The Role of the Consultant In Meeting the Formation Damage Challange
Authors: Black S.J. , Rike J.L. 
Published: December 2007

American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers, Inc.

This paper was prepared for the Society of Petroleum Engineers of AIME Symposium on Formation Damage Control, to be held in Houston, Tx., Jan 29–30, 1976. Permission to copy is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words. Illustrations may not be copied. The abstract should contain conspicuous acknowledgment of where and by whom the paper is presented. Publication elsewhere after publication in the JOURNAL OF presented. Publication elsewhere after publication in the JOURNAL OF PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY or the SOCIETY OF PETROLEUM ENGINEERS JOURNAL is PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY or the SOCIETY OF PETROLEUM ENGINEERS JOURNAL is usually granted upon request to the Editor of the appropriate journal, provided agreement to give proper credit is made. provided agreement to give proper credit is made. Discussion of this paper is invited. Three copies of any discussion should be sent to the Society of Petroleum Engineers office. Such discussion may be presented at the above meeting and, with the paper, may be considered for publication in one of the two SPE magazines.

Oil well productivity and fluid flow are used to develop the consultant's role in diagnosing, repairing, follow-up, economic analysis, and prevention of formation damage. Damage measurement is developed. Theory is used to provide a basis for discussion of the client's effective use of consultants in the producer's effort at increasing production rate and in training client personnel in formation damage control methods. Examples are cited of areas where particular expertise is required and that are identified as problem situations. problem situations

Introduction

A typical operator almost daily asks four questions. The first and most practical is, "Could more oil or gas be produced from existing wells without causing detrimental effects to the wells or reservoirs?" His second question is: "How much more oil and gas?" If the answer to the first question is "yes," he asks the third question, "How profitable will be the results of an effort to achieve these potential increases in production rate?" If he has any well work to be done, whether it be drilling, completion, or workover operations, he asks the fourth question, "What should be done to insure the highest productivity and profitability when this well work is completed?" These questions parallel the usual engineering approach to productivity problems, including diagnosis, repair, follow-up, economic analysis, and prevention.

The consultant in the industry provides the mortar to "fill in the cracks" of any operating organization. His role may be to provide special expertise that is not available in the operating provide special expertise that is not available in the operating organization. It may be to provide training for a staff that is sufficient in depth but lacks the skills required. It may be to oversee the conduct of certain critical investigations regarding formation damage and its effect, or total profitability. The consultant's role will often be that of examining current practices to ferret out weak areas or items overlooked.

Consultants assume the task of answering these practical questions, knowing that the right answers take skill in the use of special knowledge. To give answers reliably requires knowledge of special procedures, measurements and solutions.