The Development of Heavy Oil Fields in the U.K. Continental Shelf: Past, Present and Future

Abstract

TX 75083-3836, U.S.A., fax 01-972-952-9435. AbstractHistorically, most UKCS production has been of light oil, 30 0

Technical Challenges for Offshore Heavy Oil Field Developments

“…For some heavy oil developments in the North Sea, long horizontal gravel-packed completions have been an enabling technology that has allowed exploitation of heavy oil resources that would have been uneconomical without this breakthrough. 5 In January 2003, a new world record horizontal gravel pack 8,305 ft (2,531 m) long was completed in the Captain Field.…”

“…Discussions of current or planned IOR projects and technology requirements in the North Sea have already been presented. 5,12 In addition to the issue of what can be done offshore, the other issue that must be considered is implementation timing. Many studies have shown that various improved recovery processes are very sensitive to implementation timing, with recoveries being much better when the processes are implemented before a critical event such as before pressure falls below the bubble point or before water breakthrough occurs.…”

“…A brief discussion of the potential for this technology for shallow OHO oil wells has been published. 5 The main consideration for these wells is that the individual laterals need to be controllable such that they can be shut in individually when recovery process fluid breaks through into one of the laterals. This technology also provides the potential for some additional savings for deepwater developments.…”

“…1,2,3,4 Fields in shallow water but with harsh surface conditions have been developed or are still being evaluated in the North Sea. 5 Recently, other OHO developments have been contemplated in cold water areas with sea ice (Jeanne d'Arc Basin, Canada) or in deep waters. With exploration efforts focused on deepwater basins such as those in West Africa and Brazil where heavy oil has already been found, significant additional heavy oil discoveries are likely.…”

Impact of Skin Damage on Horizontal Well Flow Distribution

“…This horizontal well application has been successfully applied at Alba 2 , Gryphon 3 , Harding, and Troll Fields 4 , to name a few. Jayasekera 5 presented a recent review of the challenges of these types of developments in the U.K. sector of the North Sea.…”