Mining companies, the main group being the oil and gas companies, are required by law to submit their exploration and survey data to the Ministry of Economic Affairs. TNO-NITG manages these data. The submitted information is initially confidential. Only once a period stipulated by law has passed can TNO-NITG make the data publicly available. The exploration and survey data made available through DINO Shop are specifically borehole data and seismic surveys. The metadata is made available by TNO-NITG free of charge.

Provision of the underlying data is charged an appropriate fee for which there is no subscription structure. The law governing the provision of exploration and survey data was changed on 1 January 2003. The former law made seismic surveys and borehole data of the Netherlands offshore public after ten years. Onshore data remained confidential. The new Mining Act that took effect from 1 January 2003 changed this, stipulating that both offshore and onshore data acquired after 1 January 2003 must be released after five years (see article 116, paragraph 2 of the Mining Act). For older data there is a transition ruling that states that all borehole data and surveys prior to 1 January 2003 will be made public after ten years (see article 177 of the Mining Act). This means, therefore, that onshore data older than ten years will also be released.

Up to the end of March 2004 the DINOShop user required an account number and a password to get access to the onshore exploration and survey data while this was not the case for offshore data. In addition, the method of selecting data for offshore deviated from the DINOShop standard. On March 31, 2004 this changed. Since this time data users require a user name and password for all exploration and survey data. The selection method is now the same for all data.

More information on the Mining Act can be found at the site Oil and Gas in the Netherlands .

Please select a datatype at the home page if you want to request data.