Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: FEI Provides 3D Analysis System to Whiting Oil and Gas Corporation

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Abstract:
FEI (NASDAQ: FEIC) and Whiting Oil and Gas Corporation, announce the purchase of QEMSCAN® automated petrography and Helios NanoLab™ DualBeam™ technology for Whiting's new rock lab in its Denver, Colorado headquarters.

FEI Provides 3D Analysis System to Whiting Oil and Gas Corporation

Hillsboro, OR | Posted on May 28th, 2011

QEMSCAN provides data for reservoir characterization, including quantitative compositional and elastic properties critical for designing a successful hydraulic fracturing program. Given the intensive multi-rig drilling programs at Whiting, securing QEMSCAN technology in-house provides real-time solutions that can be applied prior to well completions. The QEMSCAN data is now being routinely used to calibrate older wireline logs, which were originally designed for conventional reservoirs but are, by themselves, inadequate in the characterization of the newer unconventional reservoirs Whiting is now targeting.

Much of the oil and gas in organic shales is contained in nanometer-scale pores. The Helios NanoLab DualBeam images porosity networks in three dimensions (3D) with nanometer-scale resolution.
According to Mark Williams, senior vice president of Exploration and Development for Whiting, "The addition of the QEMSCAN and Helios NanoLab DualBeam microscopes will significantly enhance our ability to characterize and qualify prospective unconventional hydrocarbon reservoirs while accelerating our workflow."

Paul Scagnetti, vice president and general manager of the Natural Resources Division of FEI, stated, "The oil and gas industry needs new analysis solutions to tackle the challenges that come with developing unconventional reservoirs. FEI's 3D nanoporosity analysis solution, including the Helios NanoLab DualBeam and QEMSCAN, provide 3D models that detail the complex microstructure of extremely fine-grained reservoirs, including the porosity, connectivity and organic content (kerogen)."

For more information, please visit: www.fei-natural-resources.com

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About FEI Company
FEI (Nasdaq: FEIC) is a leading diversified scientific instruments company. It is a premier provider of electron- and ion-beam microscopes and tools for nanoscale applications across many industries: industrial and academic materials research, life sciences, semiconductors, data storage, natural resources and more. With more than 60 years of technological innovation and leadership, FEI has set the performance standard in transmission electron microscopes (TEM), scanning electron microscopes (SEM) and DualBeams™, which combine a SEM with a focused ion beam (FIB). FEI’s imaging systems provide 3D characterization, analysis and modification/prototyping with resolutions down to the sub-Ångström (one-tenth of a nanometer) level. FEI’s NanoPorts in North America, Europe and Asia provide centers of technical excellence where its world-class community of customers and specialists collaborate. Headquartered in Hillsboro, Ore., USA, FEI has approximately 1800 employees and sales and service operations in more than 50 countries around the world. More information can be found at: www.fei-natural-resources.com.

About Whiting Petroleum Corporation

Whiting Oil and Gas Corporation is the wholly owned subsidiary of Whiting Petroleum Corporation, a Delaware corporation, that acquires, exploits, develops and explores for crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids primarily in the Permian Basin, Rocky Mountains, Mid-Continent, Gulf Coast and Michigan regions of the United States. The Company's largest projects are in the Bakken and Three Forks plays in North Dakota and Enhanced Oil Recovery projects in Oklahoma and Texas. The Company trades publicly under the symbol WLL on the New York Stock Exchange. For further information, please visit www.whiting.com.

FEI Safe Harbor Statement

This news release contains forward-looking statements that include statements regarding the performance capabilities and benefits of the Helios NanoLab DualBeam and QEMSCAN. Factors that could affect these forward-looking statements include but are not limited to failure of the product or technology to perform as expected and achieve anticipated results, unexpected technology problems and our ability to manufacture, ship and deliver the tools or software as expected. Please also refer to our Form 10-K, Forms 10-Q, Forms 8-K and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for additional information on these factors and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. FEI assumes no duty to update forward-looking statements.

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