Energy major Total has brought online its new Pangea III supercomputer, multiplying the group’s computing power by almost 5 to 31.7 petaflops (equivalent to 170,000 laptops combined) and tripling its storage capacity to 76 petabytes (equivalent to about 50 million HD movies).

Pangea III’s capacity adds to its predecessors (Pangea I and II) and is now ranked the most powerful supercomputer in the industry. Total said its new supercomputer will enable its geologists to find oil faster, cheaper and with a better success rate. The Pangea III computer built by IBM will help process complex seismic data in the search for hydrocarbons 10 times faster than before.

New algorithms can process huge amounts of data more accurately, at higher resolution and help to more reliably locate hydrocarbons below ground. This is especially useful in complex geologic environments with resources trapped under salt, such as in Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, Angola and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Increased computing power allows use of innovative reservoir simulation methods that integrate more efficiently a field’s production history and generate more reliable predictive production models. Pangea III also improved business efficiency by enabling an early assessment of the value of exploration acreage and asset opportunities, thus enhancing selectivity in new ventures.