Cuadrilla Lancashire — Bowland Basin ADR Field Trial
ADR Virtual Boreholes were trained against known Lancashire stratigraphy, tested for repeatability at Becconsall and applied to blind interpretation at Elswick.
Can Virtual Boreholes reproduce and predict deep Lancashire stratigraphy?
The field trial tested whether ADR attributes could identify distinct lithological units, track them laterally and transfer a zonation learned at training sites to a blind location.
Training observations included responses associated with Pendle Grit, Bowland Shales and deeper Hodder units.
Acquire → calibrate → interpret → validate
Train
Known geology at Becconsall and Grange Hill was used to characterise ADR responses and establish lithological zonation.
Repeat
Four Becconsall V-bores were compared to test lateral consistency and were assembled into a 2D subsurface profile.
Blind test
The trained zonation was applied at Elswick before comparison with the geological interpretation.
What the field programme demonstrated
Repeatability
The programme reported repeatable sequencing of distinct lithological units. At Becconsall, four V-bores showed consistent laterally trackable zones.
Blind interpretation
At Elswick, ADR picked a response similar to Pendle Grit at ~6,500 ft, the Upper/Lower Bowland Shale boundary at ~9,000 ft, and a deeper response similar to Hodder Limestone at ~10,250 ft.
Important: Historical ADR results are presented as exploration and subsurface decision-support evidence. Interpretations are probabilistic rather than diagnostic and should be integrated with wells, logs, geology and other geophysical information.
Bring VEXRAD one target.
Use Virtual Boreholes to add a non-invasive evidence layer before committing further subsurface capital.