Viridien begins Phase I of Guyana Shallow Water 3D seismic survey program in partnership with BGP

Viridien has kicked off Phase I of the Guyana Shallow Water 3D seismic survey — a major multi-client acquisition and imaging program offshore Guyana. The initiative moves forward under an agreement with the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and BGP, with strong industry support already locked in.

Viridien launches Phase I of Guyana seismic program

Viridien’s move into Guyana’s shallow offshore waters is a genuine milestone for the country’s energy sector. The company has officially started the Guyana Shallow Water 3D Phase I survey, building on an agreement with Guyana’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Chinese seismic contractor BGP. Structured as a multi-client program, it lets multiple oil and gas operators tap into the resulting data — a model that typically signals broad commercial interest in a region.

The timing matters. Guyana has become one of the most watched hydrocarbon frontiers in the world over the past decade, and the shallow water acreage remains comparatively underexplored. Strong industry support before data collection is even complete tells you operators are paying close attention.

Viridien has launched Phase I of the Guyana Shallow Water 3D seismic survey under a formal agreement with Guyana’s Ministry of Natural Resources and BGP.

Why the program was launched: Exploration potential and data gaps

Guyana’s offshore basin has attracted enormous attention since major deepwater discoveries started reshaping the country’s economic outlook. Shallow water acreage, though, has lagged behind in modern, high-quality seismic coverage — and that’s exactly the gap this program is targeting.

Phase I focuses on shallow water acreage across Lot 3, an area that connects to existing legacy surveys — older datasets acquired under different technical standards with less advanced equipment. Those legacy surveys won’t be discarded. They’ll be reimaged later as part of the broader program, letting historical data get reprocessed with modern techniques and folded into a more complete subsurface picture.

Better data leads to better decisions. For companies weighing whether to bid on acreage or commit exploration dollars, seismic data quality can genuinely make or break the call. This program is designed to cut down that uncertainty.

Technical approach: Data acquisition and advanced imaging

Responsibilities are split between two companies, each doing what they do best. BGP handles seismic data acquisition in the field — a well-established contractor with deep offshore experience and a logical fit for the operational side. Viridien takes over on imaging, processing the acquired data through its proprietary advanced workflows.

Two specific techniques anchor that approach. The first is shallow water demultiple. In shallow water environments, seismic signals bounce between the seafloor and the water surface, creating noise that can mask the real subsurface picture—demultiple techniques strip out that interference and leave a cleaner signal.

The second is time-lag full-waveform inversion, or TLFWI. It uses the full seismic wavefield—not just selected arrival times—to build a detailed velocity model of the subsurface. The time-lag variant is adapted for tricky acquisition geometries common in shallow water settings. Together, these methods are designed to deliver what Viridien calls an ultramodern 3D dataset.

Expected outcomes for Guyana’s energy sector

The practical value of this survey goes beyond any single operator. Dechun Lin, Head of Earth Data at Viridien, laid out the program’s ambitions clearly: it’s designed to enhance subsurface understanding, support future exploration planning, and help unlock the hydrocarbon potential of what he called an “exciting frontier basin.”

That phrase carries weight. Despite Guyana’s high-profile deepwater success, parts of the offshore remain genuinely underexplored. A high-quality 3D dataset in shallow water acreage could shift how companies assess prospectivity across those areas—and the effects won’t stop at individual exploration decisions.

The dataset is also expected to build out Guyana’s broader geological knowledge base. Foundational data like this feeds academic research, informs regulatory frameworks, and shapes future licensing rounds. Guyana has been steadily developing its offshore regulatory and licensing infrastructure, and access to modern seismic data is a key ingredient in making new rounds attractive to international investors.

Connecting to reimaged legacy data

Viridien has launched Phase I of the Guyana Shallow Water 3D seismic survey under a formal agreement with Guyana’s Ministry of Natural Resources and BGP. The survey covers shallow water acreage in Lot 3 and will eventually connect to reimaged legacy data from the same area.

BGP handles acquisition in the field while Viridien handles imaging—deploying shallow water demultiple and TLFWI to produce a high-resolution 3D dataset. The output is meant to sharpen subsurface understanding, inform exploration decisions, and support future licensing activity offshore Guyana.

The program already has industry backing. That’s a clear sign operators see real value in what this data could reveal about an underexplored corner of one of the world’s most promising offshore basins.

Kelly Lippke

Kelly is an experienced writer with 15 years of experience exploring the big stories that shape our world, from tech breakthroughs and space exploration to climate, energy, and the fascinating quirks of science. She has a talent for turning complex ideas into sharp, memorable insights that stay with readers long after they’ve finished reading.