EM in the Barents sea: strategic use of EM measurements in the process of license application.

The Barents Sea represents tremendous geologic challenges in oil and gas exploration. This is illustrated by drilling of numerous disappointing wells, emphasizing the need for new exploration techniques. Previous CSEM experiences in the Barents Sea showed that EM can detect commercial hydrocarbon accumulations, while clearly non‐economic accumulations do not give significant EM responses. Therefore resistivity measurements could be a valuable indicator of commercial volumes of oil and gas in the region, allowing a possible reduction in the number of dry and non‐productive wells.