Beyond the petroleum system: GEOHORIZONS

The first joint AAPG/AMGP (Association of Mexican Petroleum Geologists) Hedberg Conference on “Geologic Aspects of Petroleum Systems” was held October 2–6, 1994, in Mexico City, Mexico. This research conference attracted nearly 150 geoscientists from 15 countries; 41 papers and 27 posters were presented. The opposite response occurred when the petroleum-system concept was presented more than 20 yr ago; it was largely overlooked. In the past decade, however, interest in this concept as an exploration tool has been growing rapidly. The research conference addressed the concept itself, its elements and processes, the tools and methods used to identify a petroleum system, and many case studies. We summarize responses by the participants to the following three questions. First, what is gained from using the petroleum-system concept? Second, in what new directions will the petroleum-system concept take us in the future? Third, has anything new come out of this research conference?