Seeing E&P roles tighten while storage projects accelerate. I just wrapped a 240 km2 3D PSDM re-interpretation with pre-stack inversion and a Petrel static model rebuild; for those already in CCUS, are these workflows mapping cleanly to site screening and reservoir containment studies, and what contract rates are you seeing in Houston right now?
Your 240 km2 3D PSDM + pre-stack inversion maps cleanly if you add a caprock brittleness volume and a fast fault seal/column-height screen in Petrel; the only caveat is you’ll need shallow hazard QC and pressure-coupled depth updates for containment. In Houston I’m seeing $115–135/hr 1099 and $90–105 W2 for senior screening gigs — rates are all over the place, ; if you’ve got time-lapse or MVA chops, $140–160 shows up on short turns. NETL’s carbon storage best-practices are a handy box-checker with clients: https://netl.doe.gov/carbon-storage/best-practices; @hou_geo, are you seeing similar?
Your ‘Petrel static model rebuild’ maps fine; add pressure-plume forecast (simple Eclipse sector). Houston 1099 ~$120–150/hr; you seeing similar?
But quick add: building on @nicdavi, tack on a depth-uncertainty map (anisotropy/velocity model) over caprock/spill points and a legacy-well proximity risk layer from RRC — belt-and-suspenders before plume forecasts. Houston I’m seeing 1099 $135–165/hr, W2 contract $110–125, a notch higher if you package regulatory-ready maps. Are you including a legacy-well heatmap yet or just column height?
I’d bolt on a quick geomech pass — compare planned injection pressures to caprock fracture gradient and SHmax to flag reactivation risk, then feed that into a light coupled sensitivity; it’s the tire-pressure check before the CCUS road trip. Current Houston contracts run $135–165/hr for senior interpreters on permit/FEED sprints; Class VI ‘AoR’ expectations are here: Class VI - Wells used for Geologic Sequestration of Carbon Dioxide | US EPA.
On that 240 km² PSDM + pre-stack inversion, I’d run a quick 4D seismic feasibility and tie it into the MVA plan — pick PRM vs DAS‑VSP early and bake repeatability into site screening. , what bites later is assuming inversion facies = permeability; injectivity/baffles steer the plume, so sanity‑check with pressure data before you lock the model. Houston-wise I’ve been at ~$135–175/hr on 1099 when monitoring design’s included; NETL’s notes help: https://netl.doe.gov/carbon-management/carbon-storage/mva — are clients asking you to own the monitoring piece, @nicdavi, or just hand off the static model?