of the AAPG website to view a short video of Calendar 18 membership and it has opened my eyes to what a truly the competition. The winners, Southampton University in great organisation the AAPG is. I have been a member of the UK, went on to take second place in the global AAPG‐ER Structure 19 the AAPG since 1977 and early in my career I did not realise competition at the Annual Convention in Houston and are the benefits of membership and therefore did not use the to be congratulated on their performance. We are planning products and services that were available at the time. Of to organise future European competitions such that we can course the AAPG has changed over the past 30 years, accommodate 30 teams, which will require some logistical EDITORIAL BOARD having become a global organisation with a hugely changes and substantially more financial support from Karen Wagner, Chief Editor expanded range of services. I believe however that the industry. So, if your organisation has not contributed, James Bailey, Coordinator majority of members do not maximise the benefits of please make every effort to inform your leadership team of David Contreras, Coordinator membership and may be largely ignorant of what is the benefits of the programme and encourage them to Fadi Nader, Coordinator support it. available. I encourage all members to visit www.aapg.org and review the range of conferences, publications, AAPG European Region Council information and educational opportunities and to It’s election time again. Voting is taking place for the David R. Cook, President encourage colleagues who are not yet members to do the Vlastimila Dvořakova, President-Elect President Elect, Treasurer and Secretary of the European Chris Elders, Vice-President same. Membership in the AAPG is not only about the Council and for delegates to the House of Delegates, the n.n., Secretary science but also about the opportunity to meet AAPG’s parliamentary body. I encourage all Active Knut Henrik Jakobsson, Treasurer geoscientists from all over the world and discuss issues of members to vote and all qualified Associate members to Jean Gérard, AAPG Advisory Council common interest. convert to Active status, in order to be able to take part in István Bérczi, Past-President this democratic process in the future. The AAPG European Region Newsletter is Over the recent past the AAPG has concentrated on published quarterly by the American providing services for students and young professionals, I would like to thank the European Region Council, Association of Petroleum Geologists - European Region, 1st Floor, 56 Brewer Street, who are the foundations of our membership. In the Subcommittees and AAPG staff for providing me with London W1F 9TJ, Phone:+44 (0) 2074341399. European Region there are 55 student chapters, of which encouragement and support during my tenure as President. I The months of issue are March, June, 32 are active and 16 of these sent teams to the Region’s have really enjoyed being more involved with the AAPG September and December. Imperial Barrel Award (IBA) competition this year. We have Instructions to authors and I have made many new friends in the process. I will be Editorial correspondence and material Young Professionals Chapters in London, Aberdeen and continuing my involvement, not only through the position submitted for publication should be addressed Copenhagen and it is hoped to create more in the near of Past President, but also as Secretary/Editor of the House to the Editor to [email protected]. All materials should be sent by the 15th of the month before future, in order to provide a bridge between student and of Delegates. It will be my job to continue the good work of issue publication. All submissions are subject professional membership. I would like to express my Patrick Gooding in producing the Delegates Voice, the to editorial review and revision. thanks to Florentina Enea, chair of the European Student quarterly newsletter of the House of Delegates. Finally, I Subscriptions Subscription to this publication is included in and Young Professional Subcommittee, for the her and her would like to wish Vlasta Dvorakova good luck during her the membership dues. team’s unflagging efforts and enthusiasm in promoting the term as President, I am sure that she will enjoy it as much as Advertising pricing and size creation of chapters. They have been instrumental in The Newsletter is printed digitally. Advertising I have.█ is accepted on a space-available basis. encouraging collaboration between chapters and in the Deadline for submitting material is 15th of the organisation of programmes of lectures, field trips and month before issue publication. social events. David R. Cook Advertisement Actual size Front page Random Page Size cost inside cost AAPG European Region President Eighth 27.75 x 21.8 $50 $25 Quarter 55.5 x 43 $75 435 Half 111 x 87.5 Not applicable $75 The European IBA competition, which was again held in Full 222 x 175 Not applicable $100 Prague this year, was a huge success with 17 university teams from 9 countries taking part, from Lisbon in the west to Tyumen in the east. The event was sponsored by AAPG‐ER Newsletter – June 2011 1 R&D PROJECTS coordinated by Fadi Nader Controls on Natural Gas Seepage and Focused Fluid Flow on the South Atlantic and the Barents Sea (1) (2) Zahie Anka as Head of a Helmholtz-University Young Investigator Group (*) and part of the “Methane on the Move” group (1,*, 3) (1,2,*) (1,2,*) (1,2,*) (1,*) (1,*) Markus Lögering , Ilya Ostanin , Nikolaus Baristeas , Gabriela Marcano , Emmanuel Rodriguez , Rolando di Primio (1) Helmholtz Centre Potsdam GFZ, Telegrafenberg 14473 Potsdam, Germany (3) Now at Fugro Robertson Ltd. Llandudno, United Kingdom Leakage of liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons through focused fluid flow are seldom addressed, much less the thermogenic‐gas fluxes quantified. systems is a process recognised on most sedimentary basins and continental Thus, a real mass balance of the global amounts of thermally‐generated margins. Studying the abundance, distribution and drivers for this process is methane emissions and their temporal variability is yet to be investigated. A crucial to understand its role on geological phenomena such as submarine detailed study is currently being undertaken in this sense by a recently slope stability and gas hydrate dynamics. Additionally, since natural gas created Helmholtz‐University Young Investigator Group at the Organic seepage is a source to the ocean and atmosphere of powerful greenhouse Geochemistry Section of the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences gases such as methane, it might have played a role on world’s ocean (Helmholtz Center Potsdam).The group is co‐sponsored by the Helmholtz chemistry and Earth’s past maximum‐thermal events. Moreover, as this Association of German Research Centers and the Technical University of process is usually associated to the distribution of sub‐surface hydrocarbon Berlin (TU Berlin). Several data‐exchange agreements with industry accumulations, it has a clearly significant economic importance. partners provide access to seismic reflection and well data. Gas chimneys, mud volcanoes, seabed pockmarks, carbonate mounds have Our study aims at a comprehensive understanding of the driving been recognized to be indicators of active natural gas migration and leakage mechanisms of hydrocarbon seepage and thermogenic‐gas fluxes by from deeper sources and reservoirs (e.g. (Anka et al., 2009; Berndt, 2005; means of process‐oriented models, both at basin and super‐regional scales. Gay et al., 2007; Hornbach et al., 2007; Hovland and Judd, 1988; Leon et al., Reconstruction of the volumes and rates of thermally‐generated methane 2006; Loncke et al., 2004; Orange et al., 2002). Recognition of similar buried emissions to the hydrosphere and atmosphere should provide insights on features could indicate the occurrence of comparable events staggered the possible feedback between this process and global palaeo‐ climate. Our through time, which may be triggered by sea‐level changes, uplift and Results complement previous studies developed at the GFZ’s Organic erosions, regional and local tectonics, and/or glacial cycles. Although great Geochemistry section and are instrumental in GFZ’s larger research deal of work has been performed on the identification and description of initiative “Methane on the Move” (MoM) , which deals with a global these indicators along continental margins (i.e.(Berndt, 2005; Gay et al., assessment of the fate of thermogenic and biogenic methane in marine and 2007; Hornbach et al., 2007; Hovland and Judd, 1988; Leon et al., 2006; terrestrial systems over geologic time a planetary scale.