Upstream Oil and Gas Exploration & Production

Exploration and Production (E&P) is considered the upstream stage of the oil and gas industry. It is that part of the energy industry that looks for, invests in, discovers, and produces energy resources like oil, gas, or raw materials from which oil and gas can be extracted. The upstream phase ends when the resources are transferred to transportation facilities for further downstream processing such as refining and production of other derivative energy forms or products..

E&P decisions cover the entire range from strategic to tactical planning and forecasting, to capital allocations; and to operations, reporting or health safety and environment related field activities. PointCross's Integrated Exploration & Production Suite (IEPS™) IEPS™ covers initiation, execution, and monitoring of assets, projects, or deals using common processes and governance by roles. PointCross's Smart Oilfield (SOF™) supports intelligent operational, tactical, and strategic decision-making by offering meaningful access to E&P companies' existing knowledge base, including SCADA and DCS data; advanced search, orienteering, meta-analysis, and predictive analytics capabilities; and process orchestration, all in a secure, unified collaborative environment.

E&P-Four Unique Characteristics

• Knowledge intensive: E&P professionals like geologists and geophysicists are required to decide where, and how, to invest huge amounts of money into properties without any certainty of the outcome.

• High risk: The decisions related to exploration or exploitation, or the acquisition or divestiture of properties, must be made with significantly less than perfect knowledge. This is a game of skillful gambles.

• High Risk & High Reward: Decisions being made in E&P can result in very high losses or very rewards. Knowledge gained from each result is very valuable and forms the basis of every succeeding decision.

• Decision Centric: It is said that oil is found in the minds of men and women who work in this industry. That comment highlights how important making good decision making is and why making decisions earlier than the competitor when even less data is available translates into higher rewards.