Please enable JavaScript for this site to function properly.
OnePetro
  • Help
  • About us
  • Contact us
Menu
  • Home
  • Journals
  • Conferences
  • Log in / Register

Log in to your subscription

and
Advanced search Show search help
  • Full text
  • Author
  • Company/Institution
  • Publisher
  • Journal
  • Conference
Boolean operators
This OR that
This AND that
This NOT that
Must include "This" and "That"
This That
Must not include "That"
This -That
"This" is optional
This +That
Exact phrase "This That"
"This That"
Grouping
(this AND that) OR (that AND other)
Specifying fields
publisher:"Publisher Name"
author:(Smith OR Jones)

Improving Performance in Elgin HPHT Infill Drilling Despite Increasing Challenges

Authors
Mohammad Alahmad (Total E&P UK Limited) | Oliver Eatough (Total E&P UK Limited)
DOI
https://doi.org/10.2118/195725-MS
Document ID
SPE-195725-MS
Publisher
Society of Petroleum Engineers
Source
SPE Offshore Europe Conference and Exhibition, 3-6 September, Aberdeen, UK
Publication Date
2019
Document Type
Conference Paper
Language
English
ISBN
978-1-61399-664-5
Copyright
2019. Society of Petroleum Engineers
Keywords
Infill Drilling, Reservoir depletion, NMWW, HPHT, MPD
Downloads
9 in the last 30 days
138 since 2007
Show more detail
View rights & permissions
SPE Member Price: USD 9.50
SPE Non-Member Price: USD 28.00
Abstract

Following the significant reservoir depletion on Elgin / Franklin fields since 2007, drilling infill wells was considered to not only be high cost but also carry a high probability of failure to reach the well objective. The recent campaign on the Elgin field, one of the most heavily depleted reservoirs worldwide, demonstrated that infill drilling can be achieved safely while improving performance.

Drilling of HPHT infill wells on the Elgin field faced increasing challenges arising from the reduction of reservoir pressure that changed the stresses in the formations above and influenced the overall pressure regime. This stress reorganization in the overburden has affected the fracture network in these formations resulting in reduction in Fracture Initiation Pressure (FIP) and increase of gas levels.

Challenges were faced during the drilling of three wells in the 2015-2017 campaign. Loss events in Chalk formations in the intermediate sections significantly decreased the already Narrow Mud Weight Window (NMWW). A strategy to define and validate the minimum required MWW in 12-1/2" and 8-1/2" sections was developed following a complex subsurface well control event. Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD) technique was extensively used to safely manage gas levels and assess pore pressure.

Reservoir entry with more than 850 bar of overbalance remains the main challenge in infill drilling. A total loss event during first reservoir entry in the latest campaign confirmed the limitations of wellbore strengthening mud and stress caging materials available today.

Lessons learned from each well in this campaign were implemented to address these challenges and improve performance. This paper describes the Elgin HP/HT infill drilling experience and the specific techniques and practices that were developed to address these challenges and improve performance. The importance of Equivalent Circulating Density (ECD) management with very narrow MWW, successful high gas level management with MPD and depleted reservoir entry, shows that even in a highly complex environment, drilling performance can be improved allowing for further economical development drilling. The successful and safe delivery of the Elgin 2015-2017 infill drilling campaign demonstrates this at a time the industry moves toward unlocking the reserves of more challenging HPHT fields.

File Size  2 MBNumber of Pages   23

L. Fambon and G. Joffroy, Total E&P UK Limited. Successful Development Drilling of an HPHT Infill Well in a Highly Depleted Reservoir: Case Study. IADC/SPE 112708

D. Henderson and D. Hainsworth, Total E&P UK Limited. Elgin G4 Gas Release: What Happened and the Lessons to Prevent Recurrence. SPE 168478

Alahmad, M., Wang, B., Baker, R., Booth, G. (2018, April). Installation of the Longest High-Performance and Rotating 11 ¾" Solid Expandable Liner on a HPHT Infill Well with Narrow Mud Weight Window. SPE-191349

Eatough, O., Alahmad, M., Momot, F., Sikal, A., Reynaud, D. (2018, October). Advanced well positioning with magnetic interference based on Passive Magnetic MWD Ranging: Case Study. SPE 191502-18RPTC

G. Chimara, A. Clader; Halliburton. W. Amer and P. Leslie, Total E&P UK Limited. Engineered Wellbore Strengthening Application Enables Successful Drilling of Challenging Wells. SPE-191219

Other Resources

Looking for more? 

Some of the OnePetro partner societies have developed subject- specific wikis that may help.


 


PetroWiki was initially created from the seven volume  Petroleum Engineering Handbook (PEH) published by the  Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).








The SEG Wiki is a useful collection of information for working geophysicists, educators, and students in the field of geophysics. The initial content has been derived from : Robert E. Sheriff's Encyclopedic Dictionary of Applied Geophysics, fourth edition.

  • Home
  • Journals
  • Conferences
  • Copyright © SPE All rights reserved
  • About us
  • Contact us
  • Help
  • Terms of use
  • Publishers
  • Content Coverage
  • Privacy
  Administration log in