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This paper provides potential users of passive microseismic monitoring data with an outline of the decisions which need to be made prior to deciding whether or not to deploy a PMM system, defining the system’s specifications and issuing the statement of work to potential suppliers. It is also intended to summarize the issues and functional parameters which must be defined in order to ensure that the installed system will be useful for all stakeholders and that the actual installation process will be as stress free as possible.

Based upon current experience with large PMM systems being deployed in North America, North Africa and the Gulf the authors review the factors which should be considered when designing PMM systems for various types of reservoir monitoring applications. Using specific examples of PMM systems designed to monitor heavy oil production is North America, CO2 sequestration in North Africa, and production optimization in Saudi Arabia the key factors influencing the design and operational characteristics of cost effective PMM systems are reviewed. The paper concludes with a review of the features which will be incorporated in different types of PMM systems in the near future.

This paper discusses the acquisition, transfer and subsequent processing/presentation of data from four different permanent PMM installations. The installations differ in both size, location, data processing procedures and ultimate function. In terms of complexity, capability and addressability this new Aramco PMM system probably represents the current state of the art in permanents deployed, unmanned passive microseismic monitoring systems. The paper concludes with a review of system data handling capabilities as they currently, or will soon, exist using the characteristics of this new system for illustration purposes.

The authors discuss more than twenty years experience using passive microseismic monitoring techniques to monitor the behaviour of oil and gas reservoirs, underground openings (both mining and structural), and natural/artificial slopes. In the majority of these instances logistical and cost constraints have necessitated the dispersal of groups of sensors and their associated acquisition units. Under some circumstances this can give rise to complex problems when the data has to be recombined prior to processing. However, these problems are relatively minor when weighed against the cumulative benefits which accrue to the operations as a result of the utilization of high quality microseismic data acquired from an extensive sensor array operated for an extended period.