Terabytes of data are being collected every day in the oilfield. Intuition suggests that the more data the better and that if a little bit of information is valuable, then a lot must be incredibly more so. And yet, is it? It is not the data itself, but the ability to put it toward some useful task which matters. One of the most concrete ways in which Big Data can be brought to bear on the everyday is through predictive analytics, the science of using facts from the past to analyze the present and predict the future. In the oil field, a simple and powerful way of making use of data and predictive analytics is for automatic surveillance by exception. By learning from the past it is possible to predict what should be happening today and compare the prediction to what is actually going on. If the two do not match then a problem has been identified and a solution found. Addressing problems early is one of the cheapest ways to boost production.
Production Data Management and Surveillance in Shale Operations presents both the benefits and challenges of field data management in shale production operations. The examination of the lifecycle of field production data the paper offers will lead us to explore issues of surveillance, predictive analytics, enterprise data availability, data quality, integration, and regulatory compliance from the perspective of unconventional resource operators. The paper also includes case studies that detail the implementation and lessons learned from five shale oil and gas producers. Factory drilling in unconventional plays leads to highly paced operations and a large number of wells, which in turn leads to the generation of an enormous amount of field data that must all be captured, processed and turned into actionable information for surveillance, operational accounting and HSEQ compliance. This data, much of which is collected by field personnel at the well site, includes fluid volumes and operating conditions as well as run tickets, tank battery inventories, sales volumes, equipment status, and chemical usage. Also, increased sensitivity to environmental issues around shale plays requires operators to closely manage water, emissions and other environmentally impactful measurements, all of which must be collected, monitored and reported. Maintaining the quality of the gathered data is paramount as poor data can lead to costly consequences, from under- optimized production to fines for inaccurate reporting. Integrating surveillance processes with the field systems will promote consistency and accuracy. In conjunction, tools that provide asset-specific variances, alerts and visualizations will help identify operational issues immediately, allowing for swift alignment of the field team with corporate goals. Raw production measurements collected in the field are processed to produce allocated production volumes at each well and zone. These allocated volumes are then put to use by different departments across the operator’s enterprise, in their planning, forecasting, operations management, revenue accounting, marketing, regulatory and partner reporting. Field information and production data lie at the heart of operations management for all operators. Production Data Management and Surveillance in Shale Operations submits multiple case studies on the collection, analysis and distribution of this data, along with the best practices employed in shale plays.
This paper will review the unique challenges of field data management and the technologies used to meet them in unconventional resource operations. Examining the lifecycle of field data, we will look closely at issues of data quality, analytics, enterprise data availability, integration, and regulatory compliance from the perspective of shale operators. Responding to the high decline rates of wells, factory drilling in unconventional plays results in high-paced operations and a large number of wells. With these come massive volumes of field data that must be captured, processed and turned into actionable information for surveillance, operational accounting and HSEQ compliance. Field teams collect fluid volumes and operating conditions at the well site along with run tickets, tank battery inventories, sales volumes, equipment status, and chemical use. Increased sensitivity to environmental issues around shale plays require operators to closely manage water, emissions and other environmentally impactful measurements that must be collected, monitored and reported. To accommodate these requirements, shale operators need IT systems flexible enough to capture any information that might be needed. Mobility solutions are increasingly being implemented as an enabling technology for capturing the data in the field and communicating it to the systems and users who must process and act upon the resulting information. The use of mobile devices helps eliminate paper, saves time spent on data entry and improves the quality of data flowing into ERP and technical systems. Maintaining the quality of the information gathered is a constant concern. Poor data leads to costly results, from un-optimized production to fines for inaccurate reporting. Incorporating validation checks and approvals into the field systems promotes consistency and accuracy as data is being gathered. Asset specific variances, alerts and visualization can immediately identify operational issues. Access to production targets via mobile devices keeps the field team aligned with corporate goals. Once gathered, raw production measurements collected in the field are processed to produce allocated production volumes at each well and zone. Consumed by different departments across the company, the allocated volumes are used for planning, forecasting, operations management, revenue accounting, marketing, regulatory and partner reporting. Operators must have an effective production data management system to provide the resulting information to a variety of users at the time, place and in the format they require. Field information is at the heart of operations management for any operator. The issues around collecting, analyzing and sharing it will be examined along with the technologies employed to provide the best solutions appropriate for shale plays.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.