Data access boost for carbon storage, offshore wind and decommissioning

National Data Repository launches free text search function

The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has enabled a new free text search facility which will help users from industry, academia and government access crucial information more quickly.

Searching with free text is similar to typing into a web search engine. Putting a technical phrase into the search field, a user can return thousands of relevant files. These can be further refined by geography, date and descriptions, leading the user to the information they need.

This will be of huge assistance to researchers looking for information to help them determine if a location is suitable for uses such as carbon storage or offshore wind.

Oil and gas decommissioning will also benefit as the National Data Repository (NDR) holds thousands of documents that include information on well design, equipment specifications and manufacturers - which is crucial information in planning a decommissioning programme.

The NDR boasts more than 1.1 million files and free text searching greatly improves the likelihood that a user will find the information they need.

This improved functionality, using AI, combines with a project to better describe more than 765,000 files containing information about wells to make their contents more findable.

Files are described using tags that explain what types of information are included in each file which researchers can use to better understand the subsea and determine whether, for example, there is potential for storing carbon dioxide.

Previously the files, which have been acquired over more than 60 years, were tagged using a longstanding, but cryptic, method. By using plain language terms, their contents are immediately apparent to anyone working in the industry.

The review has corrected tags that have been added in error, and added tags where more information was identified, leading to a more accurate and complete description of the well files. A PRE_DPROG tag is now shown as a Drilling Programme, and a CCA_FILE tag now revealed to contain Conventional Core Analysis data.

The files form part of the NDR which contains over 1.6 petabytes of information gathered from oil and gas operations since the 1960s. The information is open to all and free to use and is increasingly being accessed by researchers working in offshore wind, carbon storage and many other use cases.

Nic Granger, NSTA Chief Information and Financial Officer, said:

“Access to high-quality data is a fundamental requirement for making sound business decisions, and the NDR is a massively important resource for the UK in terms of energy security and supporting the energy transition.

“This project helps to make this vital information more accessible to more people and is, therefore, an important step forward.”