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Controlled pressure drilling (CPD) is an emerging, multi-component drilling application that can improve drilling time and reduce previously recorded lost time on offset conventionally drilled wells-when applied appropriately. In addition, specific drilling techniques offered within CPD technology not only improve the time it takes to reach total depth (TD), but also have been proven to optimize reservoir section productivity and maximize economically recoverable reserves. CPD is composed of three main techniques: air drilling, underbalanced drilling, and managed pressure drilling. This paper provides an updated discussion of CPD techniques, the nonproductive time that it can address and screening methodology.A methodology to properly screen CPD techniques to reduce failure/misapplication and align objectives with expectations had been lacking. This paper addresses the latest refinements in an expert system developed to better understand and screen options for CPD operations. The Internet-based selection tool provides guidance by using key indicator questions, beginning with the primary objective(s) for the given wellbore section. If the specific CPD technique is known, the user can activate the online screening tool. The online screening tool considers a range of economic and technical parameters, which are applied to algorithms and logic rules, to provide a relative ranking for each CPD candidate. This paper will also address modifications that have been made to reduce cost related sensitivity when screening air and managed pressure drilling, which previously made the screening process less consistent. Sensitivity analysis can also be performed to determine the impact of key uncertainty parameters. Additional expert-user screening and selection can be incorporated upon the completion of the online CPD candidate selection process. Lastly, the paper will also include supporting case histories.
Controlled pressure drilling (CPD) is an emerging, multi-component drilling application that can improve drilling time and reduce previously recorded lost time on offset conventionally drilled wells-when applied appropriately. In addition, specific drilling techniques offered within CPD technology not only improve the time it takes to reach total depth (TD), but also have been proven to optimize reservoir section productivity and maximize economically recoverable reserves. CPD is composed of three main techniques: air drilling, underbalanced drilling, and managed pressure drilling. This paper provides an updated discussion of CPD techniques, the nonproductive time that it can address and screening methodology.A methodology to properly screen CPD techniques to reduce failure/misapplication and align objectives with expectations had been lacking. This paper addresses the latest refinements in an expert system developed to better understand and screen options for CPD operations. The Internet-based selection tool provides guidance by using key indicator questions, beginning with the primary objective(s) for the given wellbore section. If the specific CPD technique is known, the user can activate the online screening tool. The online screening tool considers a range of economic and technical parameters, which are applied to algorithms and logic rules, to provide a relative ranking for each CPD candidate. This paper will also address modifications that have been made to reduce cost related sensitivity when screening air and managed pressure drilling, which previously made the screening process less consistent. Sensitivity analysis can also be performed to determine the impact of key uncertainty parameters. Additional expert-user screening and selection can be incorporated upon the completion of the online CPD candidate selection process. Lastly, the paper will also include supporting case histories.
The current world petroleum industry situation is that:Exploration is difficult and costs are increasing.The majority of hydrocarbons being exploited today are found in existing pressure depleted or complex and lower quality reservoirsCurrent oil prices are at their highest Thus, world circumstances have forced today's petroleum industry to rethink both its operating methods and technologies aiming at improving recovery and reducing cost. It is believed that adoption of new technologies is the most important factor in adding reserves, enhancing recovery, reducing cost and increasing revenue. Underbalanced drilling technology is now seen as the way to achieve these objectives. Introduction Underbalanced Drilling - UBD- main objectives are:Preventing formation damage and improving Reservoir Benefits.Improving Drilling Performance & Preventing Conventional Drilling Problems. This paper discusses in details the reservoir benefits part of underbalanced drilling technology. What is Underbalanced Drilling? Underbalanced Drilling is the intentional reduction of the drilling fluid density causing the hydrostatic pressure in a well bore to be lower than the pore pressure within a formation thereby permitting reservoir fluids to be produced while drilling. Underbalanced Drilling benefits the reservoir by simply adding reserves through: Discovery of new zonesReducing formation damage and increasing intra-zone contributionLowering abandonment increasing well drainage areaAccessing challenging reservoirs Providing real time reservoir evaluation / characterization. Although UBD has many advantages, it is not a magic potion for all fields, wells or drilling problems. Poor execution and planning would result in an over-enthusiastic misapplication of the technology, and possibly failure. Several real results and case studies will be presented and discussed in this paper.
The Hassi Massoud oil field is the largest of its kind in Algeria. The reservoir was discovered in 1956 and produces from a Cambrian-age at approximately 3400 meters depth. It produces 45°API oil from a thick Cambro-Ordovician sandstone formation. This sandstone is extremely hard, abrasive and slow to drill. The reservoir is naturally fractured in some parts. Fractures are either open or plugged with materials such as shale, silica, anhydrite, pyrite and bitumen. Porosity is ranging from 6 to 12%. Generally, the permeability is low with a range of less than 1 to more than 100 md in open-fractures layers Sonatrach introduced Underbalanced Drilling (UBD) primarily in an effort to improve penetration rates. However, all additional benefits obtained from UBD, such as production improvement and reservoir characterization while drilling, will be of an added value. Well OMPZ553 is the 37th well drilled underbalanced in the Hassi Massoud field. In this well, the focus was on production improvement with minimum formation damage while the increased rate of penetration (ROP) was a secondary benefit. Another objective was the evaluation of production while the well is being drilled. This eliminates the need for expensive post drilling production testing, and also to minimize borehole instability specially when drilling in the R2 section of the drain. In order to increase the success rate of drilling and completing this well underbalanced, Sonatrach introduced a new systematic and dynamic procedure. The new procedure consists of:Proper UBD candidate screeningCalculating the actual reservoir pressure before UB mode startsCompleting the well in UB mode This well proved to be the best UB drilled well in Hassi Massoud field in terms of reservoir benefits and characterization. The pre-job UBD candidate screening, feasibility studies and applying the new procedures proved effective in the success of this well. This paper describes in detail the above procedure and presents the successful application of such procedure to optimize production and enhance the ultimate recovery in the Hassi Massoud field. Lessons learnt and challenges encountered will also be discussed in this paper
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