Richa

www.linkedin.com/in/richaphd/ loginricha@gmail.com +91 6397 660038

PERSONAL PROFILE
I am a Geophysicist with more than 10 years of diverse experience in oil industry and a strong academic
background (PhD in Rock Physics from Stanford University). I have worked in multiple basins (Barmer basin,
India; GoM; North Sea; Lower Congo Basin and Kwanza Basin, Angola) across the globe and have been
involved at different stages of business cycle – exploration, appraisal, development and production.
HIGHLIGHTS
 Rock Physics Specialist: Worked on multiple projects (clastic and carbonates) across the globe to create well
based petrophysical and rock physics models that impacted key business decisions. Analyzed AVO datasets for
identification of fluid contact and lithology identification for sandstone and carbonate reservoirs. Interpreted 4D
seismic data for shallow hazard and reservoir data.
 Project Management: Single person accountable for well planning of deep-water wells in cost range of $70M-
$300M to deliver quality completion of the well plan and its associated documentation under high pressure
deadlines with high cost consequences. Well planner for one of the best producer wells in BP’s portfolio.
 Safety and Risk: Analyzed 3D seismic data on the seabed and around well bore for potential shallow hazards
leading to optimal placing of well bores. Analyzed 4D seismic data around well borehole for changes in shallow
hazard in order to track any possible well integrity issues (base management). This laid the groundwork for safe
well-work operations and well abandonment process.
 Communication Skills: Worked in multi-disciplinary, multi-cultural teams located in two geographic locations to
successfully complete projects. Effectively influenced stakeholders on more than one occasion - positively
persuaded JV partner to acquire new technical measurements (VSP data) and re-process their existing dataset
(seismic data) that influenced the placement of two deep-water wells (total cost~$200 M).
 Member of Board for non-profit professional society SPE – London Section for three years. Provided guidance
and strategic advice for functioning of section in tough oil price environment.
CAREER SUMMARY
BP
Market Intelligence Analyst, London 2016 – 2018
Geoscientist, London 2012 – 2016
Rock Physics Specialist, London 2011 – 2012
Geophysicist, Houston 2010 – 2011
Cairn Energy India Pty. Limited
Geophysicist, Chennai 2002 – 2004

EDUCATION
2004-2010 Stanford University, Stanford, CA, U.S.A.
Ph.D., Department of Geophysics
1998-2001 Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, India
Master of Technology in Geophysics
1995-1998 Ch. Charan Singh University, Meerut, India
Bachelor of Science in Mathematics

HONOURS AND AWARDS

 SPE London Outstanding Service Award, 2016
 Performance Recognition, BP: Frequent recipient of spot bonuses related to performance.
 Society of Exploration Geophysicist (SEG) Foundation Thomas Mazza Memorial Scholarship, 2008-2009.
 American Geophysical Union (AGU) Outstanding Student Paper Award, 2007.
OTHER EXPERIENCE / SKILLS
 Computer Skills: Landmark, Petrel, RokDoc ,Techlog, Programming languages(Python, Matlab, C++, Fortran)
 Volunteer with Women in Energy & Stanford Women’s Network - organise networking events within London.
 Languages: English, Hindi.
 Nationality: British, Overseas Citizen of India (OCI)
CAREER HISTORY

BP
Market Intelligence Analyst 2016-2018
 Supported trading floor in three regions: Asia, Americas and Europe. Ensured timely delivery of different data
during market disruption for timely delivery of analytics used for trading decisions.
 Created European oil market model by combining four different datasets using Python to provide insights
regarding distribution of crude oil in different refineries across Europe and predict crude grade volumes
based on refinery shutdown periods.
 Worked closely with Palantir to implement big data solution for the trading floor.
 Worked with vendors to setup trials for various trading benches in order to provide analyst with latest market
offering.

Geoscientist (London, UK) 2012-2016

 Influenced key exploration and appraisal decisions in BP operated and JV blocks by modelling Carbonate
rock physics for reservoir properties using seismic data attributes for wildcat exploration in Kwanza basin,
Angola.
 Analyzed and interpreted 3D and 4D seismic data for Shallow hazard and reservoir level to provide insights
driving business decisions such as placement of well in development and production phase in Lower Congo
Basin, Angola.
 Well planner for deep-water wells ($70M- $300M costs) with specialists based in two different geographic
locations: London (UK) and Luanda (Angola). This involved working on the subsurface aspect whilst
constantly liaising with multi-disciplinary teams of engineers and specialists working on other features of the
well in Lower Congo Basin, Angola.
 Modified well planning processes designed for development wells with a focus on production to exploration
wells with emphasis on data collection and subsurface testing. Designed data acquisition strategy that
aligned with the well objectives and also reflected the subsurface risks.
 Delivered management of change process for late stage variations in well plan. Analyzed subsurface risks
and collaborated with other disciplines to capture residual risks and feed into the risk register to ensure safe
and efficient operations.

Rock Physics Specialist (London, UK) 2011-2012

 Worked in central research team to analyze and model rock physics attributes using well data for multiple
assets to respond to specific business questions.
 Involved in proprietary research projects pertaining to rock physics that were applied by multiple assets.
 Developed and delivered internal technical course on Rock Physics for training peers.

Geophysicist, Gulf of Mexico (Houston, USA) 2010-2011

 Worked on well based rock physics model and AVO seismic data to identify the fluid in development
planning project (project cost ~$20Billion).
 Analyzed near surface high resolution seismic data to assess the placement of drill-centers on the seabed as
part of development planning. Effectively persuaded the shallow hazard team to move one of the drill-centers
close to thrust toe.

Cairn Energy India Pty. Limited

Geophysicist (Chennai, India) 2002-2004
 Assisted in integrating different data sets, geological field data, gravity and magnetics to create a basin-wide
model to assist with subsurface assessment impacting the decision regarding various key prospects.
 Undertook an independent technical study involving Uphole survey in response to depth conversion issues
related to the weathered layer which on completion improved reservoir quality.
 Produced monthly asset reports to be distributed amongst JV partners and other stakeholders.
 Worked as a liaison between field operation teams based in Barmer (India) and office teams based in
Chennai (India) and Edinburgh (UK).
 Involved in corporate social responsibilities survey of the local schools. Also worked on increasing
awareness about seismic operations in the local community by involving local government officials.
 Well operations: Worked on onshore well site as Mudlooger, observed log tool calibration process and log
data acquisition to gain a better understanding of well operations
 Seismic field operations: Worked with land seismic crew using Vibroseis for 2D and 3D acquisition in the
field as well as in the office.

2
 Internships (Occidental, Western Geco) 2006-2009
Worked on three different internships as a student while working on PhD:
 Worked in research and development projects to model parameters impacting the reservoir estimation and
well placement. Developed a general work flow for modifying model based on new data being acquired in the
region.
 Presented the results as a part of well proposal to senior management which impacted the decision of drilling
a $5M well in Occidental E&P.

SPE London Board Member 2014-2018

 Provided direction and guidance to help the London section achieve its goals.
 Led four-member team to ensure effective communication through social media and emails sent to the
members. Also responsible for timely publication of monthly e-magazine.
 Steered the use of social media analytics for analysing and developing marketing strategy for different types
of events.
 Established Editorial board as Communication Chair and ensured timely and quality delivery of monthly e-
magazine.

PUBLICATIONS/PRESENTATIONS

 Preservation of transport properties trend: computational rock physics approach, Ph.D. Thesis, Stanford
University, 2010.
 Analyzing thresholds for 3D reconstruction of rock from CT‐scan images, SEG Technical Program Expanded
Abstracts, 2008.
 Transport Properties at Different Scales Using Digital Rocks, American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting
2007.
 Image analysis and pattern recognition for porosity estimation from thin sections, SEG Technical Program
Expanded Abstracts, 2006.