DOE Digest

DOE Announces 6 Winners for Microhole RD&D

Six companies, and their partners as appropriate, were recently announced as winners in DOE's microhole program. DOE is investing more than $3.7 million in these projects, while participants are investing more than $1.4 million. Winners were in four project areas. The single largest award was to Schlumberger for development of a built for purpose coiled tubing rig. Topics and the companies receiving awards include:

• Built for purpose microhole coiled tubing rig (Schlumberger)

• Advanced mud system for microhole coiled tubing drilling (Bandera)

• Radar navigation and radio data transmission for microhole coiled tubing BHAs (Stolar Research)

• Microhole smart steering and logging while drilling system (Baker Hughes)

• Microhole downhole drilling tractor (Western Well Tool)

• Through tubing (microhole) electrical submersible pump artificial lift system (Gas Prod. Spec.)

Watch for more complete information about these awards on DOE NETL's website www.netl.doe.gov. Plans are already in place for a Round 2 solicitation later this year (see box alert).

In a Small Business Incentive Research (SBIR) grant from DOE, Completion Concepts out of Katy, Texas, has developed and now successfully field tested a teleperf system. The teleperf system restrains sand production while eliminating conventional perforating and gravel packing in oil wells producing heavy crude. After casing is set, and a well drilled through the selected completion interval, telescoping, pre-formed devices or "teleperfs" containing a sand control media are assembled as part of the well liner system. The liner is run into the well and set, with the perforation devices in position in the selected completion intervals. They are then energized through wellbore pressure and telescoped into place.

The teleperfs, which are currently capable of being extended for 1-1/2 inches, can be installed at four devices per foot. Once set, they are cemented in place.

Full-scale field testing was performed in Baker Oil Tool's Louisiana test well in late April. Following some difficulties in the first deployment, equipment modifications and some teleperf substitutions enabled a successful test. A 7-inch liner, 20 feet in length, was equipped with four teleperfs per foot. Using a "one trip" system, the liner was run, teleperfs energized and cemented inside a 10-inch casing lined with rubber to indicate the effective extension of the teleperfs. The liner and cemented 10-inch casing were retrieved and subsequently cut longitudinally. All teleperfs were found to be working properly and fully extended. BP plans to install teleperf equipment in an Alaskan well this summer.

For further information, contact DOE NETL’s Jim Barnes, phone 918-699-2076, E-mail Jim.
Barnes@netl.doe.gov.

Within a DOE Preferred Upstream Management Practices (PUMP) project, the Gas Technology Institute (GTI) and industry partners Chesapeake Energy Corp., Newfield Exploration Co., Triad Energy Corp., Oklahoma Independent Petroleum Association, Intelligent Solutions Inc. and West Virginia University developed a computer-assisted methodology to help identify opportunities in Oklahoma's mature Golden Trend. The system helped determine the most influential parameters affecting overall well performance and identified specific restimulation opportunities. Knowing the data that are encountered in mature producing areas, soft computing techniques (neural networks, genetic algorithm, and fuzzy logic) were the methods of choice.

Participating operators contributed data from 320 wells, which was narrowed down to 230 wells when wells with insufficient or questionable data were eliminated. The 30-year EUR (Estimated Ultimate Recovery), calculated for all wells from decline curve analysis, was chosen as the primary productivity parameter. Neural network models were used for sensitivity analysis, that is parameters were changed from minimum to maximum to examine trends. Genetic algorithm optimization was employed for predictive analysis. Results from virtual intelligence analyses were

produced in several forms and formats.

It was recognized that hydraulic fracturing and perforation densities were the most influential controllable parameters impacting production rate and ultimate recovery. The data suggested oil-based fracturing fluid is more effective for oil production, while acid-fracs are more effective for gas production. In addition, lower pumping rate, higher proppant concentration and smaller number of perforations per foot of pay were shown to result in better production rate and higher ultimate recovery.

Several areas of high production potential were identified in the survey area, and it was apparent that several wells in the high potential areas have not been producing at their expected rates. Further studies of these wells resulted in identifying 23 restimulation candidates for oil production, 25 wells for gas production and 33 wells for combined oil and gas production. The operators participating in this study are considering these candidates in their drilling and completion programs.

A detailed technical description of all stages of work, including an executable version of the software package and results from field applications, will be in the final report available during summer 2004. For more information, contact GTI's Iraj Salehi, phone 847-768-0902, E-mail iraj.salehi@gas
technology.org or DOE NETL's Gary Walker, phone 918-699-2083, E-mail gary.walker@netl.doe.gov.

Excerpted from "PUMP Project: Quantifying Best Practice Analysis to Cut Costs and Boost Output," GasTIPS, Spring 2004. Available online at www.gastech
nology.org/webroot/app/xn/xd.aspx
?it=enweb&xd=4reportspubs\4_7
gastips\spring2004\spring2004
tofc.xml.