bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The success story of Windalia waterflood optimisation through integrated asset management in a mature field
Authors: Hartanto Lina , Widjanarko Wisnu , Muna Diala
Published: August 2017

Australia’s Barrow Island Windalia reservoir—the nation’s largest onshore waterflood—was developed in the late 1960s. The Barrow Island oilfield is Chevron Australia’s only mature waterflood, comprising more than 220 active injectors. The injectors pressurise and increase oil recovery from the geologically complex, low-permeable and heterogeneous Windalia Sand Member. To date it is estimated that the value of waterflooding has effectively reduced the field decline rate from approximately 18 % per annum to less than 2 %—adding millions of barrels in recovery and years on to productive field life. In September of 2008, the Windalia Waterflood achieved full field restitution. This involved the replacement and commissioning of glass-reinforced epoxy injection flow lines, a ring-main network and produced water re-injection facilities. Significant challenges were overcome in the process of realising the restitution’s full potential. Several waterflood optimisation activities have now been executed to achieve oil uplift and to capitalise on Chevron Australia’s investment. Compounded with restitution, the activities have successfully achieved the asset objective of arresting field production decline. This paper highlights the challenges encountered by the waterflood team, providing insights and lessons learned in the dynamic and holistic nature of waterflood management. It also highlights the interplay of considerations and what is crucial to achieving optimum sweep efficiency and pressurisation.
Risk-based coating maintenance: an integrated program
Authors: Lillerovde Egil , Sullivan Bill , Chetty Arvind
Published: August 2017

The integration of a cost-effective coating management plan into an asset integrity system is essential in ensuring asset longevity. The success of any corrosion management program relies on condition monitoring and quality auditing. Monitoring activities also contribute to maintenance plan feedback ensuring continuous improvement in corrosion management activities. It is recognised that there are many ways to organise and operate successful corrosion management programs, each of which is asset specific and depends on factors such as:

Design.
Stage in the life cycle.
Process conditions.
Operational history.

AGR defines corrosion management as: “…the part of the overall management system that is concerned with the development, implementation, review and maintenance of the corrosion policy.” AGR corrosion management programs use a combination of risk-based Inspection technologies and traditional restorative maintenance activities. SOLVTM, a unique product from AGR Field Operations, is used for the management of fabric maintenance (surface coatings, insulation, passive fire protection, pipe and cable penetrations).Long-term plans:

5-year plans or longer based on client requirements.
Prioritising areas and recommended maintenance intervals.
Cost estimates and scope of work.
Estimated condition development.

Application:

Treatment of component surfaces (coatings).
Passive fire protection.
Quality control.

The benefits of the SOLVTM concept can be summarised as:

Information regarding condition of maintenance objects.
Preparation of fixed price maintenance plan and workpacks.
Condition control through survey and audit.
Cost control via quantified scope.
Maintenance budget inputs for 5-year plan.

Documented cost savings of 20–50 % have been realised where SOLVTM has been introduced and been used for long-term corrosion management.
Investigating the dynamics of gas hydrates in a gas dominant flow loop
Authors: Seo Yutaek , Di Lorenzo Mauricio , Sanchez-Soto Gerardo
Published: August 2017

Offshore pipelines transporting hydrocarbon fluids have to be operated with great care to avoid problems related to flow assurance. Of these possible problems, gas hydrate is dreaded as it poses the greatest risk of plugging offshore pipelines and other production systems. As the search for oil and natural gas goes into deeper and colder offshore fields, the strategies for gas hydrate mitigation are evolving to the management of hydrate risks rather than costly complete prevention.
CSIRO has been developing technologies that will facilitate the production of Australian deepwater gas reserves. One of its research programs is a recently commissioned investigation into the dynamic behaviour of gas hydrates in gas pipelines using a pilot-scale 1 inch and 40 m long flow loop.
This work will provide experimental results conducted in the flow loop, designed to investigate the hydrate formation characteristics in steady state and transient flow. For a given hydrodynamic condition in steady state flow, the formation and subsequent agglomeration and deposition of hydrate particles appear to occur more severely as the subcooling condition is increasing.
Transient flow during a shut-in and restart operation represents a more complex scenario for hydrate formation. Although hydrates develop as a thin layer on the surface of water during the shut-in period, most of the water is quickly converted to hydrate upon restart, forming hydrate laden slurry that is transported through the pipeline by the gas flow. These results could provide valuable insights into the present operation of offshore gas pipelines.
Arc flash: a risk assessment and mitigation strategy
Authors: Norton Danny , Wright Dale
Published: August 2017

Oil and gas facility managers are well aware that attention to detail saves lives and supports business continuity and reputation. Those tasked with stewardship of electrical assets will be aware of the need to protect their employees from the hazard of electrical arc flash and that it should be at the forefront of safety thinking. Complacency and lack of duty of care with this real and possibly un-quantified hazard can lead to fatalities.
The primary solution to arc flash consequences in older installations has been the implementation of safe work procedures and personal protective equipment. While still valid, these solutions are the least effective options in the hierarchy of controls. SKM have developed a practical risk mitigation strategy that considers the hazards of prospective arc flash energy together with the cumulative effect of switchboard age, design, capability and condition.
The strategy also considers the range of potential mitigation controls available through the mechanism of substitution and engineering design that focuses on reducing:

The likelihood of an arc flash incident occurring;
The likelihood of personnel exposure; and,
The energy released should an incident occur.

A structured arc flash risk assessment process can provide the asset owner the opportunity to rank individual switchboards for likelihood, consequence and risk, and thus provide direction for engineered remediation and capital expenditure. SKM proposes the way in which arc flash risk can be assessed, how appropriate layered mitigation measures might be selected, and how an asset owner may approach the issue of arc flash hazard mitigation to economically and reliably protect its employees.
Distribution of land plant markers in oils from the Gippsland Basin
Authors: Volk Herbert , Ahmed Manzur , Gong Se , Boreham Chris , Tingate Peter , Sherwood Neil , Edwards Dianne
Published: August 2017

The Gippsland Basin is commonly cited as an outstanding example of a province dominated by oil from coal, and the most likely source rock for many of the oils is the Upper Cretaceous Latrobe Formation. Gippsland Basin oils contain abundant molecular fossils (biomarkers) for land plants, but to our knowledge there are no studies showing compelling evidence on whether the oils were predominantly generated from coal seams or from carbonaceous mudstones. In addition, the Latrobe Formation occurs in a range of maturity and facies expressions, and the degree to which other source rocks in the Gippsland Basin have also generated oil remains unclear.
In this contribution, we will demonstrate how the distribution of land plant markers, in particular: di-, tri- and tetracyclic diterpanes; aromatic land plant markers such as retene and cadalene; pentacyclic land plant makers such as oleanane, lupane and their A-ring contracted counterparts; as well as, bicadinanes vary within a set of 23 oils from the Gippsland Basin. The variation with other aliphatic biomarkers and carbon stable isotopes is discussed, and source rocks with different floral assemblages in the Gippsland Basin are inferred.
Factors controlling tight gas sandstone reservoir quality in the Whicher Range gas field, Southern Perth Basin, Western Australia
Authors: Orsini Cesar , Rezaee Reza , Wilson Moyra
Published: August 2017

There are limited studies characterising the Willespie Formation, a Permian tight gas sandstone in the southern Perth Basin of Western Australia. Consequently, the main factors controlling the reservoir quality, lateral reservoir connectivity and fluid flow mechanism remain unknown. Available data from five Whicher Range wells—including wireline logs, seismic, core data, well reports and petrographic data—were studied to define the syn-depositional and post-depositional events affecting the reservoir rock quality. Based on analysis of the aforementioned data, the Willespie Formation is interpreted to have been deposited under predominantly fluvial conditions in an ancient rift basin of continental origin with no marine influence. The sedimentary environments were laterally varied, as inferred from discontinuous facies formed by meandering channels, crevasse splay and flood plain settings that were mainly controlled by the Permian tectonic setting. Extensive compaction due to ductile grain deformation, as well as clay and calcite cements—filling pores and replacing grains—are the main post-depositional factors affecting the reservoir quality of the medium–coarse-grained, poorly sorted litharenitic sandstones of the Willespie Formation. Combined syn-depositional parameters—controlling the composition and the texture of the sandstone—and post-depositional diagenetic events have had a critical control on the distinctive poor porosity (8% average) and very low permeability of this tight gas sandstone reservoir.
Complexity in tight gas sand development—an example from Perth Basin, Western Australia
Authors: Rezaee Reza
Published: August 2017

One of the key issues for tight gas reservoirs is about reservoir heterogeneities and its connectivity. Knowledge of reservoir geometry, orientation, and connectedness is vital for reservoir modelling, which is the essential tool for successful field development, well completion, and well stimulation strategies. Fluvial sediments are heterogeneous both vertically and laterally due to facies change and diagenetic processes. These make their field development difficult.
In terms of sand geometry and connectivity, the first step to making the reservoir model in three directions is to determine the width of sandstone bodies in various directions. Fine-grained facies associated with fluvial deposits can compartmentalise reservoirs and can significantly complicate the development of such units, as well as make well stimulation and fracturing jobs unpredictable.
In this paper, the above issues are studied for some fluvial tight gas sands of the Perth Basin. The aim is to discuss the best possible way to successfully plan well and well stimulation strategies.
New insights into the stratigraphy and basin evolution of the Houtman Sub-basin, offshore North Perth Basin, from a detailed sequence stratigraphic study
Authors: Robertson Danielle , Jones Andrew , Mantle Daniel
Published: August 2017

A detailed sequence stratigraphic study has been undertaken on the three wells in the Houtman Sub-basin: Gun Island–1, Houtman–1 and Charon–1.
The study focused on the early–late Jurassic Cattamarra Coal Measures, Cadda Formation and Yarragadee Formation succession. Wireline log character, cuttings, sidewall core and conventional core lithologies and palynological data were used to identify facies and paleoenvironments. Palynology for all wells has been reviewed, including new data collected by Geoscience Australia for Gun Island–1.
Facies stacking patterns were used to define systems tracts and subsequently ten third-order depositional sequences. At the second-order (supersequence) level, the Cattamarra Coal Measures recorded a transgression culminating in maximum flooding in the Cadda Formation, followed by highstand aggradation and regression in the Yarragadee Formation. The third-order sequences characterised in this study overprint this supersequence and control the local distribution of facies.
The relative dominance of a facies may be either enhanced or diminished depending upon its position in the larger second-order supersequence—for example: a number of transgressive systems tracts in the dominantly non-marine Yarragadee Formation and Cattamarra Coal Measures record multiple, dinocyst-bearing, minor marine incursions into the Houtman Sub-basin. These marine incursions are not evident in the Yarragadee Formation in Charon—1, indicating a lack of accommodation space or proximal sediment input in the north during the mid-late Jurassic.
The combined influence of these third-order and second-order sequences on facies distribution has significant implications for the distribution of potential reservoirs and seals in the Houtman Sub-basin and for regional palaeogeographic reconstructions of the Perth Basin.
Petroleum geological summary of the 2012 offshore acreage release for petroleum exploration
Authors: Bernecker Thomas
Published: August 2017

The Australian Government formally releases new offshore exploration areas at the annual APPEA conference. In 2012, 27 areas in nine offshore basins are being released for work program bidding. Closing dates for bid submissions are either six or twelve months after the release date, i.e. 8 November 2012 or 9 May 2013, depending on the exploration status in these areas and on data availability.
As was the case in 2011, this year’s Release again covers a total offshore area of about 200,000 km2. The Release Areas are located in Commonwealth waters offshore Northern Territory, Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania (Fig. 1). Areas on the North West Shelf feature prominently again and include under-explored shallow water areas in the Arafura and Money Shoal basins and rank frontier deep water areas in the outer Browse and Roebuck basins as well as on the outer Exmouth Plateau.
Following the recent uptake of exploration permits in the Bight Basin (Ceduna and Duntroon sub-basins), Australia’s southern margin is well represented in the 2012 Acreage Release. Three new areas in the Ceduna Sub-basin, four areas in the Otway Basin, one large area in the Sorell Basin and two areas in the eastern Gippsland Basin are on offer.
Multiple industry nominations for this Acreage Release were received, confirming the healthy status of exploration activity in Australia. The Australian government continues to support these activities by providing free access to a wealth of geological and geophysical data.
New exploration opportunities along Australia's southern margin
Authors: Jennie Totterdell
Published: August 2017

The 2012 Australian offshore acreage release includes exploration areas in four southern margin basins. Three large Release Areas in the frontier Ceduna Sub-basin lie adjacent to four exploration permits granted in 2011. The petroleum prospectivity of the Ceduna Sub-basin is controlled by the distribution of Upper Cretaceous marine and deltaic facies and a structural framework established by Cenomanian growth faulting. These Release Areas offer a range of plays charged by Cretaceous marine and coaly source rocks and Jurassic lacustrine sediments.
In the westernmost part of the gas-producing Otway Basin, a large Release Area offers numerous opportunities to test existing and new play concepts in underexplored areas beyond the continental shelf. Gas and oil shows in the eastern part of the Release Area confirm the presence of at least two working petroleum systems. In the eastern Otway Basin, several Release Areas are offered in shallow water on the eastern flank of the highly prospective Shipwreck Trough and provide untested targets along the eastern basin margin southward into Tasmanian waters.
To the south, a large Release Area in the frontier Sorell Basin provides the opportunity to explore a range of untested targets in depocentres that formed along the western Tasmanian transform continental margin.
Two Release Areas offer exploration potential in the under-explored eastern deepwater part of the Gippsland Basin. Geological control is provided by several successful wells indicating the presence of both gas and liquids in the northern area, while the southern area represents the remaining frontier of the basin
2012 Australian onshore acreage releases
Authors: Alexander Elinor
Published: August 2017

Onshore Australian acreage releases and investment opportunities occurring in 2012 in Australia’s states and the Northern Territory are summarised. Diverse exploration opportunities exist for petroleum explorers in onshore basins, including potential for unconventional targets such as shale gas. The states and Northern Territory believe there are high prospects for significant new conventional and unconventional developments onshore.
Australian state and territory governments continue initiatives to encourage exploration to realise their natural resource endowments. This includes pre-competitive basin studies, cost-effective and speedy provision of digital exploration data, transparent regulatory regimes, provision of effective land access regimes, internationally competitive royalty regimes, and promotion of acreage releases nationally and internationally.
Improved LNG production through the advancement of CH4 + N2 separations using pressure swing adsorption
Authors: Steven Hofman Paul , May Eric
Published: August 2017

The majority of global energy analysts predict the demand for LNG is set to grow substantially during the next 3-4 decades, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. Impurities in the natural gas feedstock used to produce LNG pose a significant challenge to its efficient production, especially if high-quality natural gas fields are depleted and sub-quality gas needs to be used. One of the most challenging contaminants to remove from unrefined natural gas is N2 as its inert properties make it difficult to separate from CH4-dominant gas streams. Although a small number of N2 + CH4 separation technologies exist for this purpose, economies of scale dictate that cryogenic distillation, although costly, is the only technique economically viable for flows of more than 25 MMSCFD at this point.
This paper examines the present state of commercial N2 + CH4 separation technologies with respect to LNG production and the present opportunities for improvement. The potential that pressure swing adsorption (PSA) has compared with competing technologies through using the low-temperature conditions available in an LNG gas processing facility is illustrated. Finally, the challenges associated with developing the proposed low-temperature PSA process and the status of the research underway to address them is discussed.
2011 PESA industry review: production and development
Authors: Dello Lou
Published: August 2017

2011 was a lacklustre year for Australian hydrocarbon production, however a stellar year for LNG development. Domestic gas production was flat despite two new gas developments, Reindeer/Devil Creek and Halyard/Spar, which came into production during the year. Oil production fell, primarily due to the redevelopment of North West Shelf oil facilities, with Kitan in the Timor Sea being the only new offshore oil field that commenced production.
LNG production was also flat however, Final Investment Decisions (FID) were announced for five new LNG projects, including Ichthys early in 2012, bringing the combined value of all eight sanctioned LNG projects to more than $180 billion. This is a huge volume of development, not only for the industry but for the whole Australian economy. Importantly, it has also moved Australia closer to becoming the world’s largest LNG producer. Increasing development costs and competition for skilled labour still remain the biggest challenges for the industry.
Introduction of the carbon tax was also an important development in 2011, marking a significant step towards a low-carbon economy and increasing the opportunity for natural gas, but also burdening trade-exposed industries like LNG.
The success of unconventional gas in the United States and CSG in Australia has sparked a step-change in exploration and development of unconventional gas in onshore Australia.
Consolidation in coal seam gas sector continued on the east coast with the two acquisitions of Eastern Star Gas by Santos and Bow Energy by Arrow Energy. Continuing to effectively engage with the community will be central to the industry’s success.
2011 PESA industry review: securing gas supplies for domestic consumption in the long term
Authors: Nelson Tim
Published: August 2017

Natural gas plays a critical role in the Australian domestic economy. Households use natural gas as an essential service with applications ranging from space heating and cooking to hot water. In a carbon-constrained environment, gas is likely to play a critical role in fuelling new power stations. Businesses also use natural gas for industrial processing, feedstock purposes and on-site electrical generation and cogeneration. In the context of community concerns about production of CSG, little attention has been paid to the critical role gas plays in the modern Australian economy. This paper examines whether the development of an east-coast LNG industry has implications for domestic supply of natural gas. With increased domestic demand for gas (due in part to increased use of gas for power generation), it is necessary to discover new gas resources to ensure security of supply is maintained in the long term. The conclusion seems clear enough: government policies must have adequate consideration for local communities, but they must also focus on the critical role natural gas plays in the Australian economy—both in value creation and the provision of an essential service for many Australian households.
Systematic geomechanical evaluation for short-term gas storage in depleted reservoirs
Authors: Khaksar Abbas , White Adrian , Rahman Khalilur , Burgdorff Katharine , Ollarves Reinaldo , Dunmore Steve
Published: August 2017

Depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs are attractive targets for short-term gas storage with frequent injection and production cycles. Optimum well completion and injection-storage-production design in depleted reservoirs would require an understanding of important rock mechanical issues. These include drilling and completion challenges of new wells in low-pressure reservoirs accounting for potential rock fatigue due to cyclic injection/depletion and loading and unloading, and determination of maximum sustainable storage pressures that would avoid fracturing and fault reactivation. This paper describes a case study from a coal seam gas project considered for supply to a liquefied natural gas plant in Australia. The paper demonstrates a systematic approach for geomechanical risk assessments for short-term gas storage in depleted sandstone reservoirs.
Depleted sandstone gas reservoirs at a depth of 1,000 m with existing pressures of 150–300 psi are considered in this study. Historical and new well data including cores, well logs, drilling, and field data such as injection and minifracture (minifrac) tests are used to develop a field-specific geomechanical model. Field data and laboratory measurements of rock mechanical properties are used to define the stress path factors and the change in in situ stress with depletion and injection in sandstone reservoirs in the study area. Rock mechanics tests on representative core plugs under cyclic loading and unloading simulating operating depletion and injection pressure conditions are used to assess the level of rock fatigue and rock weakening under cyclic loading.
Geomechanical analyses show that despite a low fracture gradient in depleted reservoirs and the presence of non-depleted overburden rocks, new high-angled wells can be drilled safely with a relatively low mud weight in the non-depleted sections and with air in the reservoir section. Fracturing and faulting assessments confirm the critical pressures for fault reactivation and fracturing of intact rocks are beyond the planned storage pressures, and a maximum pressure of 200–300 psi beyond the initial reservoir pressures may be possible from fracturing or fault reactivation aspects. Sand production prediction evaluations indicate that new injection-production wells can be completed with no downhole sand control due to a very low risk of sanding even after considering rock weakening associated with cyclic loading.
The methodology and overall workflow presented in this paper can be applied when carrying out geomechanical risk assessments for natural gas storage in depleted reservoirs.
Improving reservoir performance using intelligent well completion sensors combined with surface wet-gas flow measurement
Authors: Tarom Nematollah , Hossain Mofazzal
Published: August 2017

Reservoir performance, in addition to day-to-day well performance, needs to be evaluated during the life of a well. The production logging tool (PLT) is conventionally designed to provide a full set of data measurements in producing wells to evaluate well and reservoir performance. Depending on the well conditions and location, running conventional PLTs may be difficult, impossible or expensive. Therefore, an alternative approach that can be applied in lieu of PLT operations—to obtain information similar to PLTs for better reservoir management—and that can optimise reservoir production performance is desireable. Data acquisition techniques such as downhole pressure/temperature gauges, fibre optic sensors at reservoir conditions and wet-gas flow meters at the surface have been considered as a viable alternative. Such data acquisition techniques help to increase flexibility in the field development and reservoir management of problematic wells with well completion technologies such as multi-lateral, horizontal and artificial lift.
This study focused on the development of an alternative method of analysing problem well data on the basis of downhole pressure and temperature data collected at reservoir conditions. The proposed model has been based on the Joule-Thomson effect and radial heat and fluid flow equations to solve the transient wellbore pressure and temperature equations. It is expected this model can be used to analyse intelligent wells completed with downhole pressure and temperature sensors, and facilitate the monitoring of wells and reservoir performance without any PLT operation, especially for complex fields.
Use of glass bubbles in low-density fluids, Tambun field drilling program, Indonesia
Authors: Devadass Melvin
Published: August 2017

The Tambun Field in Indonesia was initially developed in the 1990s to exploit oil reserves from the Baturaja Formation (BRF). Since the initial drilling program, reservoir pressure in the field has steadily declined from more than 2,600 psia to less than 1,970 psia resulting in severe circulation losses and an increase in non-productive time (NPT) during drilling and completion programs. The use of hollow glass microspheres, commonly known as glass bubbles—a low density additive (LDA)—in ultra-low density drilling fluids (< 0.9 g/cc) is a novel approach in addressing this issue. A seven-well managed pressure drilling and completion exercise was undertaken by P.T. Pertamina EP Jawa region in the first half of 2010 under challenging drilling conditions in this low-pressure, high-permeability carbonate reservoir. The glass bubble mud system was selected because it would reduce or eliminate lost circulation and stuck pipe problems, reduce formation damage, eliminate the need for post drilling stimulation and give early analysis of reservoir behaviour and production rates.
This paper describes the front-end engineering design, project management, risk mitigation, detailed engineering and design, operational results and lessons learnt from this project.
The Walloon coal seam gas play, Surat Basin, Queensland
Authors: Ryan Damien , Hall Andrew , Erriah Leon , Wilson Paul
Published: August 2017

Extensive drilling of the Walloon Subgroup for coal seam gas (CSG) during the last decade has revealed a world-class CSG play on the northern flank of the Surat Basin. Resources discovered in the Walloon Subgroup exceed 30 TCF; this gas now underpins four CSG-to-liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects.
Results to date have revealed the highly heterogeneous nature of the Walloon Subgroup and its associated coal properties. The Walloon Subgroup is typically 350 m thick and contains an average of 30 m of net coal that is interbedded with a range of clay-rich, fluvio-lacustrine lithologies. The most prospective area of the play occurs down-dip and adjacent to the Walloon subcrop edge, where high permeability exists combined with a thick section of net pay. Coals in the Walloon Subgroup are low rank (0.35–0.65% Ro) with gas contents ranging between 1–15 m3/tonne (dry ash-free). Average coal ply thickness is 30 cm, making correlation and prediction of reservoir properties difficult. Reservoir properties—including permeability, gas content and saturation—differ as a result of compositional variability of the coal seams and also the tectonic history.
Mapping of sparse 2D seismic data has highlighted the distribution of major structural features throughout the basin. Coal fracture permeability ranges from less than 0.1 mD to more than 2,000 mD, and mapping has identified areas where permeability appears to be enhanced on structures that have undergone mid Cretaceous–Eocene deformation.
Bioremediation and immobilisation of oily sands containing naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM)
Authors: de Witt Ruan , Lambert John , David Hamilton's
Published: August 2017

The precipitation of radioactive substances from produced formation water during the production of oil and gas causes the accumulation of naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) in processing equipment. The resulting oily sandy waste stream has a level of radioactivity and contains volatile organic compounds, heavy metals and other petroleum hydrocarbon based contamination. This poses a potential health, safety and environmental risk. Treatment mechanisms for such waste must therefore address both radioactive and hydrocarbon contamination.
This paper focuses primarily on the hydrocarbon contamination, and considers bioremediation and immobilisation as treatment mechanisms. Bioremediation of the oily fraction of this waste is examined using four different types of bacteria: Aspergillus niger, Acinetobacter calcosleticus, Pseudomonas aerogenousa and Rhodococcus ruber as possible additives.
The use of naturally acclimated organisms generated in bioremediation of oily industrial residues is also examined. Immobilisation treatment with the purpose of capturing the oily fraction of the waste was also evaluated by limiting bioavailability though micro- and macro-encapsulation of the organic components of the waste. Leachability subsequent to immobilisation was assessed to determine the suitability of the treatment for long-term encapsulation and containment.
The results in this paper demonstrated how treatment by immobilisation (also referred to as solidification or stabilisation) proved to be the most successful approach with leachate results validating effective binding of the hydrocarbon component.
Land access perspectives in unconventional gas—where is the balance?
Authors: Weir Michael
Published: August 2017

A landholder or occupier is generally entitled to control access to their property. An unauthorised entry onto a person’s property will provide the landholder with the entitlement to commence an action in trespass subject to statutory protection being available to the trespasser. Land access is a significant factor in the public debate surrounding the recovery of unconventional gas that requires access for tenure holders for various purposes. This paper first discusses the common law background to the entitlement of landholders to control access to land. The paper will then analyse the statutory regulatory structure applying in Queensland, NSW, WA and SA that entitles access to land for tenure holders in relation to unconventional gas. This paper will discuss the nature of property and perceptions of property that impact on the context in which negotiations occur between landholders and tenure holders. The paper will discuss some of the reasons the issue of access goes beyond mere legal rights from the perspective of the landholder, and how this may impact the approach taken by tenure holders and landholders in the negotiations for access to land. For the benefit of both the tenure holder and the landholder, the paper will suggest factors that may assist in promoting good negotiated outcomes.
Optimising deepwater drilling safety and efficiency in Australia with closed-loop circulation drilling systems
Authors: Toralde Julmar Shaun Sadicon , Carr David John , Wuest Chad Henry
Published: August 2017

Closed-loop circulation drilling (CLCD) systems provide an increasingly viable alternative to open-to-the-atmosphere conventional drilling systems by emphasising the use of closed and pressurisable systems to allow a scalable approach that produces a range of benefits. These range from increased personnel and environmental safety to better data resolution and even greater control over the drilling process. This paper states how CLCD addresses a need in a post-Macondo world, where deepwater drilling is under intense and increased regulatory control, by providing flexible systems that supplement the safety and efficiency of deepwater drilling operations. Furthermore, it describes the details of how CLCD systems can be installed and used on moored and dynamically positioned drilling vessels, and points out how it may be deployed for deepwater conditions in Australia. Recent successes and issues encountered in the application of this technology in the Asia Pacific region are also shared.
Fault-seal potential of the Palaeozoic in the northwest Canning Basin
Authors: Strand Julian , Vaslin Antoine , Langhi Laurent
Published: August 2017

As part of a Geological Survey of Western Australia organised review of the Canning Basin involving UWA and CSIRO, the fault-seal potential for the northwest Canning Basin has been analysed. This study has two foci: firstly identifying potential for fault-bound hydrocarbon reservoirs in the Early Permian (Poole Sandstone and Upper Grant Group). Secondly, James Price Point, 55 km north of Broome, is the chosen location for an LNG facility to service the northern North West Shelf gas fields. As such, the study aims to highlight potential CO2 sequestration reservoir sequences occurring inside 200 km of James Price Point, the economically feasible distance for CO2 delivery to an injection site.
Historically, hydrocarbon exploration drilling in the Fitzroy Trough targeted anticlinal structures, which proved unsuccessful due to localised, but significant, erosion of the Permian sequence including the Noonkanbah Formation top-seal on anticlinal crests. Given there is potential for untested, fault-bound traps to exist, which might provide an alternative to the anticlinal traps, it will be useful to identify the distribution of shale-rich, top-seal and fault-seal prone sequences, and where these occur at suitable reservoir depths.
The study shows the Early Permian sequences on the flanking terraces of the Fitzroy Trough commonly have suitable top-seal and fault-seal prone sediments. In wells analysed in the Fitzroy Trough itself, the Early Permian sequence is poorly represented, but Permo-Carboniferous sediments observed indicate some sealing potential might exist there. Moving south onto the Broome Platform and into the Wiluna Sub-basin, the Early Permian sequences still display some sealing potential, but Ordovician units might provide more suitable targets for sequestration in these areas.
Understanding the influence of barium on calcite scale using advanced laboratory simulation techniques
Authors: Handajanto Andre , Hui Yian Tan
Published: August 2017

The theoretical effect of barium on calcite crystal growth is widely discussed and investigated. This paper provides a broad analysis of the effect of barium on calcium carbonate scale using a dynamic scale loop (DSL). With a DSL, it is possible to simulate conditions that can be found in oil/gas pipelines in actual pressure and temperature conditions. The DSL measures with high accuracy, small variations in differential pressure over a 1mm/1m flow loop. This paper investigates three cases, simulated with and without barium additions, to provide futher understanding to the existing literature about the effect of barium on calcite scale growth. Effectiveness of scale inhibitors on these cases is also studied.
Operability of a floating LNG production facility
Authors: Xia Jinzhu
Published: August 2017

The advantages of offshore floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) production include reduced environmental footprints and potential reduced costs for remote and marginal field development. Moving a conventional land-based LNG plant offshore, however, does not come without its fair share of challenges. Ensuring operability—and hence availability—is one of those challenges.
While offshore natural gas process technology selection is largely dictated by limited deck space and high safety focus, a crucial aspect in the design and operation of any of the equipment onboard an FLNG facility is the motion characteristics of the hull in the metocean environment. In fact, hull motions affect the performance of the LNG storage tanks, cargo offloading systems, module structural connections, and nearly every single piece of topsides equipment.
Determining the required performance of the hull, however, involves an iterative process between the design of topsides equipment and the configuration of the hull. On one hand, the hull is optimised to minimise its responses to the operating environment and to best suit any operational limitations of process systems and equipment. On the other hand, the process systems and equipment are modified to perform under greater hull motions.
The cryogenic transfer of LNG between an offshore floating production facility and its designated LNG carriers is one of the weakest links in the total chain of offshore floating LNG development. It involves two floating systems, working in close proximity, in the dynamic offshore environment. The operability of this greatly affects the availability for LNG offloading and overall delivery.
The purpose of this paper is to review the operability aspects of an FLNG project, particularly those affected by hull motions. State-of-the-art operability design and assessment methods will be discussed, including outcomes of some of the dedicated research and development programs that have made FLNG a foreseeable reality for Australian and worldwide offshore natural gas projects and prospects.
Production decline analysis and forecasting in tight-gas reservoirs
Authors: Mahadik Mujeeb Khan Habib , Bahrami Hassan , Hossain Mofazzal , Mitchel Tsar
Published: August 2017

Exponential decline curve analysis is widely used to estimate recoverable reserves due to its simplicity. In most cases, however, an exponential model cannot provide a satisfactory match of overall production history. The generalised form of a hyperbolic decline model is more powerful in matching production history than the other decline models, but it is difficult to apply in practical production data analysis since it requires predicting two unknowns as decline constants.
Although a hyperbolic model may provide a good fit to early-time production decline data; it may overestimate the late-time production, especially for hydraulic fractured wells in a tight-gas reservoir. In fact, the exponential decline model might be more reliable for forecasting the late-time production.
This paper presents a practical approach to production decline analysis for non-fractured and fractured wells in a tight-gas reservoir using numerical simulation. Some production rate functions and type curves are introduced to obtain the best matching values of hyperbolic, exponential and harmonic production decline constants.
The simulated production rate decline data for various well and reservoir parameters are used to indicate the optimum time duration of use of each decline model and to show the time when the production decline starts following the exponential model. The proposed approach is applied in production data analysis and forecasting for a tight-gas field in WA. The results showed good agreement with the production forecast obtained from a reservoir simulation.
Australia's mining thirst—GTL solution
Authors: Shastri Srinivas , Kamper Stuart , Sonigra Tasneem , Hill Terry , Beales Jonathan , Reynolds Hugh
Published: August 2017

The iron ore industry in WA consumes in excess of three million litres of diesel each day. This diesel is delivered to the mine sites either by rail up to the site load-out, or by a combination of rail and road. The use of mine transport corridors for transport of fuel not only adds significant costs, but it also has a considerable impact on safety.
This paper presents the case for the use of stranded gas not only to meet the power requirements of the mines located nearby, but also to meet the significant liquid fuel requirements of the mines. This can be achieved by the small-scale conversion of natural gas to diesel fuel through the well-understood gas to liquid (GTL) process. The construction of a GTL facility as a collaborative venture between a large operator and a stranded-gas developer could result in actual fuel cost savings of nearly 85%, with a positive return on investment in ten years. At the very least, dialogue is required between the major miners and stranded-gas developers.
Quick estimation of product yields from downhole gas sample
Authors: Jones Mike
Published: August 2017

The estimation of product yields from gas and gas condensate reservoirs is often the subject of multi-million-dollar studies, requiring gas and condensate samples from production tests, lab analysis of the samples, and complex process engineering models. An accurate estimation of sales product yields can, however, be determined simply from the composition of a reservoir sample and a basic material balance calculation.
Sales gas, LNG, and condensate have fairly consistent specifications across the world, based on various properties such as heating value, vapour pressure, etc. This consistency allows the determination of product yields from simple material balance calculations and properties of the individual components found in the reservoir gas. In this case, material balance simply means the allocation of each component to a particular product stream.
The lighter components, C1 through C4 (methane through butane), comprise the LNG and/or sales gas product, and all C5+ (pentane and heavier) components make up the condensate product. The yields can then calculated for each unit of reservoir gas, for example MJ/scm, BTU/scf, bbl/MMscf, etc. Inerts such as CO2 and N2 have no heating value and are not included in the yield calculation.
Likewise, contaminants such as H2S must be removed from the product stream and are not included in the yield. In actual practice, a perfect separation of the individual components is not achieved—that is,the condensate product will contain small amounts of C3 and C4, but experience has shown that the simple method described above gives an accurate estimattion of product yields from a simple gas analysis.
Bringing to life line-of-sight for major accident prevention
Authors: Askew Philip , Mulgund Vikrant , Tan Leesa , Wright Robin
Published: August 2017

The process safety of exploration and production has evolved since Piper Alpha with safety cases, hazard identification studies (HAZIDs) in design and, more recently, Bow-Ties becoming industry norm; however, recent incidents such as Texas City, Macondo, Varanus Island and Montara have shown industry and regulators from the UK, Australia and beyond that complacency cannot be allowed. The industry has been acting on process safety, but it has struggled to bring it to life in daily operations.
Missed warning signals, poor change management, failure to follow procedures, capability issues and lack of communication have been preventable factors in these incidents. Recent efforts in Australia, using the line-of-sight methodology, are advancing process safety by bringing to life major accident prevention.
The methodology focuses organisations on systematic management of preventative barriers to accidents and can be applied to all elements of the value chain. The methodology involves:

conducting analysis of safety cases;
assessing performance standards and safety to identify critical preventative barriers;
developing measures and assigning accountabilities to monitor barrier effectiveness; and,
developing tracking and reporting systems to provide visibility across operations management.

A case study about an Australian operator has shown benefits in improved safety and operational performance. This is done by focusing the operators on critical barriers (as well as their normal daily jobs), better visibility on the state of operations and hence allowing a proactive approach to managing process safety. The system is in its infancy, but it is being improved to support line-of-sight becoming a standard tool across the industry.
Contractor and supplier management: mitigating risk by better decision making
Authors: Yemenu Dag , Cerenzio Richard
Published: August 2017

Global industry trends show increased outsourcing of non-core business activities (i.e. construction, maintenance, engineering, etc.) to third-party contractors. Data from several industries show that contractors face 1.5–3 times higher incident rates than in-house employees. This extended abstract covers leading-edge approaches for managing contractor risk, presently implemented by organisations in the oil and gas, mining and manufacturing industries. Using a database of more than 35,000 contracting companies and 220 owner/operator companies, this extended abstract accumulates more than six years of extensive health and safety data to show trends associated with health and safety management and performance improvement. Using statistical analysis methods, actionable leading indicators and insightful trends are discussed. Best practices of contractor management and decision-making tools based on a comprehensive management-system approach to contractor-risk management are also examined. Discussed is a practical model to address the following key elements:

Gathering, reviewing and verifying contractor information as part of the due-diligence process.
Analysing leading and lagging performance indicators.
Driving safety through feedback, benchmarking, and continual improvement.