Field Trips & Workshops
An exciting suite of field trips and workshops reflecting the conference themes have been scheduled for the week of the event.
You must be a confirmed EGC1 attendee to register for these field trips and workshops. You will be required to purchase a separate ticket for your chosen event HERE.
Download further information on the field trips and workshops.
CCS – Field Excursion to the Moray Coast – an analogue for carbon storage sites
The Moray Coast north of Aberdeen has magnificent exposures of Rotliegend and Triassic sandstones which can be studied as analogues for carbon storage sites in locations such as in the southern North Sea. This trip will show participants features of both intervals and use them to stimulate discussion of carbon storage in terms of containment, injectivity, reservoir behaviour and monitorability. Comparisons will be made with current storage projects and the lessons that can be learned from them.
The trip will take a full day and participants should come prepared for variable weather.
Leaders: Dr John Marshall (Skrinkle Reservoir Geology) and Prof. Mark Bentley (TRACS and Heriot-Watt University)
Date: Monday 15 May 2023 (08:00 start)
Core Workshops 1 and 2 – Injectites (Chestnut Field)
This workshop will examine core from well 22/02a-7Z which was taken in the Eocene Horda Formation, Nauchlan sandstone reservoir in Chestnut Field, and also some additional material from 15/30-11Z. These sandstones have experienced severe post-depositional remobilisation and injection (van Oorschott et al 2020). Injectite reservoirs with their unique exploration and development challenges continue to be an active exploration target on the UKCS. The Chestnut field core and its appraisal, development and production history illustrate both the opportunities and the challenges of injectite fields.
Leaders: Prof. Andrew Hurst (University of Aberdeen) and Rene van Oorschott (NEO)
Date: Monday 15 May 2023
Workshop 1 – 10:00-12:00
To maximise availability, the workshop will be repeated:
Workshop 2 – 14:00-16:00
Location: Oasis Group, Unit 8 Crombie Road, Central Aberdeen
Acknowledgements: Oasis Group are thanked for hosting the workshops and Spirit Energy and Harbour Energy for kind permission to view the core.
Further reading: Huuse, M., Cartwright, J.A., Gras, R. and Hurst, A., 2005. Kilometre-scale sandstone intrusions in the Eocene of the Moray Firth (UK North Sea): migration paths, reservoirs and potential drilling hazards. In: Dore, A.G. and Vining, B. (eds.) Petroleum Geology: North-West Europe and Global Perspectives, Proc. of the 6th Petroleum Geology Conf., 1577-94 van Oorschott, R., Fletcher, A., Basford, H. and Stuart, A, 2020. The Chestnut Field, Block 22/2a, UK North Sea. In: Goffey, G. and Gluyas, J., (eds.), 2020, UK Oil and Gas Fields, 50th Anniversary Commemorative Volume, Geological Society, Memoirs 52, 413-23.
Vattenfall Aberdeen Offshore Windfarm – Boat Tour
This is an exciting trip with a boat tour from Aberdeen Harbour to the Vattenfall Aberdeen Offshore Windfarm, also known as the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre. This trip will get you up close and personal with the wind turbines which were the most powerful in the world when built. The turbines power the average annual equivalent of 80,000 homes and displace the annual equivalent of removing approximately 35,000 cars from UK roads. You will be joined by a Geoscientist from Atkins giving an overview of the shallow geoscience aspects of windfarm development such as ground modelling and shallow seismic. If you’re lucky you may also spot some of the famous Aberdeen dolphins!
Leader: Geoscientist (Atkins)
Date: Monday 15 May 2023 (18:00 start)
Highland Boundary Fault – Stonehaven
This trip will examine the relationship between the Silurian age fluvial sediments of the Lower Old Red Sandstone (LORS) succession, the pillow lavas and shales of the Highland Border complex and the metasediments (Dalradian) across the Highland Boundary Fault (HBF). The HBF is considered to represent a plate/terrane boundary fault and displays a complex internal structure. It was originally thought to have formed the basin margin to the LORS, however as we will see on the trip this is not supported by either the sedimentology nor structural configuration in the LORS. We will discuss the implications of these observations in a regional context and consider the offshore extension and expression of the fault in the North Sea, and its role in younger Mesozoic rifting events.
This is an evening trip which will commence after completion of the conference.
Leaders: Prof. Adrian Hartley (University of Aberdeen) and Ian Sharp (Equinor)
Date: Thursday 18 May 2023 (18:00 start)
Field Excursion to the Old Red Sandstone of Stonehaven and Crawton
The Highland Boundary Fault, 20 km south of Aberdeen is a major, crustal scale lineament that separates the Grampian metamorphic rocks of the Highlands from the Old Red Sandstone deposits of the Midland Valley. Coastal sections around Stonehaven show a series of conglomerates traditionally interpreted as alluvial fans shedding from the fault, which are now interpreted as very large braided rivers flowing towards the south-west, parallel to the axis of the Caledonian foreland. These fluvial conglomerates are interbedded with lavas in the Crawton area and become more sandstone dominated around Kineff.
This trip will visit Stonehaven and Crawton and examine the fluvial deposits, considering their origin and the implications for the wider palaeogeographic setting, especially with reference to the post Caledonian evolution of the North Sea. We will also study the interaction of sediments and lavas flows and discuss the impact of interbedded lavas on reservoirs, aquifers and CCS repositories.
The trip will take a full day and participants should come prepared for variable weather.
Leaders: Prof. John Howell & Adrian Hartley (University of Aberdeen)
Date: Friday 19 May 2023 (08:30 start)
Core Workshops 3 and 4 – Acorn (CCS)
In this workshop we will look at core taken from the Lower Cretaceous, Captain fairway of the Outer Moray Firth in wells 14/29A-5 and 20/4B-7 in the Goldeneye field. The turbiditic Captain sandstone is the target storage reservoir for CO2 injection in the Acorn CCS project. We will examine the depositional character, internal heterogeneity and degree of variability within the Captain and discuss the impact of same on our understanding of historical production and future CO2 pressure migration within the Captain fairway.
Leaders: Julie Coughtrie (Shell UK) and Dr Gwilym Lynn (Shell UK)
Date: Friday 19th May 2023
Workshop 3 – 09:30-11:30
To maximise availability, the workshop will be repeated:
Workshop 4 – 12:30- 14:30
Location: Oasis Group, Unit 8 Crombie Road, Central Aberdeen
Acknowledgements: Oasis Group are thanked for hosting the workshops and Shell UK Limited for kind permission to view the core.
Further reading: Stewart, N. and .Marshall, J.D., 2020. The Goldeneye Field, Blocks 14/29a and 20/4b, UK North Sea. In: Goffey, G. and Gluyas, J., (eds.), 2020, UK Oil and Gas Fields, 50th Anniversary Commemorative Volume, Geological Society, Memoirs 52, 755-66
