Subsurface Transferability Frameworks for Repurposing Petroleum Reservoir Characterization for Carbon Capture and Sequestration

The petroleum industry's accumulated subsurface characterization expertise represents the most immediately accessible technical resource base for meeting the workforce demands of accelerating geological carbon dioxide storage deployment. This narrative review proposes the Subsurface Transferability Matrix, a multi-competency assessment instrument organizing the applicability of petroleum geoscience and reservoir engineering capabilities to the geological storage domain across five transferability levels. The matrix is populated through synthesis of petroleum characterization methods, geological storage technical requirements, operational storage monitoring evidence, and Niger Delta subsurface knowledge. Matrix analysis reveals that the majority of petroleum subsurface characterization competency areas transfer to the geological storage domain with limited to moderate adaptation, with a smaller subset requiring major adaptation and a further set representing new competency requirements. Caprock geochemical response, injection-induced geomechanics, and long-term post-injection monitoring design are identified as the highest-priority new competency development areas. Organizational implementation roadmaps, governance frameworks, and digital infrastructure models from adjacent sectors support practical workforce transition program design. A structured methods section, summary table of the transferability matrix, comparative methods table, and framework diagram are provided to support publication-ready accessible synthesis.