Gazprom Neft Created a Digital Model for Forecasting Permafrost Changes
Gazprom Neft has developed a system for forecasting the state of permafrost in Yamal until 2050. The digital model will support the environmentally responsible implementation of industrial projects in the Far North, taking into account changes in permafrost soils.
Permafrost soils are located in the upper part of the Earth’s crust. The preservation of their negative temperature determines the reliability and durability of buildings, roads, and engineering networks. The digital system created by the Gazprom Neft team will make it possible to forecast changes in soil properties in Yamal with high accuracy. These data will help ensure the safe operation of existing facilities, as well as efficient design and construction of new infrastructure in the Arctic region.
The digital model integrates data from 3.5 thousand engineering and geological wells, satellite imagery, and field and laboratory studies. The system reflects the structure, temperature, physical and mechanical, and thermophysical properties of soils and rocks. All of this helps assess the current state of permafrost, identify risk factors, and monitor processes in the subsurface.
The geoinformation model describes permafrost across areas exceeding 15 thousand square kilometres in the western part of the Yamal Peninsula. In the future, it will be extended to other regions of Gazprom Neft’s operations in Eastern and Western Siberia.
“The cryolithozone occupies more than 60% of our country’s territory. Assessing its condition and its changes is one of the state priorities. Not long ago, the Government of Russia decided to create a state system for monitoring permafrost based on Roshydromet. For our part, as a company operating in the permafrost zone, we also pay great attention to its study and preservation. The digital system we have created will make it possible to model changes in the cryolithozone decades ahead and will help develop complex fields in the Far North in an environmentally responsible manner. At the same time, we will, of course, be ready to share the data from our model, including with government authorities,” said Gazprom Neft Chairman of the Management Board Alexander Dyukov.
“Russia occupies a special place on the global climate map, as most of the country lies within the permafrost zone. The Far North contains vast reserves of mineral resources and is home to hundreds of thousands of people. All this determines the importance of studying, monitoring, and forecasting the development of the cryolithozone. The creation of an intelligent service for assessing and scientifically forecasting the state of permafrost soils will help in solving industrial tasks and developing optimal approaches to the development of settlements in the Far North,” explained Artem Gromadsky, Director of the Scientific Centre for Arctic Studies.
