Magseis Fairfield's 100th OBN Survey is Also 'First Ever' Carbon Neutral Seismic Survey

Norway-based ocean bottom node seismic surveyor Magseis Fairfield said Friday it had completed the acquisition of its 100th OBN survey, and with that announcement also shared what it was doing to become a carbon-neutral company, and what it did to make the 100th survey also the first-ever carbon neutral seismic survey.

The OBN survey for BP over various assets in the US Gulf of Mexico was announced in December last year and used Magseis Fairfield’s ZXPLR node technology, the company said.

Magseis Fairfield said its plan was to become Carbon Neutral by 2040 or earlier. 

"The strategy to achieve this, is through fundamental reductions in emissions using data and science & technology-driven solutions, and only use offsetting for any final emissions which have not been reduced to zero," the company said.

"Over the last year Magseis Fairfield has taken a wide range of actions to reduce emissions. This includes: Switching to low sulfur diesel fuel in Q3 2020, reducing overall SOx emissions by 87% on the crews which were operational at that time, and by rolling out Maress software in Q1 2021 on all vessels. This software allows us to accurately measure the remaining emissions, and then enables a science & technology-based approach to further reduce emissions," the company said.

"While emissions from the vessels are a key contributor to our total emissions, our strategy is not limited to only this. Over the last year Magseis Fairfield has also taken specific actions to reduce waste streams, implement remote access, reuse and recycle, and support the clean ocean initiative," the company said.

According to Magseis Fairfield, all those actions and initiatives were implemented on the 100th survey. 

"Magseis Fairfield has committed to offsetting the remaining carbon emissions on this survey, therefore making this the first carbon-neutral seismic survey ever acquired," the company said.

“We are very happy to announce a significant operational milestone for Magseis Fairfield, with the completion of our 100th OBN survey. Being the first company to reach this milestone confirms our position as the leading global OBN provider, offering a high-quality service that remains in demand with our long-standing customers including bp”, says CEO Carel Hooijkaas in Magseis Fairfield.

“OBN seismic data is key for our operations in Gulf of Mexico and continues to provide significant value when imaging our reservoirs, de-risking our drilling programs, and enabling a shift in performance through data-driven development strategy. The joint commitment by BPand Magseis Fairfield to make this OBN seismic survey the first carbon-neutral seismic survey is aligned with bp’s ambition to become net-zero by 2050 or sooner” said Peter Evans, Vice President Subsurface GoM and Canada at bp.”