Using Artificial Lifts to Optimize Your Production

Using Artificial Lifts to Optimize Your Production
When it comes to artificial lift pump operations, operators have two priorities. One,
they want to increase their production. Two, they want to bring down the costs of
doing so. In order to achieve both, there is a need to implement proper planning as
a way of avoiding poor performance.
Dealing with mature fields will often be met with challenges related to field
productivity, and the artificial lift is a method that can be implemented to establish
full recovery for fields or wells. Because there are many types of artificial lift
systems, it is important to choose the best method for the job.
The different types of artificial lift systems can be separated into two categories:
pump-assisted process and gas-assisted process. Positive displacement pumps (or
PDPs) under the pump-assisted process include carbon fiber rod pumps,
progressive cavity pumps and others have fixed quantities of fluids in a cavity and
forced to move in a designed direction. Meanwhile, electrical submersible pumps
or ESPs allow for unfixed quantities of fluids for displacement. With gas lifts, the
injected gas lessens the density of reservoir fluid and thus decreases hydrostatic
pressure, letting the produced fluid flow right out to its surface.
With the differences, it is important to understand that optimizing production using
artificial lifts will tap on the following things:
- Accurate data collection
- Correct predictions of rates of production
- Downhole volumes
- TDHs, or total dynamic head determination
- Right selection of surface and downhole equipment
The different types of artificial lift methods will require considerations of
applications for depth as well as temperature. These two things are considered as
limiting factors for different PCP applications, though it is capable of lifting denser
fluids. What one needs to take note of is to fully understand how each of the
characteristics of artificial lifts will impact performance when on the job.

As one will see, there is interdependence between production optimization and cost
reduction for artificial lift systems. It is only through proper planning of a strategic
design that is fully grounded on the individual well characteristics with the
practical operational capabilities of a lift system. Choosing which is the most ideal
artificial lift system for wells will also involve factors such as bottom hole
pressure, amount and type of fluid that will be produced, wellbore geometry,
surface location (offshore or onshore), and the total depth of the well. Planning
carefully and utilizing all the information about all the known factors will
definitely yield better results than the usual habit of doing things the “usual way”
even when there are clear opportunities for innovation.