Oil company Shell has started exploration work offshore Senegal in Northwest Africa, where the “pinprick” technology of Norway-based Electromagnetic Geoservices, or EMGS, has been hired to a $4-million survey.

The “3D” electromagnetic survey is the first in a series under a framework deal worked out with the oil company. A new ship, the BOA Thalassa, will work the survey after work in the Norwegian Sea.

Operator First Australian Resources, or FAR, will scan drilling prospects already ID’d.

“The objective of the EM exploration programme is to enable Shell to determine whether to acquire a 70 percent interest in the license and subsequently enter into a well commitment,” a statement said.

For EMGS, meanwhile, the high-profile work highlites its EM technology’s “de-risking” role offshore, as pointless tens of millions of dollars in rig-exploration drilling can be avoided.

Tags: EMGS, First Australian Resources, Shell