Seitel's Class One Data Storage and Management Center Will Open in March 2002
Highlights
- Seitel Solutions, whose seismic storage and data management system provides customers global on-line access to the largest data library in North America, announces the first of two new Class One data storage and management centers is expected to open in March 2002, with the second data center opening in late spring 2002.
- Initial products offered to clients will include: the ability to execute electronic transactions globally, 24 hours a day, seven days per week with no interruption to service; the ability to access and interact with ancillary information such as previously drilled wells, well log information and all publicly disclosed information about the location; and the ability to interface with other applications to enhance the process of finding oil and gas.
- Seitel continues to expand, update, and consolidate its seismic data library for its new data centers through the acquisition of existing data libraries, while enhancing its client base with new users in both the domestic and international markets.
- Seitel is currently building two complimentary data centers, one in Houston, Texas and one Calgary, Alberta, which will provide both security and redundancy of critical data. Seitel will host an analyst meeting at the new Houston facility in May 2002.
HOUSTON, Dec. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Seitel, Inc. (NYSE: SEI - news; Toronto: OSL - news), announced today that Seitel Solutions, a wholly-owned subsidiary, will be opening its ``first of a kind'' world-class data hosting facility, located in the energy corridor of Houston, Texas. The new 72,000 square foot facility will house Seitel, Inc.'s 1.4 petabytes of seismic data that will be accessible 24 hours per day/seven days a week via the Web. This facility will increase the intrinsic value, usefulness, and revenue-generating capabilities of our seismic inventory and help our North American client base. In addition, Seitel expects this investment to broaden our traditional product and service offerings and to expand our revenue opportunities in the future. Seitel expects cost savings to be recognized in fiscal 2002, beginning in the second half of the year, as services currently outsourced in Canada and in the United States are brought in house.
This world-class data management solution will provide oil and gas companies with the ability to handle their burgeoning data challenges more effectively and at the same time lower costs. ``The oil and gas industry today is faced with two challenges: how do you arrest existing production declines, and how do you replace existing production while being prospect short? The answer to both questions has been and will continue to be found in seismic data. Seitel Solutions will provide our clients a new state-of-the-art solution for finding oil and gas reserves at reduced costs. Our clients will have the capability to receive seismic data ordered from our on-line archive, delivered to their workstations on average in less than ten minutes. Seitel currently offers 24-hour response time on all orders while the industry norm is significantly longer than that. The creation of our new data management system was driven by our clients needs,'' stated Paul Frame, President and Chief Executive Officer.
The Seitel Solution data management system will be available to any licensed client. Whether on a small scale or as a worldwide solution, the technology behind Seitel Solutions can be used to transcribe, manage and store data for any information intensive industry. Once the digitizing of the 1.4 petabyte database is complete, the company will have the ability to increase library capacity ten-fold with little or no capital expenditures required for the data center.
The Houston Data Center will open in March 2002 and will have the capability to deliver seismic solutions worldwide. The loading of digitized data into the storage units has already begun and is expected to take several years before completion. The newest, highest priority data is being loaded first. As the company continues to acquire additional data libraries, they will be loaded for client use on a priority basis as well. The Calgary, Alberta Data Center will open in late spring 2002, with comparable capabilities to the Houston Center. A broadband network connection will provide mutual disaster recovery support between these two centers. The data centers offer the widest range of physical security features, including state-of-the-art smoke detection and fire suppression systems, motion sensors, a 24/7 secured access, as well as additional comprehensive security controls. The company expects to complete the entire project, including the data centers, below its budget of $18 million.
Seitel will host an analyst meeting at the new facility in early May. The company will discuss several topics including the new data center and the contribution of Seitel Solutions to future earnings |
