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TX 75083-3836, U.S.A., fax 01-972-952-9435. AbstractEarly results from intelligent completion installations show great promise for production optimization and control. The intelligent completion flow control valve is typically installed between isolation packers within the production zone. There have been installations with as many as four zones containing intelligent flow control devices. Several installations of intelligent flow control equipment have been in wells that require sand control, but these installations did not allow placement of the flow control devices within the production zone. The zones are completed with traditional sand control techniques, with each zone gravel packed or frac packed. After the sand face completion is in place, an upper completion is run into the well with a siphon string stabbed into the lower zone. A valve in line with the siphon string controls production from the lower zone. Production from the upper zones flows through the annulus between the siphon string and the upper completion into the casing annulus above the uppermost gravel-pack packer. A flow control valve is used to control the flow from that casing annulus into the production tubing. In this type of configuration, the practical limit for zones that can be controlled is two. An alternative technique has been developed that allows the placement of the flow control device within the production zone, so that more than two zones can be completed with intelligent flow control devices. As is the case for an intelligent completion in a cased and perforated well without sand control, the entire completion is run in one trip. Once the completion is in place, all of the intelligent completion devices are tested and then the packers are set. A through-tubing sand control tool is then run into the completion to perform the gravel packing operation in each zone. The paper discusses the completion design and presents an example of a field installation.
TX 75083-3836, U.S.A., fax 01-972-952-9435. AbstractEarly results from intelligent completion installations show great promise for production optimization and control. The intelligent completion flow control valve is typically installed between isolation packers within the production zone. There have been installations with as many as four zones containing intelligent flow control devices. Several installations of intelligent flow control equipment have been in wells that require sand control, but these installations did not allow placement of the flow control devices within the production zone. The zones are completed with traditional sand control techniques, with each zone gravel packed or frac packed. After the sand face completion is in place, an upper completion is run into the well with a siphon string stabbed into the lower zone. A valve in line with the siphon string controls production from the lower zone. Production from the upper zones flows through the annulus between the siphon string and the upper completion into the casing annulus above the uppermost gravel-pack packer. A flow control valve is used to control the flow from that casing annulus into the production tubing. In this type of configuration, the practical limit for zones that can be controlled is two. An alternative technique has been developed that allows the placement of the flow control device within the production zone, so that more than two zones can be completed with intelligent flow control devices. As is the case for an intelligent completion in a cased and perforated well without sand control, the entire completion is run in one trip. Once the completion is in place, all of the intelligent completion devices are tested and then the packers are set. A through-tubing sand control tool is then run into the completion to perform the gravel packing operation in each zone. The paper discusses the completion design and presents an example of a field installation.
A well equipped with intelligent components is considered SMART only when it maximizes its value over the life of the project. The definition of the adequate level of intelligence is the outcome of a multidisciplinary discussion that focuses on the well and reservoir management. To effectively realize the value associated with these technologies Shell set up a Global Implementation Smart Wells Team at its E&P Technical Center. Jointly with asset teams from around the world it has reviewed more than 80 projects over the last 3 years. The main result of this work is a faster and more meaningful implementation effectively realizing the value associated with these technologies. An important byproduct of this work is a list of identified well and reservoir opportunities where smart completions can add significant value. This paper reviews these opportunities and provides selected examples. Introduction Smart Wells include a battery of completion equipment designed toMonitor well operating conditions downhole (flow, P, T, phase composition, water pH, etc),Image the distribution of reservoir attributes away from the well (resistivity, acoustic impedance),control the inflow and outflow rates of segregated segments of the well. They provide, in combination with quality readings at surface of total rates and other non-well mapping technologies like time-lapse seismic, the tools to manage wells, identify undrained oil and make informed decisions to optimize hydrocarbon recovery1. The perceived added value associated with these technologies, their complexity and the need to satisfy reliability demands has driven service companies and field operators to devote staff and resources to develop new and improved products and to explore opportunities to deploy these well completion components worldwide. Numerous papers and technical literature dealing with field applications and completion specifications can be found elsewhere2–10. This paper will focus instead on the reservoir opportunities where the added value can be readily identified. As our industry struggles to improve ultimate recovery and make marginal projects feasible wells ought to provide cost-effective means to gather reservoir information and produce them efficiently. Intelligent completions will become a standard practice in years to come. Presently that vision is slowly being realized one-well-at-a-time.
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