Holistic Approach for Managing Drilling Limiters Improves Well Duration by 20% - A Case History of Successful Implementation of New Technologies and Operational Practices in Offshore Malaysia
Authors: Abdelaal Khaled , Petersen Renke , Macleod Andy , Hussin Arief Mohd , Huat Chuah Cheng , Jong Siaw Chuan , Yoeng Chung Chay , Balasingam Kulandra , Fernandes Arthur , Rojaie Salam 
Published: February 2024

Drilling wells safely without any harm to the environment, faster, more efficiently, and economically have historically been the primary points of operating companies. While these goals are achieved through technology, drilling optimization, and cost reduction approaches; the operator must still deal with multiple discrete service providers, including drilling contractors, with different success targets that may or may not align with the operator's strategy.

The concept of Integrated Rig, Drilling and Completion (iRDC) projects is the driver for delivering wells successfully and economically through collaboration and integration. In one such iRDC project in offshore Malaysia, with single focal point handling various drilling services, the project learning curve was improved with numerous efforts and optimization measures undertaken by means of smart drill and value stream mapping processes. Holistic offset well data analysis was performed using historical time-based data to identify improvement opportunities. These were primarily used to maximize the rate of penetration (ROP) by identifying and mitigating main ROP limiters.

A batch drilling concept was deployed for the offshore wells. The drilling sequence considered offline well testing and casing cementing operations while, simultaneously, the rig was skidded to drill other wells on the same platform. Furthermore, well sequence optimization considered reservoir management and well hook-up. Overall risks were considered while performing simultaneous operations (SIMOPs).

Dynamic performance benchmarking was the key to success. Initial key performance indicators (KPIs) were defined and validated. As new performance benchmarks were achieved, the team sought to standardize best practices using a work method. This work method then became the new standard for operational preparation. New KPI targets were discussed and challenged by the rig crews to deploy a competitive and winning spirit.

These efforts focused on proper identification and mitigation of the major causes of non-productive time (NPT) and invisible lost time (ILT) based on advanced data analytics. This enabled overall improvement of 25% for on-bottom ROP and 30% reduction to flat time, in addition to other improvements to several areas: shoetrack drill-out time was reduced by 30% and a 35% improvement to BHA/casing tripping speed was achieved.

The paper discusses the operational challenges and step-by-step chronology of solutions deployed to maximize drilling performance and reduce average well duration by 20% in one year. In addition, it covers a holistic and structured approach for managing drilling limiters, which enhanced drilling connection practices by 40%. This approach effectively eliminated historical backreaming issues for a highly deviated 16 in. hole section without increasing the well stability risk profile and drilling 16 in. hole 15% faster than planned.