Completions
This edition highlights three offshore technology papers that address a common industry theme: how targeted engineering solutions can reduce uncertainty, shorten operations, and make technically constrained offshore well activities more executable.
Three papers are highlighted as the primary contributions because of their broad industry relevance. They focus on improving formation particle-size characterization, expanding the application of openhole gravel packs in depleted and compartmentalized reservoirs, and advancing the understanding of capillary pressure in sand production.
This paper aims to establish a set of best practices for generating particle-size-distribution data from core samples.
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Sourcing water for large multifracture stimulations in west Texas is a well-known constraint on oil and gas activities in the area. A 6-month pilot operation demonstrated that produced-water reuse is technically feasible and can be a cost-effective solution.
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This paper summarizes the benefits of using a bipolymer crosslinking system in environments where water quality cannot be guaranteed. It also demonstrates the yielded cost savings per well that are achievable when reusing 100% produced or flowback water for hydraulic fracturing.
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Use of a complex-nanofluids (CNF) additive to hydraulic fracturing fluids has doubled even as activity has fallen because of potential production increases.
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Operators continue to look to prolific high-permeability, clastic reservoirs in basins around the world. The use of high-deviation and horizontal well trajectories in these fields improves productivity but increases the challenges of sand control.
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This study compares the performance of openhole-packer completion systems with that of cemented-liner completion systems in the northern Montney gas resource play.
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The engineering and operational planning to ensure that no uncontrolled hydrocarbon releases occur during the execution of subsea big-bore gas wells are described.
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Dubai Petroleum embarked on a new mission last year to drill and complete its first multistage, hydraulically fractured, and propped horizontal well from an offshore platform.
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Saudi Aramco has begun moving toward the production phase of its ambitious plan to develop its enormous hoard of unconventional gas resources.
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Could the development of consistent practices be a critical first step on our journey toward achieving improvements in completion quality? The list of practices is quite long. For sand-control applications, we could start with those activities that occur early in the design process.
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In organic shales, hydraulic fracturing is important for optimizing the production of horizontal wells. For a standalone lateral, the propped surface should be maximized to increase production. In the case of a pad, well spacing is an additional factor.