Andrea Lovatini, Director of Exploration Data and Geosolutions at SLB and Chairman of the EnerGeo Alliance Board, argues that exploration is not only alive but essential in shaping a lower-carbon future.
“While renewable energy sources are increasingly vital, conventional resources such as oil and gas remain indispensable in meeting global energy needs,” he said, adding that modern exploration is being reshaped by technology to deliver more with less environmental impact.
Lovatini’s insights were shared in an article published by SLB on September 4.
He pointed out that most oil and gas comes from mature fields, making it critical to “discover new reserves and replace declining ones.” With artificial intelligence accelerating innovation, “global energy consumption continues to rise significantly”, Lovatini explained.
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Technology is the key driver of this balance. He described exploration as undergoing a “technological revolution” where advanced seismic tools and data-driven methods “expand the potential for success in exploration projects, making them more strategic and reducing uncertainty.”
Among the most powerful tools is full waveform inversion (FWI), which transforms seismic data into precise subsurface images. Its advancement, elastic full waveform inversion (EFWI), now allows even greater accuracy in complex geological settings.
Lovatini also spotlighted ocean bottom nodes (OBN), which he likened to “placing high-tech microphones on the ocean floor” to capture sound echoes in detail. He said this approach is invaluable for imaging beneath salt formations and other geologically challenging environments.
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Meanwhile, hybrid optics and distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) are redefining how the industry monitors exploration and carbon storage projects. “DAS provides real-time data, enhancing our ability to monitor and adjust exploration efforts dynamically,” he noted.
A major shift, he explained, is the ability to “evergreen” existing datasets by applying these technologies to old seismic surveys. “Novel tech gives new life to an existing dataset,” Lovatini said, adding that this reduces both costs and emissions while increasing value.
“These innovations don’t just maximize returns on past investments,” he concluded, “they also enable companies to shrink the environmental footprint of exploration by optimizing resource use and minimizing emissions.”
