Horizontal Drilling and Well Completion Optimization in a North Dakota Bakken Oilfield

Zander, Dennis; Czehura, Michael Paul; Snyder, Daniel; Seale, Rocky Allen

doi:10.2118/135195-ms

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 15 publications

(1 reference statement)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…After Bakken was discovered and the development began, various drilling and completion methods were implemented (Zander et al, 2010):…”

Section: Bakken Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

EOS Modeling and Reservoir Simulation Study of Bakken Gas Injection Improved Oil Recovery in the Elm Coulee Field, Montana

Hoffman

2014

Proceedings of the 2nd Unconventional Resources Technology Conference

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Bakken Formation in the Williston Basin is one of the most productive liquidrich unconventional plays. The Bakken Formation is divided into three members, and the Middle Bakken Member is the primary target for horizontal wellbore landing and hydraulic fracturing because of its better rock properties. Even with this new technology, the primary recovery factor is believed to be only around 10%. This study is to evaluate various gas injection EOR methods to try to improve on that low recovery factor of 10%. In this study, the Elm Coulee Oil Field in the Williston Basin was selected as the area of interest.Static reservoir models featuring the rock property heterogeneity of the Middle Bakken Member were built, and fluid property models were built based on Bakken reservoir fluid sample PVT data. By employing both compositional model simulation and Todd-Longstaff solvent model simulation methods, miscible gas injections were simulated and the simulations speculated that oil recovery increased by 10% to 20% of OOIP in 30 years.The compositional simulations yielded lower oil recovery compared to the solvent model simulations. Compared to the homogeneous model, the reservoir model featuring rock property heterogeneity in the vertical direction resulted in slightly better oil recovery, but with earlier CO 2 break-through and larger CO 2 production, suggesting that rock property heterogeneity is an important property for modeling because it has a big effect on the simulation results. Long hydraulic fractures shortened CO 2 break-through time greatly and increased CO 2 production. Water-alternating-gas injection schemes and injection-alternating-shut-in schemes can provide more options for gas injection EOR projects, especially for gas production management. Compared to CO 2 injection, separator gas injection yielded slightly better oil recovery, meaning separator gas could be a good candidate for gas injection EOR; lean gas generated the worst results. Reservoir simulations also indicate that original rock properties are the dominant factor for the ultimate oil recovery for both primary recovery iii and gas injection EOR.Because reservoir simulations provide critical inputs for project planning and management, more effort needs to be invested into reservoir modeling and simulation, including building enhanced geologic models, fracture characterization and modeling, and history matching with field data. Gas injection EOR projects are integrated projects, and the viability of a project also depends on different economic conditions.

show abstract

“…After Bakken was discovered and the development began, various drilling and completion methods were implemented (Zander et al, 2010):…”

Section: Bakken Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

EOS Modeling and Reservoir Simulation Study of Bakken Gas Injection Improved Oil Recovery in the Elm Coulee Field, Montana

Hoffman

2014

Proceedings of the 2nd Unconventional Resources Technology Conference

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…As well economics and recoveries have continued to justify the increased stimulation, operators have continued to tighten down fracture spacing to accommodate greater numbers of stimulation treatments per horizontal. Current practices commonly stage 30 or more fractures per 10,000' wellbore (Hill, 2011), as opposed to less than 20 just a couple of years ago (Zander, Czehura and Snyder, 2010).…”

Section: Development Costsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many operators have given up entirely on cementing liners in these long laterals, and have opted to complete with open hole packers, either hydraulically activated or utilizing chemically-activated swellable elements (Zander, Czehura and Snyder, 2010). Communication is established between the liner and reservoir for each stage of the fracture treatment using one of two prevailing methodologies: 'plug and perf' or sliding sleeves.…”

Section: Drilling Best Practicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many operators incorporate 100 mesh sand into their pad stages to aid in initiating a fracture matrix and help prop open any natural fractures. (Zander et al 2010). Slick water fluid systems are often preferred because they are economical, result in better frac initiation, yield superior formation contact with low conductivity fracs, recover more frac fluid, and yield high initial production rates.…”

Section: Fracturing Fluids and Proppantmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Bakken: Utilizing a Petroleum System Based Analysis to Optimally Exploit One of the World's Largest Oil Deposits

2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper is a comprehensive literature survey and analysis of the Bakken Oil play, Williston Basin, which is one of the largest known oil accumulations in the world. This analysis includes; examining reservoir characterization and resource assessments, and evaluating project economics as well as current operators activities. These characteristics and assessments are then used to better understand and put context around the current drilling and completion best practices as well as water handling and operational constraints. The paper thoroughly analyzes the prolific Bakken petroleum system and describes the successful application of technologies and efficient operating practices that have enabled current Bakken production to increase to the cusp of the 500,000 BOPD mark.

show abstract

“…For example, in the Bakken an extra 200 bbl is used per stage to pump down plugs. For a 14-stage completion, the average cost for water using OHMS is US$40,000 saving 15% or $6,000 per job (Zander et al, 2010). The cumulative effect of these savings taken over the course of a sustained drilling program can have a significant impact on the net present value of the project.…”

Section: Cost and Operational Benefits Of Ohms In Unconventional Resementioning

confidence: 99%

Optimisation of Completions in Unconventional Reservoirs for Higher Ultimate Recovery

Snyder

Seale

2011

All Days

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Over the last decade, an industry wide shift to unconventional plays has occurred due to advances in technology allowing for the recovery of previously uneconomic reserves. The primary objective of completions in these unconventional reservoirs is to increase the effective surface area of the well to maximize reservoir contact. Horizontal drilling and multi-stage fracturing are two technologies which have accomplished this.The two main methods of horizontal, multi-stage completions currently used in unconventional reservoirs are cemented liner "plug and perf" and open hole, multi-stage fracturing systems. This paper provides an introduction to unconventional reservoirs, describes the main methods of horizontal, multi-stage completions, and discusses how the choice of method can affect good fracturing practices as well as long-term production. Case study examples are presented from a variety of unconventional reservoirs including shale, tight sandstone and tight carbonate formations.Operators working in a number of unconventional reservoirs, such as shales and other tight rock formations are experiencing faster than expected production decline rates, resulting in reduced long-term, ultimate recovery. This may be in part due to the abandonment of good fracturing practices with the advent of horizontal, multi-stage fracturing. Issues such as near wellbore conductivity, flowback, and fracture tortuosity, which can have a significant effect on the long-term production of wells, need to be considered when choosing a completion method, particularly for unconventional reservoirs.Unconventional plays are becoming a significant part of the oil industry today and will become a bigger part in the future. It is important that the reservoirs are completed optimally to achieve maximum recovery. The information provided in this paper is applicable to unconventional resource plays worldwide.

show abstract

Horizontal Drilling and Well Completion Optimization in a North Dakota Bakken Oilfield

Cited by 11 publications

References 15 publications

EOS Modeling and Reservoir Simulation Study of Bakken Gas Injection Improved Oil Recovery in the Elm Coulee Field, Montana

EOS Modeling and Reservoir Simulation Study of Bakken Gas Injection Improved Oil Recovery in the Elm Coulee Field, Montana

The Bakken: Utilizing a Petroleum System Based Analysis to Optimally Exploit One of the World's Largest Oil Deposits

Optimisation of Completions in Unconventional Reservoirs for Higher Ultimate Recovery

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About