Target Energy - Australian petroleum exploration and production company.

SEAL
See Reservoir. An impermeable fault or stratum of rock beneath or behind which hydrocarbons can accumulate.

SECONDARY POROSITY
Porosity developed after the original deposition of a formation, for instance by the action of water on soluble components of the rock or well stimulation techniques.

SEISMIC ACQUISITION (2-D, 3-D, 4-D)
Seismic data are used to map subsurface formations. A 2-D survey reveals a cross section of the subsurface. In a 3-D survey, seismic data are collected in the inline and crossline directions to create a three-dimensional image of the subsurface. In a 4-D or time-lapse 3-D survey, 3-D surveys are repeated over time to track fluid movement in the reservoir.

SEPARATOR
A process vessel used to separate gases and various liquids in a hydrocarbon stream. A Wellhead Separator is the first process vessel in a production operation, operating at or near wellhead pressures.

SET CASING
Installation of steel pipe or casing in a well bore, normally cemented in place by surrounding it with a wall of cement.
 
SHALE SHAKERS
See Mud. Screens for extracting rock cuttings from circulating drilling mud.

SHOE
The strengthened fitting on the lower end of a string of casing to protect the tubulars and help direct the cement to the annulus.
 
SHOW
Evidence of hydrocarbons in a formation such as fluorescence in cuttings or gas in the mud returning from down hole.

SHUT-IT PRESSURE
The pressure in a shut-in well; static pressure.

SIDE-TRACK/SIDE-TRACKED WELL
A well re-drilled from an intermediate depth. Wells are re-directed or sidetracked for various reasons, but usually because of technical problems deeper in the original well.

SIDEWALL CORING
Obtaining rock samples from the sides of a well bore using a special tool.

SOLUTION GAS
See Associated Gas

SPACING
The distance between wells producing from the same reservoir. Spacing is often expressed in terms of acres, e.g., 40-acre spacing, and is often established by regulatory agencies.

SPUD
To start drilling a new well (or re-start)

SQUEEZE
Inserting cement under pressure into the poorly sealed annulus of a well, past the existing material.

STAND OF PIPE
A short length of drill pipe pre-assembled to save time in operations and stored vertically in the derrick ready for use, usually in lengths of three joints.

STEP-OUT WELL
Well drilled adjacent or near to proven well to ascertain the limits of the reservoir.

STICKING
Jamming of the drill string in the well borehole caused by usually a high differential pressure and a build-up of mud solids on the rock face.

STRADDLE PACKER
A rubber packer or seal isolating a section of a well for production testing of the formation in question.

STRATIGRAPHIC TRAP
Subsurface formation created by sedimentation that might trap an accumulation of oil and/or gas.

STRING
See Joint, Drill-string, Casing, etc. Any number of connected joints of tubulars run in the well.

STRUCTURE
A geological formation which, if sealed against leakage, could be a potential structural or stratigraphic trap or hydrocarbons. A man-made load-bearing construction, such as an offshore platform, usually designed by structural engineers.

STUCK PIPE
Drill pipe, casing, or tubing that cannot be worked in or out of the hole as desired.

SURFACE CASING
First string of casing set in well.
 
SUSPENDED WELL
A well, usually a successful discovery well which is left temporarily sealed or plugged to be re-entered for further testing or for production purposes.

SWABBING
Operation using a swab to bring well fluids to the surface when the well does not flow naturally.

SYNCLINE
Trough-shaped subsurface structure of folded stratified rock. Opposite of anticline.


TIME MAP
A contoured map of a subsurface geological formation based on the time taken to reflect seismic impulses rather than the subsequently computed/interpreted depths on a depth map.

TIE-IN
The action of connecting one pipeline to another or to equipment. Hence "pipeline tie in" commonly describes the connection itself.

TIGHT HOLE
Drilling a well in which the information obtained is restricted and passed only to those authorized to receive it.

TOTAL DEPTH (T.D)
The target depth for a well. The achieved (drilled) depth in a well at any one time.

TRAP
Any geological structure which precludes the migration of oil and gas through subsurface rocks, causing the hydrocarbons to accumulate into pools.

TRIP GAS
High pressure gas in a well which must be carefully controlled when withdrawing the drill string (making a trip).

TURNKEY CONTRACT
Contract under which contractor carries out and completes his assignment for a fixed fee, as opposed to working on per diem basis.

TWIST OFF
Breaking the drill pipe due to fatigue or excessive torque.


UPDIP
An area of a structure where the top of the formation is higher than the point under consideration.

UPSTREAM
The exploration and production portions of the oil and gas industry.

US$ or USD
US dollars.


VISCOSITY/VISCOUS
The resistance of a fluid to flow, due to the mutual adherence of its molecules.