Hydrocarbon Exploration and Production

The Kaleidoscope and Sherlock projects have yielded around twenty

discoveries for Repsol over the last two years, placing the company among the
leading energy firms in the field of hydrocarbon exploration and production.
Repsol participates in innovative projects in the field of hydrocarbon exploration and
production.

Sherlock Project
Kaleidoscope Project

Repsol is carrying out an important activity which, in the area of Exploration, aims to acquire
new or emerging tools with which to search for hydrocarbons.
Most notable is the geophysics technology developed as part of the Kaleidoscope Project
which aims to increase the reliability of subsoil images and reduce uncertainty when
searching for oil and gas. These technologies can be applied at depths of thousands of
metres in difficult areas with large reserves, such as the US Gulf of Mexico and Brazil, where
thick layers of salt conceal the deposits targeted by oil companies.
Meanwhile, advanced new analytical and geo-chemical methodologies to describe petroleum
systems in detail can be applied in both exploration and in the development and production of
hydrocarbons. It is also worth noting that the company uses its own models and techniques to
assess and ensure the flow of hydrocarbons under adverse conditions, especially in offshore
production.

Another key R+D line at Repsol is the application of improved recovery technologies for
extracting more oil and gas from mature fields. At present it is only possible to make use of
40% of the crude oil found in a given field. The objective is to increase this percentage.
Repsol finds it a challenge to develop special technologies in the search for non-conventional
hydrocarbons, whose world-wide reserves are estimated to be greater than those exploited at
present.
On the other hand, Repsol is making a big effort to increase its success rate in
hydrocarbon exploration from 15 to 50%. To do this, it has created a new Exploration and
Production laboratory at the Technology Centre; this covers the technological needs of
the Sherlock Project.
This is a multidisciplinary project that combines knowledge of geology, geochemistry and
high-resolution chemical analysis. Its goal is to develop and implement a methodology that
increases the exploration success rate. It basically involves developing certain techniques for
the preparation of rock samples gathered from extremely difficult-to-reach locations, to be
observed and studied in the Repsol Technology Centre (RTC) through binocular
microscopes, ultraviolet/transmitted/reflected light microscopy, fluid inclusions, SEM
(Scanning Electron Microscope), and X-ray diffraction (especially for determining clays).
As well as the projects mentioned, it is worth highlighting the activity designed to assess and
acquire new and emerging technologies and tools in the search for hydrocarbons (remote
sensors, specialised geochemistry, innovative geophysical methods, modification of
conventional technologies, etc.).
Activities in the field of technologies applied to surface facilities include the selection and
evaluation of materials for facilities, technologies for preventing and protecting against
corrosion, as well as to assist in the analysis of faults in equipment and facilities, and riskbased inspection techniques.
Repsol's technological advances in the area of hydrocarbon exploration and production
include four action areas: