A review of the extensive advances made in the understanding the petroleum geology of the Atlantic margin of northwest Europe, of the North Sea and of adjacent areas since the;ast conference in 1992. In particular, the volume focuses on: the development of and application of 3D seismic, time-lapse ('4D') and other innovative seismic tools; the ongoing refinement of sequence and other stratigraphic approaches, including the integration of detailed biostratigraphic data; the development of modelling at both the reservoir and basin scale which can respond to new data acquisition and be used to assess uncertainties at the reservoir scale and scenarios at the basin scale.

Published by the Geological Society on behalf of PGC Ltd. (1 hardback volume in slipcase). The 8th Conference on the Petroleum Geology of NW Europe was held in September 2015 and marked the 50th anniversary of the first commercial discovery offshore in the North Sea (West Sole, in September 1965). Its focus was ‘50 Years of Learning – a Platform for Present Value and Future Success’ and its objective was to provide an update on discoveries, developments, technologies and geological concepts from the region. The 39 extensively illustrated technical papers cover the full width of recent activity and are divided into the following sections: Plays and fairways; Play assessment; Recent successes and learnings from failures; Infrastructure-led exploration and development; Late-life fields, re-development and the ‘next life’; Onshore exploration and development. The proceedings volume follows the format of many of the previous conferences since the first in 1974. Collectively these provide a unique documentation of the discovery and development of several NW European hydrocarbon provinces. The volume will be of interest to all geoscientists involved in exploration and development in NW Europe. It provides a fascinating overview of how creativity can continue to reveal hidden resources in an area that has been called ‘mature’ for at least the last 20 of its 50-year history.

The Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), focus of this special publication, is a prolific hydrocarbon region and both exploration and production activity remains high to this day with a positive production outlook. A key element today and in the future is to couple technological developments to improving our understanding of specific geological situations. The theme of the publication reflects the immense efforts made by all industry operators and their academic partners on the NCS to understand in detail the structural setting, sedimentology and stratigraphy of the hydrocarbon bearing units and their source and seal. The papers cover a wide spectrum of depositional environments ranging from alluvial fans to deepwater fans, in almost every climate type from arid through humid to glacial, and in a variety of tectonic settings. Special attention is given to the integration of both analogue studies and process-based models with the insights gained from extensive subsurface datasets.

Frontiers in Geofluids is a collection of invited papers chosen to highlight recent developments in our understanding of geological fluids in different parts of the Earth, and published to mark the first ten years of publication of the journal Geofluids. The scope of the volume ranges from the fundamental properties of fluids and the phase relationships of fluids encountered in nature, to case studies of the role of fluids in natural processes. New developments in analytical and theoretical approaches to understanding fluid compositions, fluid properties, and geological fluid dynamics across a wide range of environments are included. A recurrent theme of research published in Geofluids is the way in which similar approaches can be applied to geological fluids in very different settings and this is reflected in the diverse range of applications of fluid studies that are included here. They include deep groundwater flow, hydrocarbons in faulted sedimentary basins, hydrothermal ores, and multiphase flow in mid-ocean ridge systems. Other topics covered are geothermal waters, crustal metamorphism, and fluids in magmatic systems. The book will be of great interest to researchers and students interested in crustal and mantle fluids of all sorts.

This second edition of 'The Geology of England and Wales' is considerably expanded from its predecessor, reflecting the increase in our knowledge of the region, and particularly of the offshore areas. Forty specialists have contributed to 18 chapters, which cover a time range from 700 million years ago to 200 million years into the future. A new format places all the chapters in approximately temporal order. Both offshore and economic geology now form an integral part of appropriate chapters.

This volume addresses the challenges facing explorers and developers alike in a region that is becoming a major focus of the petroleum industry in the United Kingdom, Faroes and North Norway. Several West of Shetland fields are still in the appraisal phase almost a decade after discovery. Sub-volcanic exploration risks remain high: sub-volcanic structural traps are imaged poorly, and so the geophysical community is responding with the application of latest technology. The more simple reservoirs might not be large enough to prompt informed and speedy development decisions; larger fields might have a combination of complexities, requiring a phased approach to the development. Infrastructure has been slow to arrive and planned developments have been subject to dramatic swings in fiscal regime ranging from special allowances to unexpected tax increases. Environmental challenges are significant when moving into more remote, deeper water. The perception of these challenges by the third parties has become much more acute. To sustain its right to operate, the industry has to demonstrate safe drilling operations and appropriate response capability with government agencies.

This 4th edition of The Geology of Scotland is greatly expanded from the previous edition with 34 authors contributing to 20 chapters. A new format has been adopted to provide a different perspective on the geology of Scotland. A brief introduction is followed by a chapter outlining some of the important historical aspects that in the 19th century placed Scottish geologists in the forefront of a new science. Scotland is constructed from a number of terranes that finally combined in roughly their present positions prior to about 410 million years ago. Thus the geology of each terrane is described up the time of amalgamation, providing chapters on the Southern Uplands, Midland Valley, Highlands, Grampian and Hebridean terranes. At the end of this section, a brief synthesis summarizes the events that resulted in the amalgamation of the various terranes into the present configuration. Traditional practice is followed in the description of the Old Red Sandstone, Carboniferous, Permo-Trias, Jurassic, Cretaceous, tertiary and Quaternary strata. A separate chapter covers Tertiary igneous rocks. An attempt is made to tell the story of the geological evolution of Scotland, rather than catalogue all areas and formations. Priority is given to the onshore geology, encouraging the reader to go into the field and visit some of the world-class geology on show in Scotland. The chapters are broadly-based, attempting to integrate the sedimentary and igneous histories, and summarize changes in palaeogeography and palaeoenvironments. Economic aspects are covered with chapters on Metalliferous Minerals, Bulk Resources, Coal and Hydrocarbons. A new departure is the chapter on aspects of Environmental Geology and sustainability. Additionally, this publication contains a colour section of 32 plates, illustrating aspects of Scottish Geology, as well as a coloured geological map of Scotland.