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Drilling Ahead30,000 ft, such as Chevron’s Tahiti project, createchallenging conditions for high-pressure, subseacompletion operations. Subsea completionstrings must provide effi cient hydraulics duringthe fracturing operations while ensuringmechanical and pressure integrity to highabsolute pressures during screenout.Underbalanced drilling has become more widelyused in recent years because it results in lessformation damage in the production zone andcan yield increased penetration rates. Safetyissues have been the primary deterrent inunderbalanced drilling, however techniquesand equipment have become available toaddress these problems. The safety aspectsof underbalanced drilling require that the tooljoints seal external pressure as well as internalpressure. One major operator specifi ed a sealingcapability of 5,000 psi external gas pressure in atool joint for 3½” pipe.The number of subsea installations around theworld is increasing signifi cantly as oil companiessearch for hydrocarbon reserves located indeeper and more diffi cult waters. There arecurrently over 2,000 subsea installations in placeglobally. This number is expected to at leastdouble during the next fi ve years. For optimisedproduction from subsea installations, it isnecessary to make intermittent interventions tomake repairs, replace equipment, exploit otherproducing intervals, and eventually plug andabandon these wells in accordance with variousoffshore regulatory requirements around theworld. Due to the expense involved in subseainterventions, and the resultant lost productionand revenues, offshore asset managers arelooking for alternatives that will maximise theirreturn on investment. In a number of subseawells it is a common practice to delay or forgointerventions, which results in less productionover the life of the fi eld. According to one source,typical platform wells recover approximately57% of the oil in-place compared to only 35%of reserves for subsea wells. The reason for thissignifi cant difference is the comparative easeand reduced expense involved in performinginterventions on platform wells.Purpose-built intervention riser pipe withTurboTorque ® -M connections provides analternative method for subsea intervention.The drill pipe intervention riser will provide thefollowing benefi ts:• Rugged and robust: the connection canwithstand multiple make-up and break-outcycles without experiencing galling or otherdamage. With proper handling procedures,well over 100 cycles can be achieved beforerepair or re-cut is required;• Pressure integrity is not affected by multiplemake-ups;• Use of conventional drill pipe handlingequipment accommodates relatively fast,pick-up, make-up, running and trippingspeeds; and,• Drill pipe-based intervention risers simplifylogistics and equipment since standard slips,elevators and other rig equipment can beutilised.The third generation TurboTorque ® andTurboTorque ® -M connections will enableoperators to meet current and future challengesby providing improved performance, safety andcost savings. ◆20 SPE NEWS January/February 2010www.spe.org
Drilling-the-Limit—Hybrid coil over top drivedrilling technologyDamir Horvat, Well Engineering Manager, Arrow Energy/Shell JVDrilling AheadDamir Hovat recently visited operators acrossCanada and the US to investigate some of thenewest drilling and completions technologies,including third-generation hybrid CT rigs.IntroductionCoiled tubing (CT) drilling has its roots inCanada. In 1997, Fleet Coil Technologies, adivision of Plains Energy Services, brought aprototype rig into Canada from the US. That rigdrilled over 200 wells during the first year ofoperations.By 2000, CT drilling was fully commercial forCanadian shallow hydrocarbon drilling. Sincethen, Canada has moved from drilling a coupleof hundred wells to drilling several thousands ofwells a year with the next generation hybrid coilover top drive (COTD) drilling technology.The first attemptsWith the fi rst generation CT rigs, handling ofbottom-hole assembly (BHA) was slow andawkward. Because of the critical time that canbe saved, effi cient switchover from top driveto coil is critical. This has lead to combiningthe two in next generation hybrid COTD drillingtechnology.Drilling in CT mode. Average ROP @ 202 m/hr. Location ~90 km northeast of Calgary. Drilling contractor,Nabors Canada; Operator, Apache Corporation.Realising the potentialThe new generation hybrid unit injector systemsare adapted to crossover and stab into the BHAusing a dimple connector attached to the CTstring. The real beauty is that multifunctional topdrive makes up the BHA and can also run casing,conventional drill pipe, or even completions.Third generation—Hybrid CT rigsThe latest hybrid COTD drilling units can nowdrill as effi ciently with variable frequency drivesystems, automated pipe handling systems, andas fast or faster, than most conventional rigs intop drive mode. New drilling control softwarealso adds value to the use of COTD units. Manybasins often feature multilayered formations,with abrasive stingers interbedded withmedium-to-soft formation properties. NewNabors Canada hybrid CT unit#92. From left: Owen Martin, Nabors Rig Superintendent, and Damir Horvat.Operator, Apache Corporationgeneration drilling software functions likeauto-drilling technology, automatically holdingback weight on the CT string before it runs intoproblems. Basically, it allows you to drill withoptimum weight-on-bit (WOB), but you’re nolonger injecting and buckling the CT string.www.spe.orgJanuary/February 2010 SPE NEWS 21
Page 1 and 2: SPEAustralia ◆ NZ ◆ PNGIssue 13
Page 3 and 4: We’d like tohave aPetro Physicalr
Page 5 and 6: EXPLORE THE LATESTE&P TECHNOLOGYDev
Page 7 and 8: © 2009 Swagelok CompanyIn addition
Page 10 and 11: 2009 Retrospective2009 Retrospectiv
Page 12 and 13: AOGAOGAOG previewThe 2010 Australas
Page 14 and 15: AOGSubsea Australasia ConferenceThe
Page 16 and 17: Young Professionalsworkplace is lik
Page 18 and 19: Subsea SpotlightThe Media JungleAdv
Page 20 and 21: Drilling Aheadvertical alignment. T
Page 24 and 25: Drilling AheadAnother hybrid CT uni
Page 26 and 27: Section NewsSection NewsSPE WA End
Page 28: Consulting ServicesMeasurable Impac

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