SPE Aberdeen Young Professionals Programme

What Geomechanics can do for you : How not to lose your well

Phil McCurdy SPE

Derek Littlejohn SPE

Satrosphere
Aberdeen
21st March 2007
Agenda

• Brief review of basic rock mechanics principles (how and why)

• Field cases, does it work? (wellbore stability, sand failure
prediction)
• Sand management concept and example

• Q&A Session

Slide 2
Rock Mechanics : Why ?

• “Wellbore stability issues are estimated to cost the industry $billions

every year” – Harts E&P January 2004
• 70% of world oil and gas reserves are contained in sandstone
reservoirs where sand production is likely to become a problem at
some point during the life of the field." ….SPE
• “By 2010, 60% of BP’s producing assets will be from sand prone
reservoirs” IFDC Conference, 2006

Large cavings generated from Oligocene

shales drilled underbalanced

SPE 56758 Slide 3

Rock Mechanics : How ?

• Required input for a reliable failure model are

– What is the stress on the rock ?
– How strong is the rock ?
– Does the model match field experience ?
• i.e. stable hole while drilling / no sand when producing

σyy
y

σ2 εyy

σθmax εxx
x

Stress Strength and

orientation and mechanical
σ1 magnitude behaviour of rocks
σθmin
Borehole Stability Models

Slide 4
Rock Mechanics : Strength

• Mechanical core tests Jacket

– Unconfined compressive strength

– Triaxial tests Confining Confining
– Thick wall cylinder tests pressure pressure

• Core not continuous Triaxial Cell

Cantilever
– Log based strength
MST
– Hey presto - Continuous strength model

• But we have no core

– Especially a problem in shale/non reservoir sections
– Generic log correlations (sonic ,porosity)
– Tests on drill cuttings
– Analogues

Slide 5
Rock Mechanics : Stress

• Pore pressure (tests in sand, trends in shale)

• Overburden from density logs
• Minimum horizontal stress
– from LOT and or mini-frac
– Elastic model function of Sv. Po & Poisson's
• Maximum horizontal stress
– Difficult to obtain, analysis of breakout and fractures
• Stress regime
– Structural geology
– World stress map

σH
σh

Breakout
Slide 6
 Rock Mechanics : Failure model

• Relate stresses to rock ability to sustain it

• Mohr Coulomb model
– Failure line developed for multiple tests at different confinements
• Compared to drilling/producing stress at borehole
• Example is on edge of failure k
r roc
o nge
Str
What if we increase mud weight or elope
E nv
reduce drawdown ? lur e
Fa i

What if we decrease mud weight

or increase drawdown ?
τ Initial
Lower MW

What if rock is stronger ?

Higher MW

σ3 σ1 σ
Slide 7
Sand Failure
• Key Processes Failed zone
with shear
– stresses acting on the wellbore/perf cavity must exceed bands
the strength of the rock (increase in
permeability)
– fluid flow required to transport sand often referred
to as yield zone
• Shear failure
– shear stresses > shear strength Zone of initial
sand production
– drawdown, depletion
– rock fails and forms yield zone
– sand “arch” stabilises Zone of
potential sand
• Tensile failure production

– fluid pressure gradient at wall causes tensile failure and

cavity grows
– If forces sufficient grains released into production
system
– Cavity does not stabilise
• Implications
– rock may fail but sand may not be produced due to
arching (insufficient tensile force)
– rock will not fail due to fluid flow alone
– failed zone grows if drawdown/rates too high

Slide 8
Wellbore stability

• Key Processes
– Mud pressure replaces rock support
– Mud weight high enough to support hole, low enough to prevent fracture
– Also factor of time, mud cake efficiency, chemical compatibility
– Be especially careful when
• Drilling high angle well for the first time (laminated shale)
• Changes in casing schedule (i.e. dropping a casing)
• Drilling depleted reservoirs
• Changes to drilling mud type
• Drilling close to faults and salt diapirs

Drillbit Whorl

Mud loss in
brecciated vugs

Slide 9
Agenda

• Brief review of basic rock mechanics principles (how and why)

• Field cases, does it work? (wellbore stability, sand failure
prediction)
• Sand management concept and example

• Q&A Session

Slide 10
Field Cases

• Wellbore stability field cases

– Depleted field in Southern North
Sea
– HPHT in South East Asia
• Sand failure prediction field cases
– Sawan field Pakistan
– SNS Gas field
– Stag field Western Australia
• Sand management example
– South East Asia

Modern well design – B. Aadnoy

Slide 11
Wellbore stability : Southern North Sea

• Sand depleted to 3.2 ppg equivalent

• Sand strength from core data
• Shale strength calibrated to drilling
events (no collapse, some
mechanical sticking)
• Uncertainty in stress regime (3
cases)
– Range in shale 10 – 12.8 ppg
– Range in sand 8 – 9 ppg
• NO SAFE WEIGHT
(THEORETICALLY)
– Advised balanced risk of 9 ppg
– Well drilled with no problems
– Subsequently superior offset calibration showed
9ppg to be sufficient in shale

Slide 12
 Wellbore stability : East Asia
MW (ppg)
7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
0
cak2
Well 2
500
• Normal pressure sequence to ~ 1000 cak
Well3 3

6000 feet 1500

Pore pressure

• Some problems in shallow 2000

sigma v
2500
sequences in normal pressure 3000
sh

• Serious problems when drilling 3500 CAK-2

Well 2 casing

depths
4000
overpressured zone CAK
Well 33 casing
depths
4500

Depth (ft)
• Walking a tightrope between 5000
Cak2
Well 2 incidents

cak3 incidents
breakout, losses and kicks 5500 Well 3

6000

• Sand shale sequences 6500

• Geomechanical model was built 7000

7500
for the field 8000 X Breakout
8500
O Losses
9000

9500 Kick
10000
Slide 13
 Wellbore stability : East Asia
Pressure/stress

• In shallow sequences weaker rock needs Frac

(upper)
mudweight to be higher than pore pressure
• Breakout now better controlled in shallow
sequence Frac
• Overpressured zone still a problem (lower)
MW
• Even with optimising the casing seats the
mud weight required at the bottom of a hole
section will be approaching the formation
strength at the shoe.
Po
• Casing seat selection critical
• Requirement for HPHT drilling techniques Collapse
– Stress caging with mud additives
– Mud heating
– Expandable liners (successful in latest well)
– Drilling with casing

Slide 14
Depth
Sand failure prediction : Sawan (SPE 86535)

• Issues
– High rate Gas, avoid sand exclusion
(CHGPs) : plugging risk, ID restriction
– maintain sand control and minimise
formation damage (sensitive clays)
• Approach
– Build geomechanical model (calibrated with
sand influx) – heterogeneous rock
– Incorporate well performance model
– Provide real time prediction for selective
perforating based on received well logs
– Turn around 3 days with contingency gravel
pack equipment on stand-by

Slide 15
Sand failure prediction : Sawan (SPE 86535)

Sanding Evaluation Log

Well Inflow Performance Model

Couple sand failure and well performance

models to ensure increased layer
drawdowns less than critical Slide 16
Sand failure prediction : Sawan (SPE 86535)

• Results
• Selective perforation policy
– saved US$ 3MM to date in sand control costs
– 150% production gain compared with sand control base
case
– well rates in excess of 120 mmscf/d
– no sand production
• All CHGPs have now failed (plugged)

Slide 17
Sand failure prediction : SNS (SPE 86535)

• Wells rate-constrained (MSFR)

– sand produced on clean up
• Sand producing intervals are thin and
few (< 3 ft)
• Self-stabilisation likely (dry gas)
• Massive sand production unlikely
• Sand production manageable
• improved bean up procedures
• well conditioning to stabilise sand
production
• Increased sand-free drawdown and
rates
Slide 18
Sand failure prediction : Stag field

• Stag Oil Field, Offshore Australia (SPE 72117)

• Weak formation (UCS from 100 to 800 psi)
• Wells completed without sand control
– Pre-perforated, uncemented liners in horizontal wells
• Wells optimised to handle limited sand that was produced
– ESPs redesigned to handle sand 11H 17H

– Surface separates Packer

• Oct 2000:
– water breakthrough at producer Total cement volume =
volume between packers
plus short circuit

– massive sand production (up to 7000 pptb)

– sand rate drops off after a few days
– tracer takes 2hrs to travel from injector (17H) to producer (11H)
• Water bypasses reservoir!
– Lose recovery!!

Slide 19
Sand failure prediction : Stag field

• Injection above frac pressure

– Creates preferential flow path
– High permeability

• Water reaches producer

• Triggers sand production
• Sand removed
– 190 bbls – 100,000 lbs

• Wormhole created
– 2100 ft long
– 6” to 8” diameter
– Would remain open at any pressure
above Pres

Slide 20
Agenda

• Brief review of basic rock mechanics principles (how and why)

• Field cases, does it work? (wellbore stability, sand failure
prediction)
• Sand management concept and example

• Q&A Session

Slide 21
Sand Management concept

Sand Prediction Model

• Geomechanical model
• Sand prediction model Yes “Standard”
– life of field conditions Is well likely to be sand
free? Completion

No

• Sand Management Can sand be managed

Yes

– independent evaluation at surface?

– alternatives to sand control
– sand control completion risks No
Passive
Sand Control

Yes
Is passive exclusion
viable? Active Sand
Exclusion

No
Slide 22
 Sand management concept

• Sand management is:

– economic management of sand production
– understanding conditions that cause sanding
– limiting sand production to a tolerable level while maximising productivity

• Sand management is NOT sand exclusion

– sand exclusion is complex - selection, installation, operation
– sand exclusion is costly - failure, lost (choked) production

Acoustic Sand Choke Erosion Bean up Sand content of

Offshore facility vessels
Monitors Monitoring Procedures

Integrated
Offshore Sand Corrosion
Flow line erosion
and Management Coupons
Office

W ell intervention Influence of reservoir

Office Sanding Model management on sand
planning and
interpretation strength

Slide 23
Sand management SE Asia Gasfield

• HPHT Reservoir in SE Asia

• 24 reservoirs in 13 sequences
• 31 wells – 3 platforms (Phase 1)
• 41 wells (Phase 2)
• Cased and perforated, mostly deviated
• Shallow reservoirs weak
– Strength reduced by 4x on contact with water
• No sand control installed
– Limited sand production at current production rates
– Acoustic detectors installed but need calibrated
– 60 kg total/week (~10*overestimate)
• Sanding model run for life of field

Slide 24
Sand management SE Asia Gasfield

Vertical Well P10 TWC

Well CK-A1: 4117 - 4147 ft Sequence I-25

• Geomechanical model
P10 TWC (2003 psi) : BF = 2.55

2500

– UCS strength from 600 psi to 2000 psi

– Normally pressured – vertical stress is
2000

0 deg

maximum
10 deg
20 deg
1500
30 deg

BHFP (psi)
40 deg

• Sand Failure Model

50 deg
60 deg
70 deg
1000
80 deg

– Full 3D capability
90 deg
BHFP = Pres

– Run for all 171 perforated intervals

500

– Run for life of field conditions 0

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000
Pres (psi)

• Outcomes 57 ° Well P10 TWC

Well CK-B2: 6880 - 6980 ft Sequence II-30
P10 TWC (2003 psi) : BF = 2.55

– Perforations close to horizontal will fail and will 3000

fail earlier 2500

– Perforations close to casing TDC will be stable 2000

– The closer to vertical the better

0 deg
10 deg
20 deg
1500 30 deg

BHFP (psi)
40 deg
50 deg
60 deg
1000 70 deg
80 deg
90 deg
BHFP = Pres
500

0
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000

-500
Pres (psi)

Slide 25
Sand Management Strategy

• Existing C&P Wells

– Remedial/retrospective sand control options limited
– Extreme water sensitivity rules out frac packs
– High perforation exit velocities exceed screen ratings
– Extremely corrosive environment
– completions must perform in a commingled, multizone environment.

• New Wells
– Opportunity to install sand control upfront (OBM GPs, ESS)
– Oriented perforation (as close to vertical as possible in deviated wells)

• Sand Management
– Live with it!
– Sand transport and erosion modelling
– Well conditioning and bean up control
– Integrated sand management task force to co-ordinate disparate disciplines

Slide 26
SUMMARY SLIDE

• Geomechanics can help save time and cost

• It is important to reality check predictions with field data to
understand the uncertainties, risks and limitations
• Geomechanics works best as part of an integrated approach
– Drilling engineers, well performance, mud suppliers
– Geology, petrophysics and production technology
– Reservoir engineers
• It can help prevent you losing your well

• Geomechanics can even be interesting !

– So I hope I haven’t put you off

Slide 27
THANKS & QUESTIONS

• THANKS TO SPE YP FOR ORGANISING

• THANK YOU FOR LISTENING
• QUESTIONS ??

Slide 28