Cement Placement With Tubing Left in Hole During Plug-and-Abandonment Operations

One way to reduce costs during plugging and abandonment is to leave most of the production tubing in the well. A major concern with such an approach, however, is whether the cement will displace the original fluid improperly because of lack of tubing centralization and possible unfavorable flow dynamics in the annulus. This paper presents full-scale tests that show it is possible to obtain good cement placement when the tubing is left in the hole.

Introduction

The fundamental goal of plugging and abandonment is to restore caprock functionality to maintain well integrity permanently. Normally, these operations are conducted by removing completion equipment and placing a series of cement plugs.