Well Log Correlation Tips and Best Practices

Here is a compilation of tips and best practices, previously shared on BB, which could be helpful when
correlating well logs:

Best Practice 1:

 Always correlate from the base upwards – this is how the rocks were deposited
 Always correlate from the large scale changes to the small scale – worry about the formation
tops and markers first, before correlating minor changes and beds
 Check for missing and repeated sections. Always correlate both the top and bottom of a bed or
formation.
 Units that pinch out between wells are indicated by merging correlation lines (> or <).
 Never correlate the top or bottom of a well – these are artificial boundaries created during
drilling.
 Check for mudstone (shale) color changes in the mudlogs – these indicate changing mudstone
formations.
 Keep an eye on the caliper log – indicates a loss of quality in the other logs but also shows the
location of less compacted or damaged layers.
 The dipmeter log is also important – sudden changes may indicate the presence of
unconformities or faults.
 Natural gamma signature is a good lithological indicator, many formations and markers have
distinctive signatures.
 Volcaniclastics such as ash or tephra layers (eruption deposits) are excellent marker beds, as
they will be the same age everywhere, making them a chronostratigraphic marker, and they will
often have a characteristic log signature.
 Non-geological features such as scale changes, casing shoes and sonic log cycle skips can
sometimes mislead the unwary.

Best Practice 2:
Some basic points on well correlation:

1. Correlate from bottom to top of the wells in same region.

2. Always correlate on TVDSS as primary index
3. Top and bottom of the formations must be correlated for thickness
4. Regional Stratigraphy and grouping into geological ages
5. Seismic, GR, Res, DT trends to identify the lithologies/Horizons to correlate
6. Presence of marker beds like Coal beds, boulder beds or Missing beds or repeated beds.
7. Mineralogy -presence of Pyrites, mica, chlorite, glauconite, Volcanics etc.
8. Sedimentary characteristics – color, cons/uncons, grain size/shape, roundness, typical texture,
rock matrix, cement etc.
9. Identify Fossils for a particular formation to correlate
10. Reservoir characteristics like gas ratios, porosity and permeability
11. Pore pressure within similar reservoirs
12. Top and bottom of gas/oil/water
13. Important geologic structures like unconformities and faults
Best Practice 3:
One “trick” we have found useful to help cut down on the ambiguity in our correlations between wells
(especially in shale reservoirs) is to use the individual elemental concentration curves from an ECS log.
You can correlate the Calcium curves and then the Silica curves and so on. Of course you have to have
those types of logs available and they are not run that often.

Best Practice 4:
1) Begins your correlation starting from the deepest wells which has the thickest stratigraphic
section and move towards the next shallower TD
2) Chose the shale GR peaks such as Maximum Flooding Surfaces (MFS) or Regional Unconformities
3) If you wish (optional) you can also start from the top log section which it supposed to have the
least structural deformation and the higher lateral continuity
4) Look for common fining (dirtying) or coarsening upward trends across your correlation panel
5) Correlate shales first which are supposed to have the higher lateral continuity and wider
regional distribution with less sudden lateral changes
6) Close the loop when correlating logs in different wells

Best Practice 5:
Start with the deepest well. It usually will have the entire stratigraphic section. Also, most interpreters
will try to correlate a line of wells... A to B to C to D. A tip is to QC your correlation by correlating in small
triangles. A to B, B to C, C to A. When you add the next well, correlate it to the two closest wells of the
correlated triangle creating another triangle. B to D, C to D

Best Practice 6:
Well log correlation is an example of interpretation. To interpret data successfully you need to build up a
model of the geology. Indeed it is important early in the process to keep an open mind and allow for
more than one concept or model. I prefer to correlate shales rather than sands as they are often more
spatially consistent. Depending on the environment the sands may change laterally. Good well
correlation should be grounded in sequence stratigraphy. So to start you are trying to build a
framework. In the framework you need to be aware that erosion will give rise to missing section. Also
faults will result in missing or repeated sections. Often in a well there are certain events that occur at an
unconformity or maximum flooding surface that may correlate over long intervals. If this is the case in
your area then start easy and work towards difficult. Stand on the flooding surface and watch out for
erosion as you move upwards. I look for shape of the curves and easily identified characteristic
patterns, for example two gamma peaks that often have a similar separation and character.

Sadly there is only one right answer and a multitude of pitfalls. However, just remember you are
building a geological model not just linking peak to peak or sand to sand. I see you are based in
Moscow. I have seen some very poor well log correlation of Siberia data. In most cases caused by
correlation of sand to sand with the wrong geologic model in mind just because that is how it has always
been done. So be ready to question. Be open to change your mind. In the past I have presented the
client with two quite different correlations one the way the client expected it to be and one my
preferred interpretation. This way you can discuss the merits or each model open and objectively. The
client does not dismiss your second interpretation as just plain wrong as they see you can understand
the model they used for many years. If they have an open mind they may then appreciate your
alternate model. In modelling the reservoir we can then test the different cases and see how each fits
with other data such as production history or seismic measurements.

In a field with many wells the correlation I was proudest of was quite different to our clients initial
model. To correlate I chose to ignore a major peak in the gamma log that up till then was used as the
reference for the correlation. My interpretation of the peak being this was a later digenetic effect
associated with a change of permeability and not an indication of the original stratigraphy. You can
imagine this raised hours of questioning and discussion. I still can’t prove which is the correct model.
However, having an alternate model allowed a fresh look at the field and its remaining prospectivity.

Best Practice 7:
Let’s begin by understanding that a log correlation is NOT a measurement, it is an interpretation
process. It is an opinion, NOT an authoritative answer. It is a MODEL. The more data and measurements
that you have to help you make the interpretation, the more likely you will create a model that will
stand the test of time and lead to good decisions, and hopefully give you good results.
The purpose of the log correlation is to interpret a TIME or chronostratigraphic horizon that can be
utilized to evaluate dip and structure. Usually, you are looking for UPDIP where the hydrocarbons will be
trapped. You are also looking for missing sections from faults, unconformities, disconformities, starved
non-deposition, etc. The purpose is to identify traps, but also to understand the stratigraphy, and
decipher the depositional environments so that you can interpret reservoir fairways.
When building a log correlation, you should assemble and consider ALL data in creating the correlation
interpretation including: LWD logs (especially Calipers and Gamma Ray), Mud logs (evidence of
PRESSURE), MWD data including (and not limited to ROP), Biostratigraphic data (including extinction
tops, faunal abundances and missing sections), Wireline logs (especially dipmeter data and image log
data), Seismic data, both vertical and horizontal sections, and anything else that helps to characterize
the lithologies interpreted from the downhole data.
You are looking for the most regionally continuous and time indicative characters to correlate. Often
these are not a single marker, but a group or suite of markers, or even an entire sequence. It’s much
easier to find a village than to find an individual. Low energy depositional environments is the key. These
low energy deposits are far superior to high energy laterally variable and often discontinuous sand
bodies with erosional bases and gradational tops. Sands tend to be variable in thickness and in
depositional process and are NOT usually reliable for chronostratigraphic correlation markers.
So, you should look for broad, extensive carbonates layers, regionally extensive ash beds (often high
gamma expression), and usually marine, pelagic mud layers (marine condensed sections or high stand
maximum flooding surfaces). You also want to begin in the most undisturbed section of the log. This
section is usually shallow (less time has passed for deformation!), and is below the massive sand section
(from global glaciation during the Pleistocene). You want to look for lithologic variation because a
massive homogenous section is very challenging to correlate unless you have biostratigraphic data to
guide you.
You also should correlate several logs at a time using the loop method beginning with the log that is
likely to have the greatest amount of stratigraphic section present. Then continually loop back to your
key log to QC your work. Also after five or six correlations, make a map to make sure your interpretation
is making sense.
Expect to find missing section, faults, unconformities, condensed sections, thinning on highs and
adjacent to salt, and facies changes within time units. Remember these wells were drilled looking for
anomalies where hydrocarbon might be trapped. To identify a missing section in a log correlation,
correlate DOWN from the shallow section until you find a break in the marker pattern that no longer
correlates. Then skip down to a marker set that correlates below the broken section and work back up
to identify the missing section continually bracketing the section until your markers meet in the faulted
log. The piece present in the other log is the part that has been removed from the log with the missing
section. Always use at least a third well to check the missing section call. Always consider the geometry,
and beware of correlating wells along strike or in a straight line. Faults trending parallel to your log line
may not bevisible on that set of logs until you bring ina well off of the line.
So, in summary, here’s some key things I do when approaching a correlation assignment: 1. Assemble all
data available, 2. Utilize biostratigraphic data, and incorporate mud log, mwd, seismic and other data
into your model as it develops. Extinction tops can be crucial in making a reasonable correlation model
especially in turbidite sequences. Faunal abundance curves in deep water section can also prove to be
helpful in correaltion, 3. Know what you are correlating: MD, TVD, etc. and check your scales on your
logs as well. 4. “Back away” to visualize bigger picture, 5. Correlate low energy, regionally extensive
markers or sets of markers, 6. Begin at top of section where there is less deformation, 7. Correlate major
sequences first beginning with first “big” shale sequence, 8. Correlate in loops, not in lines, 9. Document
your picks for optimum use, 10. Make periodic notations, 11. Bracket missing sections and use multiple
wells to confirm possible faults. Remember that small sealing faults may be below seismic resolution but
your correlation will find them, 13. Draw quick maps and cross sections as you correlate to check logic
of your picks, 14. Do NOT correlate high energy sand bodies unless you are within a restricted local basin
or field situation. Even then, be certain to correlate shale markers or biostratigraphic extinction tops
above and below the sand sections., 15. Correlate sequence boundaries, maximum flooding surfaces,
ash beds, highstand transgressive shales, and stratigraphically limited carbonates. Create a
chronostratigraphic correlation, not a lithostratigraphic call that cuts time lines and creates false dip,
16. If you have geologic information about the area you’re working in, be sure to utilize it to guide your
correlation models. 17. Do not hesitate to ask another geologist for their opinion if you get stuck.