Seeing the Formation Before It Lies to You

SLB's Retina system captures formation images at the drill bit, winning a 2026 OTC award with proven results in Middle East field trials

3 Jun 2026

SLB's Retina formation imaging system received a 2026 OTC Spotlight on New Technology Award in May, a recognition the industry grants on the basis of field performance rather than pre-commercial promise. The system embeds compact sensors directly into PDC drill bits, converting cutter-rock interaction forces into azimuthal borehole images at the point of first contact.

Conventional imaging tools sit several metres behind the bit. By the time they arrive, drilling fluids and mechanical stress have already altered the formation. Retina captures that data before disturbance occurs, a capability that previous methods could not provide.

Also, the commercial deployment now extends to China and the Middle East. Field trials across the region tested the system against carbonate shale formations where fractures, vugs, and stylolites govern pressure barriers, mud loss, and completion quality. In one trial, stylolite mapping from the system led engineers to redefine productive zones that standard evaluation had missed.

Saudi Arabia's Jafurah gas field sits within that operational context, where formation clarity at the bit face carries direct commercial weight.

"Imaging at the bit, before the formation is affected by drilling fluids, unlocks new opportunities in drilling, fluid management, and completions," said Cecilia Prieto, president of Well Construction at SLB.

Retina operates across all fluid types and hole sizes without additional bottom-hole assembly components. Data is stored downhole for post-run processing. Live transmission is not available, a constraint that may limit real-time geosteering on high-tempo multi-well pad programmes where decision windows are short.

For Gulf operators pushing toward tighter well spacing and pad efficiency, subsurface precision at the bit is becoming a baseline expectation. Whether real-time data integration follows remains an open question for the technology's next phase.