CGG Services Australia (CGG) is a multinational geoscience technology services company that specializes on solving complex natural resource, environmental and infrastructure challenges. The company is listed on the Euronext Paris securities market.

CGG has had offices in Australia since 1983 and currently employs 24 people, in Perth. A leader in cutting-edge geoscience, we have a strong focus on innovation and a commitment to delivering the best sustainable solutions to our clients' energy challenges. We bring our clients a unique range of technologies, services and equipment designed to acquire extremely precise data and images of the Earth's subsurface. We also provide state-of-the-art software and services for analyzing that data and developing a deeper understanding of the subsurface for exploration, production and optimization of oil and gas reservoirs.

The Sauropod 3D Marine Seismic Survey will be carried out by CGG Services (Australia) Pty Ltd, operating under Australia Business Number 70 081 777 755.

The aim of the proposed Sauropod 3D Marine Seismic Survey (Sauropod MSS) is to explore the area in order to evaluate its potential natural resources. The survey vessel would operate over approximately 6,000 km2 including approximately 3,500 km2 where seismic data could be acquired (see map).

The survey vessel will be operating in Commonwealth waters.

The main purpose of seismic exploration is to render the most accurate possible graphic representation of specific portions of the Earth's subsurface geologic structure.

Acquisition of seismic data involves the transmission of controlled acoustic energy into the Earth and recording the energy that is reflected back from geologic boundaries in the subsurface.

The images produced allow the evaluation of the area for its potential to yield natural resources.

Seismic surveys are the main tool used in oil & gas exploration and are used routinely throughout the world and around Australia. Numerous 2D and 3D surveys have taken place on the North West Shelf for over half a century, alongside other activities, such as petroleum production and commercial fishing.

The North Carnarvon Basin has been producing hydrocarbons since the 1960’s and has seen the discovery of several giant oil and gas fields. Since that time acquisition and processing technologies have advanced dramatically. More recently, work on the Bedout Sub-basin, within the North Carnarvon Basin, has revealed its potential as a new oil and gas province. New data is required to further examine and help unlock this potential.

The Australian Government requires petroleum and greenhouse gas (GHG) companies to conduct their activities in a manner that meets a high standard of environmental protection. The seismic industry's environmental record in Australia, particularly in offshore areas, has been exemplary. No offshore seismic survey proposal would be approved unless the highest environmental standards had been met.

Under Environment Regulations, an operator is legally required to submit an Environment Plan to the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) for public disclosure. Once accepted by NOPSEMA, at this link. an electronic version of the Environment Plan will be available on NOPSEMA’s website.

Environment Plans submitted for petroleum activities in Commonwealth waters are available on the NOPSEMA website at this link.

CGG is currently commissioning RPS, a specialist environmental consultancy, to prepare a detailed Environment Plan for NOPSEMA using the best available science. If this is accepted, a permit may be granted to conduct the seismic survey under the conditions agreed to in the environmental plan. During the Environment Plan preparation phase, the environmental consultancy engages with stakeholders (local communities, fisheries representatives, conservation associations, regulatory bodies etc.) and addresses their potential concerns.

CGG’s policy is to apply ecodesign principles and mitigations to prevent and remediate potential negative effects on the environment.

Our marine seismic surveys play an important role in reducing environmental footprints. Seismic surveys are short term events that provide indirect environmental benefits. First, they reveal which areas are not viable prospects. Second, they reduce the number of wells required to locate and precisely delineate oil and natural gas resources. And third, they reduce the number of wells required to produce the resources that are discovered.

CGG diligently applies risk-based monitoring and mitigation measures, which have been tailored to the local environment as a result of the Environmental Impact Assessment. These include specific measures protecting marine life in line with national requirements and international laws and regulations.

The seismic source is progressively started (‘soft-start’) over a period of 30 minutes starting from the smallest single source element to the entire array. Independent Marine Mammal Observers (MMOs) ensure a watch of 30 minutes prior to the soft start from the vessel bridge, monitoring a safety zone of 3,000 meters from the seismic source.

If a whale is detected, the soft start cannot take place until a clear 30 minutes has passed without a further sighting. Throughout data acquisition, MMOs have the authority to stop the seismic source so as to prevent any risk of harm to the animal if a marine animal is sighted within the safety zone. Records from marine life monitoring and mitigations are sent to NOPSEMA.

Every year, CGG transparently reports its consolidated environmental performance in its sustainability report.

As part of its Care+Protect program, CGG is committed to further investigate the effects of operations on marine life and implement further measures of mitigation where necessary. CGG therefore recently commissioned original research from the UK Universities of Exeter and Bristol to assess the cumulative effect of seismic sound and other man-made sounds such as shipping and pile-driving on fish post-larvae, a very sensitive life-stage. The results, which are published in a high-level peer-reviewed scientific journal, are compelling. After having initially developed some levels of stress as a result of the exposure to seismic sound, the post-larvae have quickly developed a mechanism of tolerance to the seismic sound, which has allowed them to eliminate any stress and grow the same way as the post-larvae raised in the same conditions without any exposure to man-made sound.

The Sauropod MSS Environment Plan will assess and discuss potential impacts including on local fish species. Fish can respond differently to seismic sound depending on whether or not they have a swim bladder, a gas-filled chamber that can detect sound pressure. The research on post-larvae referenced above focused on the Seabass, a model species with swim bladder. Fish with a swim bladder include Blue warehou, Jackass morwong, Whiting, Yellow eyed mullet, Australian sardine and Australian salmon and some species of flathead. Fish with no swim bladder are less susceptible to sound pressure impacts from seismic surveys. These include sharks, rays, mackerel, tuna, as well as many flatfish and flounder.

Past 3D seismic Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) referenced on NOPSEMA’s website have determined that potential impacts from the survey on all fish, including those with a swim bladder, has been assessed as minor or insignificant, localised, and temporary. It is also noted that no cases of fish death have been reported from seismic surveys.

No, our seismic surveys are designed, planned and executed to prevent potential conflicts of usage with other sea users. Although the potential exists for short-term inconvenience and disruption to the patterns of fishing and aquaculture, the survey lines are therefore carefully planned and discussed with fisheries representatives and other interested parties ahead of and during operations. Early stakeholder engagement and local consultations aim to limit interference to the lowest levels possible. Ongoing communications with all interested parties are maintained throughout the survey.

CGG has also implemented the Collaborative Seismic Environment Plan Commercial Fishing Industry Adjustment Protocol to formally manage claims should any commercial fishing stakeholders incur any loss of catch, displacement or require replacement of fishing equipment lost or damaged as a consequence of survey activities.

The seismic vessel sails slowly (about 4.5 knots) and has limited maneuvering capabilities due to the length of the towed cables. One or more support vessels escort the seismic vessel, with the duty to establish and maintain communications with other vessels in the area.

The purpose of an Environment Plan (EP) is to identify the proposed petroleum activity’s impacts on, and risks to, the environment. The EP also sets measures to reduce identified environmental impacts, potential risks due to the activity, and describe how and to what level of performance those measures will be implemented throughout the activity, including in the unlikely event of an unplanned event, e.g., a hydrocarbon spill.

The Sauropod 3D MSS EP is for a marine seismic survey which covers an area of 6,600 km2 off the north-west coast of Western Australia. The purpose of the Sauropod 3D MSS is to collect 3D geophysical data about the underlying rock types, to inform oil and gas exploration in the area, which is located on the North West Shelf in the Roebuck Basin. Seismic surveys are conducted by deploying an array of energy sources, in this case airguns, which emit high pressure pulses of sound, and an array of sensors or receivers which record the sound waves reflected back off the seabed. The seismic sources and sensors are towed behind a seismic survey vessel.

An EP was previously accepted by NOPSEMA for this activity on 16 February 2022. The accepted EP determined that the survey would be completed between the 1 January and 31 May 2022. However, CGG is now planning to conduct the survey in 2024 or 2025. If the EP is accepted, the survey will be conducted over 60 days between the 1 January and 31 May 2024 or 2025.

In line with Regulation 9(8) of the Commonwealth Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage (Environment) Regulations 2009, correspondence between CGG and you or your organisation must be provided to NOPSEMA. All comments are compiled into a report and are published in the publicly available EP, with names and contact details redacted.

There is, however, the opportunity for you to request that your correspondence not be published. That is, whilst the correspondence is still required to be provided to NOPSEMA, it will be provided in a separate report that is for NOPSEMA only and is not published.

Please notify CGG of any correspondence that we receive from you or your organisation that you wish to be confidential.

All comments received by CGG will be carefully assessed to understand the potential impacts of the activity upon you or your organisation as a relevant person, that is your functions, activities, or interests. CGG’s assessment will be provided to you and documented in the EP.

CGG will make reasonable efforts to consult with all parties that have been identified as potentially relevant persons. We would like to consult with you in a manner that is suitable for you. This can be via face-to-face meetings, phone calls, emails or letters. CGG is planning to be in Broome and Port Headland soon to facilitate face-to-face meetings. If you are interested in attending these, please be in touch.

Please be aware that it is a requirement of NOPSEMA that CGG documents no responses to this Invitation for Consultation, and consequently, if no response is received, CGG may make follow-up contact with you or your organisation several times to seek a response.

CGG’s previously accepted EP is available on the NOPSEMA website and can be viewed for more information on the activity, impacts and risks. The revised EP, which is currently under development, will be broadly similar with the main differences being the time window in which the survey will be conducted and related assessments, for example the assessment on cumulative impacts.

Following NOPSEMA’s completion of its pre-assessment checks of the revised EP it will be published, minus any confidential material, on NOPSEMA’s website.