Managed Pressure Drilling - Drill the Un-Drillable - Society of ...

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Distinguished Lecturer Program
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Managed Pressure Drilling:
Drill the Un-Drillable
Lecturer’s Name: Hani Qutob
Reservoir Engineering & UBD/MPD Advisor
Senergy GB Limited– Dubai, UAE
Society of Petroleum Engineers
Distinguished Lecturer Program
www.spe.org/dl
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Presentation Outlines
• Reservoir Engineering & Advanced Drilling Technology
• Advanced Drilling Technology Variations
• What is Managed Pressure Drilling?
• Optimal Redefined Time/Cost line
• Variables that can be Manipulated during MPD
• What Are the Main MPD Benefits?
• Managed Pressure Drilling Variations.
• Health, Safety and Environment Issues
• Case Histories obtained worldwide.
• Conclusions
• Acknowledgement
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Advanced Drilling Technology ® (ADT ® )
& Reservoir Benefits
How ADT ® can increase reserves and improve recovery
Minimizes Formation Damage - UBD.
Accesses Challenging Reservoirs - MPD.
Improves Reservoir Characterization - UBD
Identifies Missed Pay – UBD.
Increases Production & Enhances Recovery
- UBD / MPD
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How Managed Pressure Drilling – MPD Benefits the
Reservoir?
By: Accessing Challenging Reservoirs
The single biggest reserve contribution of MPD is found to be
access to reservoirs that could not be drilled conventionally.
In almost all cases, MPD is used in challenging or partially
depleted reservoirs, only after conventional wells prove
expensive, unsuccessful or un-drillable
Some reservoirs that could be difficult to access using
conventional drilling techniques are:
1. Low pressure & depleted reservoirs
2. Vuggy/fractured carbonates where OB circulation is
impossible
3. Reservoirs with a narrow margin between fracture
pressure and pore pressure - kicks/losses cycles
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Advanced Drilling Technology ® (ADT ® )
ADT ® is an adaptive drilling process which enables a more
precise control of wellbore pressures through the use of
engineered equipment & processes.
ADT ® Variations
Air Drilling
Improve Drilling Economics - Intent is to invite surface flow
Primarily non-liquid hydrocarbon formations
Underbalanced Drilling:
Maximize Reservoir Value - Intent is to invite surface flow
Managed Pressure Drilling:
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Optimize Drilling Process - Intent is not to invite surface flow

What is common in ADT Variations?
Personnel
and
Equipment
7

UBD , MPD & Conventional
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What is Managed Pressure Drilling?
A closed and
pressurizable
mud-return
system, a
Rotating Control
Head, and choke.
operations
provide precise
control of the
wellbore pressure
profile.
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Reactive vs Proactive MPD
Reactive
Effective on “standby”
basis as an enhanced
form of passive well
control to help manage
unexpected downhole
pressure.
Proactive
Used to mitigate drilling
hazards and reduce NPT
by changes to fluid,
casing and open-hole
programs
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We like prospects with big drilling windows…
Overburden
Fracture
Depth
Collapse
Pore
Pressure
EMW Must Stay Within Drilling Window For Drilling To Progress
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Remaining prospects not cooperating very well
Very narrow or relatively un-known margins
Difficult or impossible to drill conventionally
Overburden
Depth
When MPD is used?
• Kick-Loss Scenarios
• High mud bill
• Excessive casing string(s)
• Drilling NPT – Exceeding AFE
• Environmental issues
Collapse
• Failure to reach TD with large
enough hole for optimum well production
• Or…simply ….“not drillable”
Pore
Fracture
Pressure
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Small Drilling “Window”
Fluid Losses
Fluid Losses
Bottom Hole Circulating
Pressure
Fracture Pressure
Pore Pressure – Collapse Boundary
Influx – Tight Hole Influx – Tight Hole
Constant Bottom Hole Pressure
Time
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MPD VALUE - VISUALIZATION
Real Well – Case 1
Time (days)
5000000
5500000
6000000
Accum ultaed cost
6500000
7000000
7500000
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1112 13 1415 16 17 1819 20 2122 23 2425 26 2728 29 30 3132 33 3435 36
Stuck pipe
Fishing
10.3% of total cost
11.0% of total cost
Cost
Time - Depth
8000000
2600
Stuck pipe
Well flowing
8500000
2700
Losses
Circulating,
0 1
Cement
2 3 4squeeze
5 6 7 8 9 10 1112 13 1415 16 17 1819 20 2122 23 2425 26 2728 29 30 3132 33 3435 36 23%
Time (days)
2100
2200
2300
2400
2500
Measured Depth (m)
Well control,
10%
NPT distribution
Stuck pipe,
55%
POOH, 3%
RIH, 4%
Reaming, 5%

MPD VALUE - VISUALIZATION
Real Well – Case 2
Time (days)
900000
1400000
1900000
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48 50 52 54 56 58 60 62 64
Cost
2.3% Time - Depth
10.5%
1800
1900
2000
Accumulated cost
2400000
2900000
Losses
Cement squeeze
20.9% total cost
2100
2200
Measured Depth (m)
3400000
3900000
Gas kick, well control
Cement plug
Sidetrack
17.7% of total cost
Losses
Cement plug
Total losses
Gas flow
2300
2400
Time distribution (well)
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48 50 52 54 56 58 60 62 64
Time (days)
NPT, 45%
Effective time,
55%

Optimal Redefined Time/Cost line
0
100
200
300
Pore P. Frac. P.
Optimal time
Saving in Drilling Time
Conventional drilling (NPT)
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1100
1200
1300
1400
1500
1600
1700
1800
1900
Depth
$ vs NPT
MPD application is
focused on achieving
the well construction
“Optimal time and
Cost” as objective
$ vs NPT
Saving in Drilling Cost
Optimal Cost
Case
Conventional cost due to high NPT
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Conventional Drilling
Bottom hole circulating pressure is
manipulated by only two variables.
BHCP conventional = Hydrostatic Pressure
Affected by Density
+ ∆P friction
Affected by density
and flow rate
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Managed Pressure Drilling
.
BHCP MPD = Hydrostatic Pressure
Affected by density
+ ∆p friction
+ Choke
Affected by density
and flow rate
Manipulated
from surface
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Variables that can be
Manipulated
Variable
Mud density
Mud viscosity
Flow rate
Trapped Pressure
Friction Pressure
Equipment
Rotating Control Head
Choke Manifold
Mud pumps
Downhole pump
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In what cases can MPD add value?
Drill to the target
Drilling Exploratory, Appraisal or Challenging
Development wells
Drill conventionally “Un-drillable” tight Pore
/Collapse /Fracture pressure gradients
Drill “Un-drillable” vuggy/ fractured carbonates
where Over Balanced circulation is impossible
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What Are MPD Benefits?
Cost Saving
• Reduced number of loss/kick occurrences
• Reduced time spent dealing with well control events
• Earlier kick / losses detection
• Optimized number of casing strings
Improved Safety
• Trip safely
• Remove H 2 S hazard from rig floor
• Drill HPHT wells safely
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MPD – Added Drilling Performance Value
Geo-mechanical Issues
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MPD Variations – Visualization
Returns-flow-control (HSE)
Constant Bottom Hole
Pressure (CBHP)
MPD
Pressurized mud-cap drilling
Dual gradient MPD
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MPD Official Definition
An adaptive drilling process used to precisely control the annular pressure profile throughout
the wellbore. The objectives are to ascertain the downhole pressure environment limits and to
manage the annular hydraulic pressure profile accordingly. MPD is intended to avoid
continuous influx of formation fluids to the surface. Any influx incidental to the operation will
be safely contained using an appropriate process.
Drilling Connection Drilling – Change in required BHP
Drilling Connection Drilling – Change in required BHP
Equivalent Circulating Density (ppg)
Required BHP (Pore Pressure + Margin)
Circulating
Friction
Hydrostatic
Pressure
Reduction
in BHP
Hydrostatic
Pressure
Circulating
Friction
Hydrostatic
Pressure
New
Circulating
Friction
New
Hydrostatic
Pressure
Required BHP (Pore Pressure + Margin)
Surface
Backpressure
Circulating
Friction
Hydrostatic
Pressure
Modified
Surface
Backpressure
Hydrostatic
Pressure
Surface
Backpressure
Circulating
Friction
Hydrostatic
Pressure
New
Surface
Backpressure
Same
Circulating
Friction
Same
Hydrostatic
Pressure
Time / Depth
Conventional Drilling Practices
Time / Depth
Managed Pressure Drilling

Risk Management
With all MPD operations a detailed risk assessment
as well as a HAZID and HAZOP should be carried out
with the rig crew supervisors and the relevant service
providers and operator staff.
Understanding the sequence of events and when to
initiate MPD operations and discussing the rig up,
pressure testing and operational aspects of a job
together with all of the procedures will help to ensure
the maximum success for an MPD operation.

Health, Safety and Environment Issues
• HAZOPs and HAZIDs are both systematic
processes to identify hazards.
• “You cannot manage what you don’t know.”
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No Compromise on Rig safety – all rig safety
Equipment Remains unchanged
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Case History 1 – Middle East
Objectives
8 3/8” Section
Performance
Total days spent
on drilling the
section
To reach the target depth with minimum NPT
To avoid uncontrolled event by maintaining a
constant bottom hole pressure
Offset
Well
MPD
Well
on drilling the 65 40
Total days spent
on well control
events (NPT)
Total days spent
on tight
hole/reaming
7.6 1.1
2.8
days
19
hours
Saudi Arabia
(Onshore)
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Case History 2 – North Africa
Algeria – drilling through high fractured zone
Un-drillable Reservoir
Drilled
A total of 191 m were
drilled with a very small
drilling window.
Zero LTI’s or near misses
recorded on this well.
Avoided kick/loss cycles &
Improved ROP.

Case History 3: Offshore India
MPD Added Value
NPT reduced to 1 day
compared to 10 days
experienced in the three
previous wells drilled.
LOC & Fluid losses
minimized to 290 BBL
compared to 4000 BBL
on previous wells.
Avoided kick/loss cycles
& Improved ROP.

Case History 4 – South America
Petrobras Colombia Limited,
MPD Added Value
No Loss of Circulation
significant cost savings
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Case History 5 – Canada
Northeastern British Columbia,
MPD Added Value
Reduced AFE by approximately
19% (saving Can$ 2 Million).
Drilling efficiency was improved
by lowering the mud weight and
doubling the ROP .
Considered MPD techniques to
increase drilling effectiveness in
this field.
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MPD application in Vietnam
BIEN DONG POC HPHT Gas Condensate Development
BLOCK 05-2 & 05-3 Offshore -Vietnam
Why MPD on this project?
Narrow margin of PP/FG pressure
in both fields.
Early kick detection & control.
Better well control in HPHT wells.
Drill wells to target depth and
eliminate additional casing string.
Providing CBHP during static and
dynamic conditions which mitigates
stress caging (SC).
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Project Overview
Phase-1: total sixteen (16) wells:
6 wells in block 05-3 (Moc Tinh)
10 wells in block 05-2 (Hai Thach)
Contract status: singed for 4.5 years + potential
extension.
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Conclusions
The challenging hydraulics of the world’s remaining
prospects indicate MPD will evolve to become a
key enabling technology.
Managed Pressure Drilling technology is increasingly
being applied in reservoirs that are difficult to drill
conventionally (Un-drillable), deep water and High
Pressure, High Temperature (HPHT) wells to
access HC reserves, enhance operational safety
and efficiency.
All “first adopters” of MPD offshore plan future wells.
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Conclusions (cont’d)
Managed Pressure Drilling can reduce
well costs as a result of;
– Reduced number of casings = Smaller
casings = smaller rig
– Less consumables (mud and cement)
– Less materials and logistics cost
Additional Benefits of MPD:
– Faster drilling
– Reduced formation damage
– Improved productivity = improved recovery
– Reduced environmental impact
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Wrap-Up
Proper candidate screening is a deliberate process, and is a
critical step in the design of a successful ADT operation.
Detailed economic analysis is an important step to
determine the benefit that MPD could provide compared to
competing conventional drilling & completion technologies.
Poor screening and planning results in an over-enthusiastic
misapplication of the technology, and possibly failure.
Proper Project management, engineering and execution is a
key factor for a successful MPD operation.
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Speaker contact details
Hani Qutob
Reservoir Engineering
& UBD-MPD Advisor
Senergy GB Limited
Dir: +971 4 387 3022
BB: +971 5 0622 4513
M: +971 5 0657 7328
F: +971 2 667 0408
E: Hani.Qutob@senergyworld.com
W: www.senergyworld.com

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