API Represents America's Oil and Natural Gas Industry

API Represents America's Oil and Natural Gas Industry

The oil and natural gas industry provides the fuel for American life, warming our homes, powering our businesses and giving us the mobility to enjoy this great land.  As the primary trade association of that industry, API represents more than 400 members involved in all aspects of the oil and natural gas industry.  Our association draws on the experience and expertise of our members and staff to support a strong and viable oil and natural gas industry.

• Our work is member-driven.  We offer companies large and small the opportunity to participate in shaping API programs and policy priorities.

• We are a major research institute.  API is committed to using the best available scientific, economic and legal analysis to guide and support our policy positions.

• We give our industry a unified voice.  API's expert staff participate actively in key policy-making forums, facilitating production dialogue and effective solutions on issues important to all Americans.

• Our organization is tailored to serve our members.  API membership is divided by industry segments that companies have direct input on the issues most important to them.

Recommended Practice 66, Version 1 [RP66V1] was introduced as an enhanced exchange format for well data. It incorporated the useful features of earlier formats and extended them by removing some of their historical limitations. The primary features of RP66 V1 were machine independence, self-description, semantic extensibility, and efficient handling of bulk data. It has been implemented and is used widely for exchange of well data.

Following the introduction of RP66 by the API, a number of efforts by other oil industry groups to develop data exchange formats began to mature and converge toward the adoption of RP66, creating a major opportunity to have just one standard exchange format for all oilfield data. However, the strong bias of RP66 toward well data was a stumbling block. In addition, introduction of new high-capacity storage devices created a need to expand the RP66 physical binding mechanism, and experience in using RP66 generated ideas for improvements. Working closely with other industry groups, the API Subcommittee on Recommended Format for Well Data developed a set of modifications to RP66, which have resulted in the current RP66, Version 2 (RP66 V2), which is described in this document.

RP66 V2 retains the essential features of RP66 V1 and is completely upward compatible. That is, any data recorded under RP66 V1 can be translated into RP66 V2 format.