The buildup of the energy services industry in recent years has led to an unprecedented amount of hydraulic horsepower (HHP) available to energy producing organizations. This, combined with the decline of natural gas prices in North America during recent months, has made the energy services market (specifically, pressure pumping) more competitive than ever. Energy services companies must not only provide HHP, but also innovative, efficient solutions and technologies to satisfy the energy producers’ hydraulic fracturing needs. Pinpoint stimulation that uses hydrajet perforating is one such technology that provides both innovation and efficiency. Historically, setting proppant plugs for interval isolation in horizontal/deviated wells by means of traditional techniques has proven to be challenging for various reasons. As energy producers began drilling more of these types of wells, they created a need for a reliable proppant plug setting technique for multi-interval Pinpoint stimulation operations. The traditional method of setting a proppant plug is by simply reducing the downhole pump rate and increasing the proppant concentration, thereby inducing a near wellbore (NWB) screenout. By starting with a proven Pinpoint stimulation solution and adding a new coiled tubing (CT) deployed bottomhole assembly (BHA), Pinpoint stimulation process efficiencies were increased in many ways, proppant plug setting being just one. The new BHA enables the proppant plug to be set while hydrajet perforating the next interval, minimizing the time and materials required. It also assists in anchoring and centralizing the hydrajetting tool during perforating operations to help ensure that the jets remain on target with the proper standoff distance. These new developments, as well as those included in the operational procedures for using this new BHA, elevate fracturing treatment efficiencies to a new level. This paper presents the development of the new BHA from its inception to its current form, including information on its operation. It also details how the new BHA can provide North American energy producers with the process efficiencies they are seeking, and how this BHA can assist energy producers in other areas of the world that are underserved in the area of HHP reach their goals.

Worldwide demand for energy has forced the energy services industry to increase process efficiency and create innovative new methods of fracture stimulation optimization. Pinpoint fracturing methods represent a divergence from conventional fracture stimulation methods, which provide minimal optimization to reservoir volume. Pinpoint fracturing methods allow multiple interval completions to be performed efficiently, helping ensure that all intervals receive the optimum fracture intensity. To increase process efficiency, coiled tubing (CT) is used to hydra-jet perforate intervals for individual fracturing treatments at predetermined depths. The process uses a unique bottomhole assembly (BHA), which was recently redesigned to increase the efficiency of the hydra-jetting tool and isolate the fracture stimulation from previous intervals. This pinpoint fracturing method does not require removing the CT from the well between treatments. Risks of non-productive time (NPT) are mitigated because contingencies for early screenout avoidance can be initiated immediately during the fracture stimulation with minimal impact on overall completion costs. Treating intervals individually substantially helps reduce the amount of hydraulic horsepower required onsite, further reducing completion costs and the risk of NPT caused by down horsepower. Re-innovating fracture stimulation technology is often a challenge. The new technology must add value and efficiency to the process, while remaining reliable and commercially viable. In this case, these requirements were met by reducing the complexity of the BHA while increasing hydra-jetting efficiency. The elimination of moving parts increased the process reliability and simplified operational procedures. This paper examines the re-innovation of this older technology.