OREANDA-NEWS. January 17, 2013. Gazprom Neft is the first in Russia to begin using an innovative technology called UniQ, which will be used during the geological exploration at the Vakunaiskoye site of the Chona project in Eastern Siberia.

The UniQ technology was developed by Schlumberger . There are no others like it in the world. It is a unique set of geophysical equipment and computer software designed for high-resolution seismic acquisition.

Experience in applying UniQ abroad testifies to the technology's high level of efficiency in surveying reserves at new fields with complicated geology, as well as in the development of old deposits for which detailed field appraisal using standard methods would be inefficient.

Data obtained through geological exploration using UniQ make it possible to construct a geological model of a field with a maximum level of accuracy, raise the effectiveness of exploration drilling substantially, and reduce project risks and expenses.

Gazprom Neft has concluded an agreement for the conduct of geological exploration work with Geotech Holding . The agreement encompasses geological exploration over the course of three field seasons during the winters of 2012 to 2015. Under a strategic partnership program, Schlumberger will provide Geotech Holding with technical and technological support. Schlumberger experts will be constantly present at the field during the first season of surveys.

Gazprom Neft's Chona project includes three adjacent fields — Vakunaiskoye, Tympuchikanskoye, and Ignyalinskoye — located on the border between Irkutsk Oblast and the Sakha Republic (Yakutia). In late 2011, Gazprom Neft, as a result of geological exploration and reinterpretation of existing geological data,increased the total reserve volume of the Chona group by five times to over 125 million tons of oil and 225 billion cubic meters of gas. In mid 2012, Gazprom Neft concluded an agreement with the Japanese company JOGMEC for joint geological study of the Ignyalinskoye site. Gazprom Neft is conducting geological exploration at the Vakunaiskoye and Tympuchikanskoye sites independently.