Oil and Gas exploration
A whiff of crude oil from a Tunisian oil field greeted Her Majesty as she spoke to earth scientists about their British Gas-sponsored research to find new oil and gas reserves in various parts of the world. Professor Paul Wright, accompanied by Malcolm Brown of BG, pointed to two sediment cores from the Miskar field in Tunisia which were saturated in crude oil, as in their natural state - including their natural smell! "We didn't invite Her Majesty to take a sniff, though," said Professor Wright.
Remaining on the exploration theme, Professor Joe Cartwright and Thierry Pilenko, President of Schlumberger GeoQuest, explained their collaboration to develop computer software that images the earth and its internal structure, similar in capabilities to body scanning technology.
Being presented to The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh was not the only highlight of the day. Later, Monsieur Pilenko opened the GeoQuest Laboratory, a computing facility in the Department of Earth Sciences which will enable researchers to analyse data sets from oil and gas exploration companies world-wide to help identify new energy resources. Also on the day of the royal visit, BG announced substantial new investment to sponsor Professor Wright's research for a further two years.
Professor Paul Wright, of the Department of Earth Sciences, and Malcolm Brown, Vice President of British Gas, which sponsors Professor Wright's research work.
Thierry Pilenko President of Schlumberger GeoQuest and Professor Joe Cartwright of the Department of Earth Sciences explain how their work helps in the exploration for new oil sources.