Worldwide exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons has been driven into remote and environmentally sensitive areas as other traditional areas are being depleted. Such is the case in the South American nation of Ecuador. Petroleum exploration began in Ecuador in the 1920s when drilling commenced off the coast of Guayaquil. In the 1930s, the activity migrated inland and today, most of it is centered around the Amazon region or "Oriente". The Oriente is a vast area of tropical rain forest which is home to many of the indigenous tribes of Ecuador as well as exotic flora and fauna unique to the world. Because of the sensitive landscape, directional drilling is a technique commonly used by oil companies in the Oriente to enhance their production while leaving the smallest footprint on the environment. The paper discusses in detail the directional drilling techniques used by YPF Ecuador to achieve their development objectives in Block 16. The paper also introduces the technique of horizontal drilling, a step change in directional drilling technique with superior results. Finally, the paper demonstrates why directional drilling is the key to exploration and development while minimizing the impact on the environment.

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Ever evolving drilling performance requirements dictate bits drill wider ranges of lithologies while offering improved efficiency and reduced NPT. These performance requirements necessitate compatible drill bit technologies. As lithologies associated with these drilling objectives tend to be harder and more abrasive; the need for adaptable, durable, and efficient drill bit designs is intensified. With these challenging applications / objectives, Polycrystalline Diamond Compact (PDC) technologies are pushed to their material limits. These limits emerge as failures in PDC thermal fatigue, abrasion, and impact damage.Due to the absence of state-of-the-art drill bit material technologies compatible with achieving these drilling objectives, multiple trips are commonly required. Often, this translates into the use of non-PDC bits (Rolling Cutter and Impregnated) to complete challenging sections. As efficiency is hindered by bit type and increases in non-productivetime due to multiple bit trips, operators incur significant cost while drilling these intervals.New drill bit technology capable of drilling these lithologies and performance requirements is unmistakably needed. This paper describes the development of novel drill bit technology aimed at this requirement. This technology is born through the fusion of existing bit technologies; Fixed Cutter and Impregnated Diamond, and a unique design philosophy providing greater versatility in drilling a wider range of harsh lithologies, not typically drilled entirely with PDC bits. This novel design philosophy includes optimized cutter placement and exposure of diamond impregnated mix applied in critical areas of the bit.This project was initially targeted at the Sub-Saharan region in the Congo, where the existence of conglomeratic intervals still represents a challenge to reach TD in a single run for sections with high clonglomeratic percentage. In its first trial, the new technology hybrid bit drilled 300% more interval than the benchmark with 34% improvement in ROP, in comparable sections with similar conglomerate content. Subsequent runs have resulted in dramatic savings due to reduction of trips as well as improved ROP. This technology has provided the industry step change in performance and decrease in non-productive time.