TASS reported on July 8 that, according to the press service of the Trofimuk Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics (Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences), researchers from Tyumen have created a 3D geological model for a promising oil field in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, making it possible to optimize the field's drilling program.

The Sugmutskoye oil field, located in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, was the primary object of study. Specialists integrated production drilling results with a comprehensive reinterpretation of 3D seismic data to build a digital 3D geological model of the reservoir. On this basis, the drilling program was adjusted — a task performed for the first time in an integrated manner.

The Sugmut oil field is situated in the southern part of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, 95km northeast of Noyabrsk. The study revealed that approximately 25–30% of the wells were located in high-risk zones (low-productivity reservoirs and water-bearing layers). Of the originally planned 195 production wells, 43 have been canceled, and justification is being prepared to cancel another 32.

Scientists also took into account the minimum economically viable oil production rate ("profitability threshold") for the wells, which for the studied reservoir is 9 tons per day. The institute noted that, using predictive maps of effective reservoir thickness, the model authors proposed drilling horizontal or gently inclined wells as an effective method to enhance formation inflow — a technique that has already proven successful in field trials.

The work involved staff from the Trofimuk Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics (Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences), its West Siberian branch, Tyumen Industrial University, Ingeoservis LLC, and Zapsib Geological Center (ZapSibGC) LLC.