Well-Completion Techniques and Methodologies for Maintaining Underbalanced Conditions Throughout Initial and Subsequent Well Interventions (2004)

Well-Completion Techniques and Methodologies for Maintaining Underbalanced Conditions Throughout Initial and Subsequent Well Interventions Travis W. Cavender; Travis W. Cavender Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Henry L. Restarick Henry L. Restarick Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Paper presented at the SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, Houston, Texas, September 2004. Paper Number: SPE-90836-MS https://doi.org/10.2118/90836-MS Published: September 26 2004 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Get Permissions Search Site Citation Cavender, Travis W., and Henry L. Restarick. "Well-Completion Techniques and Methodologies for Maintaining Underbalanced Conditions Throughout Initial and Subsequent Well Interventions." Paper presented at the SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, Houston, Texas, September 2004. doi: https://doi.org/10.2118/90836-MS Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex Search nav search search input Search input auto suggest search filter All ContentAll ProceedingsSociety of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition Search Advanced Search AbstractUnderbalanced drilling (UBD) is undoubtedly one of the "hottest" topics in the oilfield today. Although not a new concept, UBD has just recently come of age, as the benefits it offers to the oil and gas industry have been noted only within the last few years. Underbalanced drilling offers many notable advantages, which include:Reducing formation damageIncreasing the rate of penetration (ROP) and bit life.Allowing the reservoir to be tested and evaluated while drilling.Reducing the number of trips into the holeMinimizing differential sticking of pipeLimiting lost circulationFacilitating early production while drillingAccessing depleted or low-pressure reservoirsSelecting TD from inflow performance.The benefits of the above are obvious; therefore, they will not be discussed in depth in this paper.While UBD technology has come a long way since the early wells that were brought in via gushers that rose above the wooden derricks, underbalanced drilling can only supply part of the solution - once drilling procedures are concluded, and the completion phase begins; the primary operational drivers change. Rather than focusing on such activities as drilling performance and formation evaluation while drilling, the completion drivers target the reduction of fluid loss and the elimination of formation damage. Thus, attaining a total solution requires that underbalanced conditions not only are maintained during the completion and for the life of the well, but also throughout any future well interventions. Unfortunately, the advances in underbalanced completion technology have lagged behind those seen in underbalanced drilling.This paper will explore the strategies, techniques and tool systems required 1) to maintain an underbalanced condition throughout the initial well completion phase and during all future remedial operations, and 2), to create a cost-effective solution that will enhance and accelerate maximum reservoir drainage.To this end, if underbalanced technology is approached as a production enhancement technique that starts at the initial stage of drilling the well and continues throughout the life of the well, the end result will be that the value of the reservoir will be increased, and will be collected within in a shorter period of time.IntroductionThe major problems created by drilling and completing oil and gas wells in overbalanced conditions have been due to fluid loss to the formation and include:formation damage caused by swelling of clay minerals within the formationformation damage due to particle invasion into the formationformation damage due to dissolution of matrix cementation promoting migration of fines within the formationflow channel blockage by precipitates caused by ionic interaction between well servicing fluids, drilling fluids and formation fluidsinteraction between well servicing fluids and formation fluids causing emulsion blocks, water block, or changes in wetability of a producing sandflow-channel blockage due to viscous fluids creating a barrier in the near well bore region.Although minimizing formation damage from fluid loss in itself is a major reason to consider drilling and completing underbalanced, there are other significant advantages that can be derived from applying this concept. Since underbalanced techniques can control or eliminate the problems listed above, more efficient wells can be planned, and the number of wells needed to meet production requirements in a field development program can be reduced.1,2The economic benefits of increasing production from a reduced number of wells will not be covered in depth in this paper. Instead, the discussion will focus on the equipment and systems that are needed to maintain these conditions throughout the life of the well. Keywords: assembly, openhole section, deployment, well-control valve, reservoir, packer, completion, directional drilling, underbalanced condition, completion packer Subjects: Drilling Operations, Directional drilling This content is only available via PDF. 2004. Society of Petroleum Engineers You can access this article if you purchase or spend a download.