The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has introduced a series of upgrades to improve access to its National Data Repository (NDR), helping researchers and developers find critical offshore energy information in seconds rather than hours.
The NDR contains more than one million files dating from the 1960s to the present and is used by the oil and gas, carbon storage and offshore energy sectors. The scale and complexity of the database has historically made it challenging for users to locate specific information.
To improve accessibility, around 800,000 files relating to offshore wells have been analysed and labelled with plain-language tags that clearly identify their contents.
The NSTA has also introduced a free-text search function powered by artificial intelligence. The system interprets user search terms and links them to NSTA tags and technical terminology, allowing users to search using their own words and phrases.
The enhanced functionality is designed to help users locate highly specialised information more quickly. One example is “foraminifera”, microscopic fossils found in rock samples that are used in biostratigraphy to determine the age of rocks.
While foraminifera is too specific to be an NSTA tag, the AI-powered search can quickly identify related biostratigraphy records, directing users to relevant information in seconds.
The improved search capability is expected to benefit a range of industries by making it easier to identify potential hydrocarbon resources, assess carbon storage opportunities and evaluate locations for offshore wind developments.
Andy Thompson, NSTA Head of Product Services, said: “High-quality information is vital for research and making good business decisions. The NDR contains all the information needed and the improvements we have made to accessibility mean that it is an extraordinarily useful resource.
“We know that it is already used extensively by scientists, researchers, industry colleagues, academics and government and we are confident that now it will become an even greater tool for innovation and exploration.”
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