7. Major projects

Offshore projects are characterized by heavy investments (several billion euros). In order to control risks, these projects are carried out in a structured manner, with the following phases:

• prospect identification ;

• drawing up possible development scenarios ;

• in-depth study of the selected scenario ;

• oil infrastructure;

• operations ;

• abandon.

Identification enables an oil company to compare the development of the fields in its portfolio and select the most profitable. The technical information available at this stage is geotechnical data (note the role of CGG, Compagnie Générale de Géophysique, in this field), confirmed by exploration drilling...