Technology Update: Mitigation of Wellbore Instability and Mud Losses in High-Depletion Wells
Authors: Abu Bakar Muhammad Aizat , Nasrudin Khairul Anwar , Nor Abshar M. , McLellan Justin , Syrapushchynski Sasha 
Published: December 2018

Technology Update

Wells in the South China Sea are characterized by high depletion and narrow drilling windows which exponentially increase the risk of incurring severe losses. Mud density, sufficient to maintain well control, typically exceeds the fracture gradient of the clastic and coal formations. Therefore, operators face a dilemma in balancing the need for mud weight (MW) to remain below the fracture gradient to avoid losses, while also providing sufficient density to block influxes into the well. 

The Alpha field, with a water depth of approximately 26 m (85 ft), is located in Sarawak Basin, offshore Malaysia. This area has historically been classified as a “high risk” drilling environment due to clastic deposition and unstable coal formations.  

A process is described that stabilized troublesome zones and enabled the wells to be drilled with MWs higher than the maximum density predicted by leak-off tests or formation integrity tests. A drilling process stabilized microfractures and mitigated many of the issues associated with wellbore instability. The use of a wellbore “shield” allowed use of a higher mud weight which eliminated well influxes while simultaneously achieving zero mud losses to the formation. 

Furthermore, the technology delivered additional wellbore strength to weak formations, allowing the drilling operation to be completed as per plan. Accordingly, the operator significantly reduced the challenges associated with lost circulation, stuck pipe, and well instability, thereby facilitating easier logging and delivering a quality, and less costly, producing well. 

Problem-Solving Process

Offset well analysis. To understand the drilling risks and past issues, the team led by Petronas analyzed the root source of stuck pipe in offset wells. The cost of stuck pipe and wellbore instability was valued at $5.7 million for Offset 1. The analysis determined the stuck pipe event occurred at the coal layer with three main contributing factors:

Failure in understanding the coal and weak zone structure prior to drilling

Insufficient fracture bridging material while drilling the coal

Poor drilling and tripping practices across the coal seam layer that resulted in a stuck bottomhole assembly

Predrilling geomechanics analysis. Failures in offset wells were studied through geomechanics analysis to identify the minimum MW requirement for weak zones and the coal layer. The challenge: excessive MW will lead to coal destabilization, whereas too-low MW may lead to borehole collapse.

Borehole breakouts were predicted using the geomechanical model and the actual MW used during drilling offset wells. Many of the predicted breakouts were related to weak coal layers in the 12¼-in. sections. An internal geomechanical report also indicated that the drilling problems frequently occurred after reaching section total depth and were likely a result of time-dependent failure mechanisms and/or mud-rock interaction.