E&P Notes (March 2016)
Authors: Jacobs Trent , Rassenfoss Stephen , Whitfield Stephen 
Published: January 2017

E&P Notes

Hess Pilots Automated Drilling Rig in the Bakken

Trent Jacobs, JPT Senior Technology Writer

A pilot project carried out by Hess Corp. demonstrates just how quickly automated drilling technology is able to take a rig from the bottom of the pack and push it to the top.

In November 2014, the company selected a rig from its Bakken Shale fleet that had been in the bottom quartile in terms of performance for more than 2 years. But over the course of a 16-well program, the rig became the second fastest Hess had working at the time. Year-to-year comparisons showed the automated rig had improved its drilling footage per day by 24% compared with the fleet average of 17% over the same period.

 

Payoff Still Possible in Refracturing Conventional Wells

Stephen Rassenfoss, JPT Emerging Technology Senior Editor

There has been a lot of talk about refracturing recently, but the percentage of wells fractured more than once is a small fraction of the 35% rate from the 1950s to 1970s. That statistic came from a recent presentation by Anton Babaniyazov, a staff production engineer for Conoco Phillips, who used it to begin a talk for the SPE Gulf Coast Section’s Permian Basin Study Group about a successful fracturing campaign in west Texas.

The wells were in conventional reservoirs in the Permian Basin, some dating back to the mid-century years he referred to as when far fewer wells were fractured but a significant number were refractured, often multiple times. The point was that there is money to be made on the oil left behind in reservoir rock that is of far higher quality than the unconventional rock layers, which have gotten far more attention and investment in recent years.

 

Drawdown Management Critical to Mitigating EUR Losses in Shale Wells

Stephen Whitfield, JPT Staff Writer

The increase in production from hydraulic fracturing operations in recent years has had a dramatic effect on the oil and gas industry. However, as shale plays have taken up a larger percentage of the overall market, annual decreases in estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) values for shale wells is now a major concern for operators.

At a presentation hosted by the SPE Gulf Coast Section, Ibrahim Abou-Sayed discussed how the adoption of drawdown management strategies have helped mitigate and reduce these losses. Abou-Sayed, the founder and president of i-Stimulation Solutions, also spoke about the elements of drawdown management that have been found to have the most significant impact on shale well productivity.

 

DNV GL Launches Initiatives To Reduce Cost of Qualifying Composite Materials

Stephen Whitfield, JPT Staff Writer

As offshore projects continue to grow in size and scope, the oil and gas industry is looking for new ways to lower costs. To help in that effort, DNV GL has launched a pair of initiatives focused on the use of composite components in offshore applications.

Last September, it announced the formation of a joint industry project (JIP) to investigate affordable composite components in the subsea sector. In December, the company released a recommended practice on thermoplastic composite pipes (TCP) that allows companies to use TCPs in place of steel or traditional flexible material in offshore operations.