Egypt Western Desert drilling fields have been known for harsh drilling environment, shock and vibrations conditions, interbedding and abrasive formations. Drilling assemblies have normally been suffering from excessive damages drilling through these conditions. Motorized rotary steerable drilling systems (RSS) were mostly considered the favored mechanism of drilling in this environment as they delivered higher drilling performance and mitigated vibration harmonics from transmitting higher up the string. Realtime shocks and vibrations data from directional tools was critical information to ensure safe and efficient drilling parameters and managing this harsh drilling environment without operating the equipment beyond its specifications. In a recent western desert well, Khalda Petroleum Company (KPC) endorsed a new drilling strategy by modifying the conventional motorized rotary steerable drilling assembly from having only the RSS below the motor to having both the MWD and RSS tools below the motor. This modification was designed to enable KPC get closer measurements to bit with full transmission of all downhole data to surface to optimize the drilling parameters. The modification also aimed at increasing the bottom hole assembly (BHA) stability to prolong the run duration. To ensure reaching this goal, the design phase focused on two main directions. First, multiple finite element analysis modeling was implemented to ensure the optimum BHA stability and resistance to shocks and vibrations conditions. Second, KPC took needed considerations on the mud motor design, RSS operational procedures and MWD setup to ensure that these would fit properly in the new BHA design. The strategy implemented has shown great success in delivering the section safely and with no incidents related to downhole drilling uncertainties and conditions. The section delivered the required directional profile with great precision and adherence. The new BHA actual data has shown high conformance to the modeled data and no shocks and vibrations conditions were encountered. The section was drilled in one run and was considered the longest and fastest directional run in its field. This has eventually lead to delivering this milestone section 3 days ahead of its planned timing.

The drilling in the Western Desert area of Egypt is experiencing a shift from vertical to horizontal drilling. Challenging geology, critical landing zones, complex well profiles, and tight lease boundaries lead to the requirement of High Build Up Rate (HBUR) values. This creates a drilling challenge with the limited capabilities of the current, commercial Rotary Steerable Systems (RSS). The maximum Dogleg Severity (DLS) output capability for a RSS drilling 8–1/2 in hole size from most major directional drilling service providers is about 6.5° /100 ft. In soft formations, these doglegs output drop significantly and the RSS is replaced by a mud motor assembly. To overcome these challenges, the operator and directional drilling service provider teamed up to strengthen performance and consistency utilizing a new HBUR RSS technology coupled with an optimized bit design. The operator and directional drilling service provider started a drilling campaign in 2013. The plan was to drill a HBUR curve in 8–1/2 in hole and land in the target zone with planned (DLS) in the range of 8.00 to 10.00° /100 ft. Then set a liner and drill 6 in lateral hole to the well TD. To date, this campaign has resulted in the successful drilling of three wells. The operator's costs were lowered through improved performance with the new HBUR RSS technology. The new technology reduced the number of trips and enabled faster curve drilling with pure rotary and better toolface control. The average number of drilling days per curve and lateral were reduced. In all cases, the curve HBUR planned rates were successfully achieved in a single run with optimum rate of penetration. This paper will discuss the case histories of the three successful wells. The benefits, cost savings and performance improvements of the HBUR RSS technology will be described for each well.