Oil & Gas Exploration & Production Data: From Country Output Series to the Wellbore Record · Head-to-head
Volve Open Field Dataset vs Hutton Field 'Oilfield in a Box' Dataset
Which oil & gas exploration & production data: from country output series to the wellbore record data fits your job: Volve Open Field Dataset, or Hutton Field 'Oilfield in a Box' Dataset. API, files, or your warehouse. Daily, weekly, or hourly.
Volve Open Field Dataset
Hutton Field 'Oilfield in a Box' Dataset
Where the fields line up
No shared field names. These two answer different questions.
| Field | Volve Open Field Dataset | Hutton Field 'Oilfield in a Box' Dataset |
|---|---|---|
daily_production_report | Per-well daily production records for the Volve field: oil, gas and water volumes by wellbore and date across the producing life of the development. The time-series backbone every decline analysis and material-balance study builds on. | not in this set |
well_logs | Wireline and logging-while-drilling log suites by wellbore, depth-indexed - gamma ray, neutron porosity, bulk density, resistivity and companion curves. The petrophysical layer used to compute porosity, saturation and net pay. | not in this set |
seismic | Seismic survey volumes covering the field, including 3D post-stack gathers such as survey ST0202R08. The imaging layer that extends structure and stratigraphy away from well control. | not in this set |
reservoir_model | Subsurface geological and reservoir simulation models for the field as RMS projects - structural framework, property grids and simulation deck. The reference model any re-simulation or history-match exercise starts from. | not in this set |
PVT_pressure_data | Pressure-volume-temperature analyses and downhole pressure measurements, including formation-pressure test points by well and depth. The fluid-and-energy layer behind drive-mechanism and recovery-factor work. | not in this set |
Well identifier | not in this set | documented |
Wireline log curves | not in this set | documented |
Well report | not in this set | documented |
3D seismic survey volume | not in this set | documented |
Stratigraphic picks | not in this set | documented |
Production data | not in this set | documented |
Coverage, side by side
| Volve Open Field Dataset | Hutton Field 'Oilfield in a Box' Dataset | |
|---|---|---|
| Temporal | Field lifetime of the Volve development - production began 2008, ceased before the 2018 release | Field content 1973 to 2000, compiled and published by BGS in 2019 |
| Granularity | Daily production per well; full-well log suites; field-scale seismic and model grids | Per-well borehole records across 65 wells; one field-scale 3D seismic survey; field-level stratigraphic and production tables |
What each contains
Pick by fit, not by loyalty.
| Volve Open Field Dataset | Hutton Field 'Oilfield in a Box' Dataset | |
|---|---|---|
| Publisher | Equinor | British Geological Survey via the National Hydrocarbon Data Archive |
| Subject lens | Complete real-field release from one producing Norwegian North Sea development: production, logs, seismic, PVT and reservoir models | Complete raw-data archive from one decommissioned UK northern North Sea field: borehole records, seismic, stratigraphy and production |
| Field scope | One field end to end - the Volve development, Norwegian North Sea | One field end to end - Hutton Field, UK quadrant 211, East Shetland Basin (extent 61.15N-61.01N, 1.36E-1.44E) |
| Well inventory | Per-well daily production records and full-well log suites across the Volve well stock | Borehole data for 65 wells, each with wireline logs and accompanying well reports |
| Temporal reach | Field lifetime of the Volve development - production began 2008, ceased before the 2018 release | Field content 1973 to 2000, compiled and published by BGS in 2019 |
| Finest granularity | Daily production per well; full-well log suites; field-scale seismic and model grids | Per-well borehole records across 65 wells; one field-scale 3D seismic survey; field-level stratigraphic and production tables |
| Documented fields | 5 documented field groups, definitions verified | 6 documented fields, definitions verified |
| Formats delivered | LAS and DLIS log files, SEG-Y seismic, RMS project files, CSV production tables, PDF documentation | LAS, LIS and DLIS log files, ASCII curves, SEGY seismic, TIFF scans and PDF reports |
| Extras neither shares | PVT / formation-pressure analysis and the Volve RMS geo-model for simulation | DOI 10.5285/e7901156-cf98-4a83-af7e-640f05213ad8 with named authors, NGDC accession item 192234 and NORA eprint 525101 |
| Rubric rating | 8 out of 10 (catalog average 7.81 across 1,744 datasets) | 7 out of 10 (catalog average 7.81 across 1,744 datasets) |
| Best for | Modeling loops that need production, logs and a simulation model in one package | Citable teaching and research built on an archived decommissioned field |
Where they're equivalent
More than the Norwegian-versus-UK split implies.
- Both are one complete real field, released whole - not a basin aggregate, not a synthetic benchmark, not a vendor sample.
- Both sit in the same sea. Two sectors of the North Sea: Volve on the Norwegian shelf, Hutton in UK quadrant 211's East Shetland Basin.
- Both share the core formats. LAS-family log files and SEG-Y seismic on each side, so one set of readers ingests either record.
- Both are static releases, frozen at publication - true of 181 of the 1,744 cataloged datasets - so there is no upstream churn to chase, only format and cadence to agree on.
- Both are public_dataset records from an institutional custodian - Equinor on one side, BGS's National Hydrocarbon Data Archive on the other - part of the 14 public releases among the slice's 18 datasets.
- Neither overlaps the other's timeline: Volve's production began in 2008; Hutton's content ends in 2000. Combined, they form a continuous two-decade North Sea window with zero double-counting.
Fair questions
Is the Volve Open Field Dataset better than the Hutton Field 'Oilfield in a Box' Dataset?
Different basins of value. Volve is the machine-ready benchmark: daily per-well production, LAS/DLIS log curves (GR, NPHI, RHOB), SEG-Y seismic including the ST0202R08 3D survey, PVT analysis and RMS reservoir models from one producing Norwegian field, scored 8 out of 10 on Datadory's rubric. Hutton is the citable archive: 65 wells of wireline logs plus TIFF/PDF reports, a 3D SEGY survey and Base Cretaceous-style picks from one decommissioned UKCS field, published by BGS in 2019 under a formal DOI, scored 7 out of 10.
Do the Volve and Hutton field dictionaries overlap?
On the shared spine, almost completely: both reduce the field to a well identifier, wireline log curves, a seismic survey volume and production volumes, and both deliver curves in LAS-family formats with seismic in SEG-Y. They diverge at the edges - Volve adds PVT pressure analysis and RMS reservoir simulation models no archive scan can replace, while Hutton adds original completion and geological reports as scanned documents plus formation-top stratigraphic picks that attach geology to every curve.
Can I use the Volve Open Field Dataset and the Hutton Field 'Oilfield in a Box' Dataset together?
Yes, and they never double-count. Volve's production reporting sits inside its field lifetime beginning 2008 before the 2018 release; Hutton's content ends in 2000, so the combined timeline runs back-to-back across two decades and two sectors of the North Sea. Budget asymmetric extras on each side - OCR for Hutton's TIFF/PDF scans, an RMS-capable reader for Volve's geo-model - and expect the same LAS/DLIS and SEG-Y readers to handle both.
Which dataset should I sample first?
Sample both, pick by fit - the question decides. If the deliverable is a model, a history-match or a decline calibration, start with Volve because daily production and reservoir models close the loop in one package. If the deliverable is a citation, a course or a decommissioning-market study, start with Hutton for the DOI, named authors and national-survey custodianship. Both samples come shaped to the families and date ranges you name.