Field/project development

Telemetry Approach Enables Optimal Well Placement Despite Geohazards

This paper discusses cases from the North Sea and offshore California in which high-fidelity pressure and dynamics measurements, combined with high-speed telemetry, helped overcome complex geotechnical challenges.

Fig. 1—Well profile showing loss zones. GOC = gas/oil contact; FWL = free water level
Fig. 1—Well profile showing loss zones. GOC = gas/oil contact; FWL = free water level.
Source: SPE 219627.

Wired drillpipe (WDP; high-speed telemetry), along-string measurements (ASMs), and advanced logging-while-drilling (LWD) tools have been deployed in multiple wells worldwide to address specific challenges that typically have been either insurmountable with other techniques or likely to experience suboptimal results with alternative technologies. The complete paper discusses use cases in which high-fidelity pressure and dynamics measurements, combined with high-speed telemetry, were used to address complex geotechnical challenges such as low overburden, shale reactivity, and karstified reservoirs.

Introduction

Across global operations with multiple operators, several modern and very simple rigs have been equipped with surface interfaces and a high-speed wired network. Key components in the system include the wired bottomhole assembly, including LWD and an interface sub. This allows streaming of formation evaluation data at approximately memory quality, depending on tool firmware.

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