Well Abandonment Efficiency Improvement through Collaboration!

Abstract

The operator, rig contractor and services company formed a trilateral collaboration to plan the safe plug and abandonment of four onshore wells located in a densely populated region of Indonesia. These wells, located in scattered locations, posed a significant logistical challenge for project mobilization and moves between the wells. Well information was incomplete due to a change in asset ownership. Some of the challenges faced in these wells were: Well integrity issues resulting from the presence of H2S and CO2Sustained casing pressureSurface water safetyFluid losses Personnel safety and future well integrity was crucial to this operation. Consequently, plans were developed to conduct the operation safely and efficiently, as well as to provide solutions that mitigated well integrity challenges. The method adopted for this project was to approach this as an integrated project where the collaboration team was responsible for planning, executing, monitoring and closing out all segments of the project. Well information from the previous field operator was analyzed and a solution to safely plug and abandon these wells was created. Because inadequate well information posed a major challenge, the collaboration team planned multiple contingencies. An abandon-the well-on-paper (AWOP) workshop was organized to review and refine the execution plan. An intelligent coiled tubing system, which could be used for simultaneous logging and pumping operations, was selected as well as an efficient and environmentally friendly mechanical pipe cutter that did not use explosives or hazardous chemical substances for tubing severance operations. The sustained casing pressure challenges (in previously fully cemented/non sealing annuli) were addressed by using advanced milling technology for section milling. The early engagement plan enabled development of a project execution strategy that clearly outlined equipment mobilization schedules from various locations in Indonesia. Because of the collaborative projects structure, local personnel recruited for this project were quickly on boarded and integrated with the rest of the project team. This approach led to the safe and efficient execution of the plug-and-abandonment scope of work, with zero HS&E incidents and 167 perfect HS&E days during project execution. Extensive testing of cement mix water was introduced to this project. The testing improved the cement design and enabled accurate plan transition times that reduced waiting on cement. Based on lessons learnt from the first well, extensive logging operations were performed to determine the formation temperature and specific leak locations in the casing. These pre-cementing logging operations helped in collecting accurate well temperature and pressure information that aided the design of cement recipes for the barriers placed in these wells.