A major oil field operator in the Gulf of Mexico had a well that was posing significant challenges to their perforating strategy, due to the extreme pressures that were expected. The operator required a perforating system that would survive in an environment with pressures as high as to 35,000psi.Technology that would enable any perforating system to withstand these extreme pressures had not been refined within the industry at the time of the customer inquiry, due to the limited number of projects with such extreme conditions. Therefore, a service company committed resources to develop and ultimately refine this product and identify the best system for the customer to achieve the optimum operational results with no lost or non-productive time from this service. The service company carried out detailed pre-design modeling to identify any concerns that would aid in tailoring the complete system. This paper reviews the development of this perforating system and identifies concerns that were encountered during the design and manufacture of the system. In addition, this paper describes the value that was brought to the project through the use of a detailed, customer-supported quality plan. The importance of correlation between real-life testing and modeling results in delivering a streamlined and fit-for-purpose system is also discussed.In summary, the paper describes and quantifies the inherent risks associated with perforating projects in extreme high-pressure environments. Moreover, this paper demonstrates how the service company responded to these risks in the design process to improve the system. Lessons learned are also discussed, along with information on service quality delivery.
Sand production remains one of the major challenges in managing mature fields in Malaysia. Wells that experience severe sand production due to primary sand control failure require remedial solutions to continue producing without jeopardizing asset integrity. In these cases, operators rely heavily on through-tubing metallic sandscreen (TTSS), however, the applications remain limited due to the short TTSS lifespan, especially in wells in a high erosive environment. With increased intervention risk, frequent replacement is both economically and operationally unfeasible. Therefore, most high gas-oil ratio (HGOR) wells remain closed-in today, in need of a durable sand screen that can withstand high erosional velocity. Various types of erosion resistant through-tubing sand screens (ER-TTSS) have been implemented to test their sustainability and longevity in highly erosive environments. Additional challenges can be associated with the actual deployment of these remedial solutions into mature wells. This paper will discuss the performance of Malaysia's first installation of bonded bead sandscreen in HGOR well, Well #1 at offshore East Malaysia. Instead of using conventional mesh or wire wrapped type as filtration media, bonded bead sandscreen incorporates tightly bonded beads to filter sand and is expected to have superior performance over conventional metallic TTSS. Prior to installation, computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulation and sand retention test (SRT) were conducted to determine sand erosion risk and optimize the screen design for Well #1. The information gathered from the CFD was then utilized to optimize the tubular components and minimize the effect of erosion on the complete bottom hole assembly (BHA). Additionally, well #1 was on an unmanned production platform; therefore, the deployment options for this intervention had to be considered during the early planning phase of the operation. A combination of slickline unit with suitable pressure control equipment was selected to minimize personnel on board and match deck load limitations while ensuring proper service delivery. The outcome of pilot testing of bonded bead sandscreen in Well #1 will be discussed. Recommendations for future optimization will also be included to ensure that bonded bead sandscreen remains one of the competent through-tubing sand solutions, especially for HGOR wells. Furthermore, the operational techniques that were utilized to reduce the operational risk and costs will be discussed in order to demonstrate how such wells can be intervened in a cost-effective manner to extend the asset's life.
In producing fields in moderately consolidated sandstone reservoirs, at any given time it is possible if not likely to have wells underperforming or even shut-in due to sand production. Later in the life of these fields, this issue becomes even more significant. Often times the reserves don't justify the economics of a full rig workover or the productivity risk of well kill operations. In these cases, the only option to restore productivity is utilizing through-tubing methods, deployed into the live well. Historically these systems have presented significant limitations in terms of interval length and reliability. However, by utilizing an advanced deployment system to eliminate mechanical risks and length limitations of typical through tubing systems, and by integrating this with a detailed, analytical approach to sand control selection, the benefits of live-well deployment can be realized without sacrifice in terms of installation reliability or long-term productivity. A detailed engineering and testing process was applied to insure ruggedness and ease of use in the field on the mechanical deployment system to allow virtually any length assembly to be deployed using conventional coiled tubing BOP equipment. Concurrently, a thorough analysis is conducted to understand sanding tendencies across the interval and particle and flow characteristics in order to select and optimize sand screen characteristics as well as isolation devices to compartmentalize the interval for maximum well life. The paper will demonstrate multiple applications of the resulting system which allowed efficient installation across large producing intervals without the introduction of kill weight fluids, eliminating the associated productivity damage and risk. The operations were completed without NPT and the associated costs. The active sand control design and the detailed producing plan enabled production above targeted rates maintained to date.
It is widely acknowledged that complex well completions involving highly deviated, extended-reach horizontal applications often direct the operator to choose coiled tubing as the optimum conveyance tool. This method provides the flexibility to run long and heavy guns, create static/under balance or spot fluids. However, due to the length and weight of guns used, a much larger dynamic load acts on a coiled tubing assembly, thereby requiring a comprehensive understanding of dynamic phenomenon in these applications. Consequently, numerical modeling for accurate prediction of pre-job coiled tubing perforating designs is critical to mitigate risk and ensure successful deployment in a cost-effective manner. This paper focuses on several aspects of coiled tubing perforating: procedures, best practices, successful deployment, lessons learnt and most importantly, the modeling tools that are used to design and optimize a coiled tubing job. The modeling software utilized in this work is an engineering and scientific tool that simulates the dynamic response of a cased or uncased wellbore, its contents, and the porous rock formation to the energy released by gas-generating and stored pressure sources. Further, the tool successfully models the perforating event beforehand to mitigate risk and predict the viability of the process. The model is used to ensure the coiled tubing can be successfully deployed, manage/mitigate gun shock, recover the guns, etc. Subsequently, the case histories presented in this study further emphasize the significance of careful job planning and the related modeling that is integral to the success of critical coiled tubing deployments. The first case history deals with the live well deployment of guns to perforate the upper section of a failed completion. Concerns about shock loading and inflow were successfully modeled in the software. Iterations of the model were run to monitor inflow and various underbalance scenarios. The outcome was a successful deployment and recovery of one thousand six hundred feet of perforating guns. In the second case of a complex HPHT well, concerns about shock loading and the effect of high volume in flow were modeled in the software to ensure a successful operation. The effect of shock on the coil and the completion were successfully modeled, resulting in two successful deployments. In another case, two subsea coiled tubing jobs using propellants are presented. The concern was the effect of the propellant on the coiled tubing and the completion. Extensive modeling enabled us to size the gun system and the proper amount of propellant to prevent issues. The results from the case histories and the insight provided by the dynamic modeling software illustrate that, irrespective of the complexity of the perforating job, careful job planning complemented by advanced dynamic modeling are critical to successful deployment of a coiled tubing perforating job.
The use of Coiled Tubing (CT) has been over the past years a preferred method to deploy long, heavy screens and guns in highly deviated wells in a single run without killing the well, therefore reducing the risk and improving job efficiency. Two case histories are presented in this paper. The first involves deployment of 88m of screens and the second deployment of 125m of 3-3/8-in guns including blank sections. After revising several techniques, the best approach was to use an Advance Live Well Deployment (ALWD) system to deploy and set the screens, and to deploy and retrieved guns, with a tubing encapsulated electrical wire which enabled the Coiled Tubing Telemetry (CTT) system with the ultimate goal to perform a safe and cost-saving well intervention, as compared to other options such as conventional wireline perforating. In the first job, the objective was to remove a plug to get access to the zones below and deploy/set 88m of ceramic screens in one run. In the second job, the objective was to set a plug in the tubing to isolate lower zones and run 125m of guns to perforate tubing and casing. Extensive job planning was done including CT simulations to reach target depth, shock modeling to confirm forces are within CT limitations, and yard tests to verify deployment (screens) and deployment/reverse deployment (guns) procedures. CTT system with a Tension Compression Torque (TCT) sensor was used during deployment/reverse-deployment operations. Casing Collar Locator (CCL) sensor was run for depth correlation during screen/guns positioning and packers setting (screens). Deployment Bottom Hole Assembly (BHA) was changed to a firing BHA before running in the hole for setting the packer and electrically activating the guns. With the ALWD system, 88m of ceramic screens were successfully run and set inside existing screens, as well as 125m of guns/blank sections were successfully deployed/reverse-deployed. Based on the success of these two case histories, the ALWD combined with CTT system has been proven to be the preferred method when dealing with long screens deployment and perforation intervals in live well conditions.
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