Sustainable drilling practices through advanced pore pressure prediction: Reducing environmental impact in hydrocarbon exploration

This paper explores the role of advanced pore pressure prediction in promoting sustainable practices within hydrocarbon exploration, with a focus on reducing environmental impacts associated with drilling operations. Conventional drilling methods present significant ecological risks, including blowouts, subsurface contamination, and carbon emissions, which undermine efforts to operate sustainably. Advanced pore pressure prediction methods—encompassing machine learning, real-time monitoring, and data analytics—offer a proactive solution to these challenges by enhancing wellbore stability and minimizing unplanned incidents. Through a comprehensive examination of the latest predictive technologies, this study highlights the benefits of integrating pore pressure prediction into drilling operations to reduce ecological disruption, optimize energy use, and enhance overall safety. Additionally, the paper presents recommendations for industry-wide adoption of these sustainable technologies, emphasizing training, data management, technological partnerships, and regulatory support. The hydrocarbon industry can achieve a more sustainable balance between energy production and environmental preservation by implementing advanced predictive practices.