Enhanced Coiled Tubing Intervention Practices on Extended-Reach Open-hole Completion in a Field in Saudi Arabia

Al-Meshal, Fahad M.; Sabut, Bangkong; Bawaked, Waleed; Beheiri, Faisal; Al-Mubairik, Abdulrahman

doi:10.2523/136946-ms

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…CT depth correlation/drift run: The objective of this run is to ensure wellbore clearance (for packer setting), and ensuring the CT is able to reach the required depth 8 . CT depth correlation/drift run: The objective of this run is to ensure wellbore clearance (for packer setting), and ensuring the CT is able to reach the required depth 8 .…”

Section: Well-cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Innovative Coiled Tubing Equipment for Successful Temporary or Permanent Zonal Isolation

Said

Haldar

Al-Subaie

et al. 2011

SPE/ICoTA Coiled Tubing &Amp; Well Intervention Conference and Exhibition

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The well stimulation and water shut off (WSO) job in the carbonate reservoir of Ghawar field in Saudi Arabia is becoming increasingly challenging, considering the complex well completion. Many challenges are therefore encountered during coiled tubing (CT) interventions when trying either to permanently shutdown water production or to temporarily isolate the water zone to stimulate the oil intervals. In fact, the lack of real-time bottom-hole control of mechanical or chemical diverters caused these jobs to fail with conventional CT strings, which eventually called for costly solutions using workover rigs.This paper describes multiple shortfalls of previous WSO and matrix stimulation jobs, and how this trend is reversed after the emergence of the fiber optic enabled CT (FOECT) string with real-time downhole measurement sensors.The permanent zonal isolation utilizing an inflatable packer with cement plug is now possible with greater accuracy and enhanced success ratio even in wells with complex completions. The availability of a real-time casing collar locator (CCL), bottom-hole temperature (BHT) and differential pressure readings enables adequate control of packer setting depth and inflation, and optimization of the cement design and its injection.The temporarily zonal isolation using chemical diverters can now be assessed real-time with the Distributed Temperature Survey (DTS). The stimulation fluids will not be pumped unless the isolation of the water zone is confirmed. The CT acid job can be now optimized by eliminating the risk of losing acid into the water intervals and by ensuring a uniform acid coverage across the oil zones with DTS.This method was validated with the wireline log run just before the CT job. Challenges, design, execution and results of zonal isolation interventions with both conventional CT and FOECT are detailed in this paper to demonstrate that this type of CT job becomes more successful with the FOECT.

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Section: Well-cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Innovative Coiled Tubing Equipment for Successful Temporary or Permanent Zonal Isolation

Said

Haldar

Al-Subaie

et al. 2011

SPE/ICoTA Coiled Tubing &Amp; Well Intervention Conference and Exhibition

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show abstract

“…Lockup and weight stacking often prevents CT from reaching total depth (TD) in extended reach wells. The limitation to deploy CT to ultra-deep intervals has been challenging for conducting acid stimulation to restore the injectivities of these injectors after drilling and completion (Meshal, et al, 2010). Consequently, operators do not often realize the advantages of CT to enhance the placement and uniform distribution of stimulation fluids across reservoirs in such wells (Nasr-El-Din, et al, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Record Coiled Tubing Aided Reach and First Real-Time Injection Profiling with Tractor in Extended Reach Well

Arukhe

Ghamdi

Dhufairi

et al. 2013

SPE Middle East Oil and Gas Show and Conference

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To enhance well performance intervention work is often necessary in field developments. Challenges exist in vertical well interventions and these have been studied and improved over the years. However, horizontal well interventions pose a completely new challenge and a magnified level of difficulty. With extended reach wells certain challenges become almost insurmountable. Basic data acquisition such as production logging where profile data flow is acquired becomes almost impossible to acquire. Yet, this data is vital for decision making. While tractor aided coiled tubing has largely been demonstrated as a preferred deployment technique for cost-effective production logging and acid stimulation combined operations, most of the initial jobs where accomplished via memory production logging in these extended reach wells. This was because the Coiled tubing tractor had no inner wiring. This led to a situation where the subjects of real time evaluation of production flow profile, treatment effectiveness, and injection zone monitoring have remained an industry challenge. A hydraulic tractor aided coiled tubing intervention was introduced as a solution for the development of the extended reach wells in a Saudi field three years ago. This solution aided in the acquisition of the previously difficult data and in addition, aided in deduction of the specific stimulation benefits such as damage skin reduction, improved drawdown, and treatment gains from injectivity increase. Some records which were also set while achieving the well's intervention objectives include 1) attaining the deepest coiled tubing (CT) reach at 29,897 feet (9.11 km) in an extended reach open hole horizontal injector well using a tractor and 2) the first application of real-time water injection profiling enabled through a wired motor head assembly via the tractor. In addition to data, other operational benefits include less equipment to the well site because the same equipment was used for both production logging and stimulation -in particular the coiled tubing reel, amongst others.The application of real-time informed decisions was critical in overcoming challenges affecting spinner response, operating time and cost, optimizing stimulation design, and yielding a consistent injectivity increase with a true reflection of deep penetration into the damage zone will benefit operators confronting similar intervention challenges. BackgroundAn extensive study of the field and its predominant drive mechanism revealed that production and simultaneous peripheral matrix water injection is the preferred depletion strategy. Extended reach wells and relatively complicated trajectories typically characterize the powered water injectors (PWI) drilled for reservoir pressure maintenance. The injectors will support oil production from one of the largest field developments in the history of Saudi Aramco in the M field. The field development consists of 27 artificial islands linked by 41 kilometers of causeway spanning the Arabian Gulf. The blend of onshore, offshore, causew...

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“…Lock up and weight stacking often prevents coiled tubing from reaching total depth in extended reach wells. The limitation to deploy coiled tubing to relatively deep intervals has been challenging for conducting acid stimulation to restore the injectivities of these injectors after drilling and completion (Meshal, et al, 2010). Consequently, operators do not often realize the advantages of coiled tubing to enhance the placement and uniform distribution of stimulation fluids across reservoirs in such wells (Nasr-El-Din, et al, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saudi Arabia's Two World Records for Aided Coiled Tubing Reach and Real Time Logging in Extended Reach Well

Arukhe

Dhufairi

Ghamdi

et al. 2012

Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Conference and Exhibition

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Two new records exist in one of current world's largest oil increment field development projects in Saudi Arabia. The records set while achieving a well's intervention objectives include; 1. Attaining the deepest coiled tubing (CT) reach for rigless well intervention at 29,897 ft (9.11 km) measured depth in an extended reach open hole horizontal power injector well using a CT tractor and; 2. The first application of real time logging enabled through a wired motor head assembly via the tractor. The intervention objectives were to acid stimulate an open hole completed relatively deep in the reservoir with total depth of 29,897 feet and open hole length of 6,697 feet utilizing 2" CT with open hole tractor, to perform injectivity / falloff test, and to conduct real time logging for evaluating the reservoir's injectivity profile.The paper examines several challenges that engineers and operators encountered during intervention in this well. A partially sealing high viscosity tar layer exists between the overlaying oil column and underlying aquifer. Operationally, the challenge was to overcome obstructions arising from tar accumulation during the well intervention. This challenge was overcome by the use of a solvent and the well was successfully acidized with the aid of the CT-tractor. The other concern was the tractor integrity while large amount of acid is pumped and the extended exposure time of tractor to acid. The tractor successfully handled huge amounts of corrosive fluids in a sour environment while providing the required pulling force to reach the total depth of the well to set the intervention record for tractor reach without adverse effects on the integrity of its O-rings, seals, and mechanical parts. In addition to organic deposits, azimuth changes in the well added to well entry challenges as a result of changes in hole inclination, doglegs, and azimuth. The application of real time informed decisions was critical in overcoming all the challenges, optimizing stimulation design, and yielding a notable and consistent injectivity increase with evidence of extended life and a true reflection of deep penetration into the damage zone. The successful re-entry will benefit industry operators confronting similar intervention challenges. BackgroundAn extensive study of the field and its predominant drive mechanism revealed that production and simultaneous peripheral matrix water injection is the preferred depletion strategy. Extended reach wells and relatively complicated trajectories typically characterize the powered water injectors drilled for reservoir pressure maintenance. The injectors will support oil production from one of the largest field developments in the history of Saudi Aramco in the M field. The field development consists of 27 artificial islands linked by 41 kilometers of Causeway spanning the Arabian Gulf Sea. The blend of onshore, offshore, causeway and artificial island construction concept was the optimal field development option for the field because it results in only 30% offshore development a...

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Enhanced Coiled Tubing Intervention Practices on Extended-Reach Open-hole Completion in a Field in Saudi Arabia

Cited by 4 publications

References 0 publications

Innovative Coiled Tubing Equipment for Successful Temporary or Permanent Zonal Isolation

Innovative Coiled Tubing Equipment for Successful Temporary or Permanent Zonal Isolation

Record Coiled Tubing Aided Reach and First Real-Time Injection Profiling with Tractor in Extended Reach Well

Saudi Arabia's Two World Records for Aided Coiled Tubing Reach and Real Time Logging in Extended Reach Well

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