Feb 14, 2005

Chapter 2 The Application of Complex Well Architecture to Common Geological Settings

This chapter deals with the very important combination of complex well architecture, which is the theme of this book, and real eolo ical settin s! "n the early history of the petroleum industry, when only vertical wells were possible, while eolo y was important there was no need for detailed description of eolo ical flow units! "n the hit#and#miss psycholo y of that era, the industry was often content to have one commercially successful well in ten tries! $ne of the motivators for better eolo ical description was the introduction of hori%ontal wells in the early 1&'0s! The subse(uent evolution of multilateral wells brou ht this point to a head! )learly, the catalyst for this new way of matchin well architecture with eolo ic settin s has been the profound evolution of seismic measurements and their interpretation! "t is obvious that well architecture*vertical, vertical with fractures, sin le hori%ontal wells or complex confi urations such as multilateral, mutlibranch, or multilevel*must be fitted to the eolo ic settin , the shape of the intended draina e volume and many other formation characteristics, includin stress and permeability anisotropy! )onsiderations such as these affect practically all aspects of the life of the well, includin the productivity index and water and as mana ement +in the case of an oil well,! 2-1 Geometry of the Well Drainage Volume -eservoir and fluid flow properties includin stress and permeability anisotropy, hetero eneity, mobility, layerin , natural fractures, reservoir compartmentali%ation, and the presence or absence of overlyin as or underlyin water have important implications for well location, path eometry, productivity, reserves, and completion strate ies! The attached chart summari%es production optimi%ation strate ies for a series of ten fre(uently#encountered well draina e volume characteri%ations! The chart addresses five potential sin le well paths. a conventional vertical well, a hydraulically fractured vertical well, a slanted well, a hori%ontal well, and a hydraulically fractured hori%ontal well! For any one of the draina e volume characteri%ations, one or more of the well path options is shown in a three dimensional drawin ! To find a drawin of a selected well path in a particular draina e volume settin , look for the correspondin column and row! 2-2 Thick an !omogeneous " #o Gascap or A$uifer /t the top of the chart are thick homo eneous formations! /ny of the sin le#well path options may apply here! 0obility extremes may favor hydraulic fracturin , while moderate mobility permits the conventional and less expensive vertical well completions! / slanted well may be more cost effective than hydraulic fracturin or a hori%ontal well

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Feb 14, 2005 provided the vertical to hori%ontal permeability ratio is not too small! 1ydraulic fractures alon a hori%ontal well can make up for productivity reduction due to low vertical permeability in a thick reservoir! 2hile simple calculations can show that a formation which is, e! !, 150 ft thick or more, would not be a particularly ood candidate for a sin le hori%ontal well if the vertical#to#hori%ontal permeability ratio is 0!1 or less, se mentin the formation with multi-le%el or &stacke ' hori%ontal wells would be the indicated architecture! For example, a formation in )alifornia is 500#ft thick with a vertical to hori%ontal anisotropy ratio of 0!0'! and kH/ 3 1 md4cp and the productivity index from a sin le 5000#ft well would be 0!'4 6T74d4psi! "f the formation is drilled with a well from which four e(ually# spaced#vertically branches are drilled, the cumulative 8" would be 2!5 6T74d4psi, three times the sin le#branch confi uration! 2-( Thick an !omogeneous " With Gascap or A$uifer Thick reservoirs with overlyin as or underlyin water pose special production problems! "n vertical wells, a strate y to delay bottom water breakthrou h is to perforate near the top of the productive interval! 1owever, the pressure radient due to radial flow toward the well is sufficient to draw the water upwards in the shape of a cone! $nce the water reaches the deepest perforations, water may be preferentially produced because water mobility may be reater than oil mobility for low ravity crudes +due to the hi her oil viscosity,, and4or there may be considerable ener y to support water production due to a stron bottom water drive! $nce water breakthrou h occurs, there may be little further rise of the cone and additional oil production will be at increasin watercut and will be mar inal! $ne strate y to et some additional oil is to plu back the well above the top of the cone and re#perforate! /nother is to try to in9ect el radially below the perforations! 2ater breakthrou h is delayed or avoided with this strate y, and the shape of the cone is widened in any case so that a reater volume of oil is displaced toward the perforations! / hori%ontal well drilled near the top of the oil %one above bottom water will produce a pressure radient normal to the well, and the bottom water will rise in the shape of a crest instead of a cone! The crest#shaped water advance displaces oil in its path, leadin to reater oil recovery than the vertical well by virtue of the flow eometry! "t can be shown that the relationship between crest recovery and spacin of parallel hori%ontal wells is a simple function of the well standoff from the oil#water contact, the formation thickness, and the vertical to hori%ontal permeability anisotropy! For hori%ontal wells located at the top of the oil %one and the unit half#spacin between hori%ontal wells iven by
xe ,opt = h k H 4 kV

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the maximum water#free oil recovery +assumin piston#like displacement in the crest, is 4: 3 0!525:! The optimal interwell spacin may be decreased si nificantly if the wells can be drilled from a common main trunk! This eometry would favor multi-)ranche well architecture, i!e!, branches drilled at the same level from a common mother bore! "nterestin ly, the same conditions that penali%e a hori%ontal well in a reservoir without overlyin as or underlyin water +thick %one, low vertical permeability, favor the hori%ontal well when overlyin as or underlyin water are present! /lso, this

Feb 14, 2005 illustrates a case where well spacin is desi ned to be close enou h to cause interwell interference! The interwell or interlateral interference is beneficial in this case because it both accelerates production and enhances recovery! 2-* +ayere reser%oirs ;ayered reservoirs offer an opportunity to address the importance of conformance control! The conventional vertical well commin les production from multiple layers! 8roductivity and stora e capacity contrasts can result in differential depletion of layers that are not in hydraulic communication vertically away from the well! "n this case, whenever the production rate is reduced or the well is shut in, cross#flow will occur in the wellbore as hi her pressure layers rechar e the depleted %ones! /nother risk of commin led production is that downdip water or updip as will advance to the well resultin in early breakthrou h of unwanted fluids in the most productive layer or layers! "n this case the oil in the lower productivity layers is bypassed! 1ori%ontal well reentry drillin offers a modern solution by tar etin the bypassed oil with a hori%ontal well! / sin le hori%ontal well is not an option for the layered reservoir because it would only produce one layer, but stacke laterals are a hi hly effective strate y! "n the latter case, the len th of each lateral can be rou hly inversely proportional to its layer flow capacity! / slanted well offers a less expensive strate y for boostin productivity in a layered reservoir! 7y desi nin the tra9ectory with more drilled len th in less productive layers, some conformance control can be achieved! 1owever, if early water breakthrou h occurs in the hi her productivity layer, it is enerally much easier to shut off production in one of the stacked laterals than in a mid#len th portion of a slanted well! 2-, +aminate reser%oirs ;aminated reservoirs are distin uished from layered reservoirs, in which formation layers are thick enou h to be tar eted by a hori%ontal well! "f not, the reservoir is classed as laminated! "n eneral, laminated reservoirs will have poor vertical permeability! / hori%ontal well is not an option in this case because the productivity would be severely penali%ed by the low vertical permeability, and in a thick formation, a hori%ontal well may not even produce the entire formation thickness! / vertical well, barefoot, or perforated and4or ravel#packed, can provide excellent productivity in moderate mobility formations! / slanted well can produce a mar inal increase in productivity over a vertical well! "n very hi h#mobility laminated reservoirs +like turbidites,, a frac#pack may provide sand control and4or the means to bypass near#wellbore dama e! 1owever, in a low mobility reservoir, hydraulically fracturin the well is preferred over any of the other options because this provides an effective planar sink, thus reatly increasin the well productivity! For thin and laminated reservoirs, hydraulic fractures in a hori%ontal well may be the optimal choice because the lon er well provides reater reach, thus increasin the draina e volume of the well, while the hydraulic fractures enable hori%ontal flow to the well throu h the entire formation thickness! 1ydraulic fractures in a hori%ontal well can either be planned as lon itudinal, by drillin the well in the direction of maximum hori%ontal stress, or as transverse, by drillin the well in the direction of minimum stress!

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Feb 14, 2005 /n interestin confi uration would be multi-%ertical )ranches, emanatin from a sin le hori%ontal mother bore, with the vertical branches penetratin the reservoir and hydraulically fractured individually! 6uch confi uration may be better than the multiple fractures in a hori%ontal well which, enerally, must be cemented and perforated with carefully placed and short perforated intervals to prevent tortuosity! 2-- #aturally fracture reser%oirs 6in le hori%ontal wells offer particular advanta es in naturally fractured reservoirs when they are drilled normal to the fracture planes! ;ocatin natural fractures and determinin their orientation is crucial to ettin the best well desi n in these formations! /lthou h natural fractures usually are sub#vertical +nearly vertical,, shallower reservoirs and over#pressured %ones may have sub#hori%ontal +nearly hori%ontal, fractures open to flow! <ertical and slanted wells are a reasonable choice in this case! "n9ection of proppant into hori%ontal fractures in over#pressured %ones will keep them open after production lowers the pore pressure! $therwise, the wei ht of the overburden would tend to close the hori%ontal natural fractures! ;ikewise, hi h pressure in9ection can reopen natural fractures in depleted %ones or when the natural fractures have been plu ed durin drillin ! =atural fractures can be a blessin in production but also a curse because in case they are vertical they can cause rapid water or as breakthrou h into the well! To avoid such problems many naturally fractured reservoirs should be run at as low pressure drawdown as economically possible! $ne mechanism is the drill opposin ual lateral wells a very common procedure in area such as the /ustin )halk in Texas! $pposin lateral confi urations are actually almost always indicated! The production from two laterals of a iven len th, as lon as their heels are apart by at least their len ths would invariably be from 50 to :0> hi her than the production from a sin le hori%ontal of e(ual total drilled len th as the two laterals! The reason for this is simply the different draina es that the two confi urations would create! 2-. #aturally fracture reser%oirs un er /aterfloo ing There is another problem with naturally fractured formations and this happens in waterfloodin ! "n a typically tectonically#stressed formation natural fracture orientation will be very well defined! 8roducers ali ned with in9ectors lon itudinally to the fracture a%imuth will experience fast water breakthrou h! /n ideal confi uration would be to create lines of vertical in9ectors parallel to the fracture a%imuth! This would force the water front to move in a %i #%a pattern towards the producers! The latter can consist of multilateral /ells, such as the fish-)one confi uration, drilled from a hori%ontal mother bore! The producers can be drilled normal to the natural fracture paths! This confi uration can take advanta e of natural fracture eometry? it can retard the water breakthrou h and, simultaneously, facilitate production by takin advanta e of the areal permeability anisotropy, drillin the producers normal to the maximum permeability! 2-0 Structurally compartmentali1e reser%oirs

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Feb 14, 2005

6tructural compartmentali%ation results from faults which may or may not be visible in seismic data interpretations! @ven when faults are clearly indicated in the seismic data, only dynamic data derived from formation or well tests or lon er term production history matchin can establish whether the faults are sealin or conductive! 6trati raphic compartmentali%ation is a result of depositional processes! Facies with considerable contrasts in flow characteristics may serve as buffers or flow conduits that act a first order controls on well productivity and ultimate hydrocarbon recovery! 7oth structural and strati raphic hetero eneities may be complicated by dia enetic processes occurrin at a later time! 1ori%ontal wells can tar et one or more reservoir compartments, and guided multi)ranche or multi-lateral /ells enable both the drainin of individual compartments and also shut off of a branch that produces unwanted as or water! "n ti ht reservoirs with considerable faultin , the faults may be associated with natural fractures that can be tar eted with hori%ontal wells, or may provide reliable information on the maximum stress direction that is essential to plannin hydraulic fractures in vertical or hori%ontal wells! 6trati raphic limits may account for additional reservoir compartmentali%ation, both vertically and areally! "n some cases the reservoir sands may be too thin to be individually identified in a seismic data cross section, but they may have sufficient areal extent to be visible in seismic attribute maps for a iven structural hori%on! "n that case, hori%ontal wells may be an ideal strate y for producin thin formations and for reachin multiple sands! 2-2 Channels an elongate or )rai e san s /lthou h the drawin s in the chart show fluvial reservoir eolo y, elon ated reservoirs can also appear in heavily faulted formations! "n either case, there are apparent drillin strate ies, dependin on the ob9ective for the well! For example, the well direction can be planned to stay in an elon ated reservoir body, or to encounter as many as possible reservoir bodies! The latter case implies drillin in the direction normal to the elon ation, which, for a fluvial reservoir means drillin normal to the downhill direction at the time of deposition! /nother approach may be a multi-)ranche well desi ned to tar et channels identified with borehole seismic measurements in the hori%ontal trunk well! 7ecause the permeability is usually lar er in the direction of a channel, a lon sin le hori%ontal well that traces a channel may not be the ideal confi uration, even if the drillin of such well would be a considerable feat for the eolo ists and drillers on location! / more appropriate confi uration would be the drillin of a hori%ontal mother bore outside of the channel and then the drillin of branched wells, in a fish)one confi uration normal to the channel orientation! The drillin of e! !, a 5000 ft# hori%ontal well in an areally anisotropic channel + kx/ky = 5 and kH = 11 md, would result in 8" e(ual to 5 6T74d4psi! 1owever the drillin of a sin le transverse well of 9ust A50 ft would provide a 8" of 2!5 6T74d4psi! 8ractically two very short branches would e(ual the performance of the lon hori%ontal well drilled alon the channel! Four branches drilled from the 5000 ft well, normal to the channel path would almost double the sin le#well 8"!

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Feb 14, 2005

2-13 Attic compartments "n this case, steeply dippin beds may be in contact with an up#dip as cap and4or a down#dip a(uifer! $ne strate y is to drill a hori%ontal well that passes throu h several of the beds and stays sufficiently below up#dip as and4or above down#dip water! /lthou h this would seem to be an efficient approach, it has the si nificant disadvanta e that flow is commin led amon the layers, and when as or water breakthrou h occurs, this will interfere with production from other layers! The better strate y may be to drill multiple hori1ontal /ells, each on strike and stayin in a iven bed! The advanta e to this strate y is that each of the wells is optimal in its standoff from as#oil or oil#water contacts, thus delayin multiphase production as lon as possible, and in its productive len th within the formation, thus maximi%in productivity! 2-11 !ea%y cru e formations There are iant accumulations of heavy crude oils in many places but the best known are the $rinoco 7elt in <ene%uela and the western provinces of )anada, /lberta and 6askatchewan! @ach of these two locations may have oil#in#place of upwards of one trillion barrels! $f course, such resources are far from been labeled BreservesC because of the extraordinarily low#mobility of the fluid! There are two main applications as of late in such reservoirs! For cold production, operators have constructed complex wells of considerable drilled len th, e! !, 40,000 ft of len th, distributed amon : to 10 branches, sometimes secondary branches drilled from primary branches drilled from a vertical or a hori%ontal mother bore! The purpose of such well architecture is to provide enou h surface area to overcome the low mobility of the fluid! 2ithout such multi#branched architecture the exploitation of these reservoirs would be economically unattractive! 7ecause of the very small compressibility of these fluids, well production decline is very rapid because the reservoir pressure depletes precipitously! )ontinuous drillin of such lar e wells is a feature of the exploitation strate y! For thermal recovery, especially in thick structures such as <ene%uela or )alifornia, %ertically stacke hori%ontal wells are often indicated employin a techni(ue known as steam#assisted ravity draina e +6/DE,! "n such a confi uration, steam may be in9ected at the top branch and the bottom branch+es, may be used for production! /t times the same vertical trunk is use for both in9ection +throu h a tubin , and production +throu h the annulus!, 2-12 4o ern seismic metho s Few technolo ies in the history of the petroleum industry can match the importance of seismic measurements and the impact they have had on exploration and, today, production +Dreenlee et al!, 1&&4,! The modern seismic reflection method was developed in the early 20th )entury to meet the needs of eoscientists and en ineers to describe

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Feb 14, 2005 reservoir eometry! The seismic reflection method has been widely used to map subsurface structure and trap eometry and is commonly used in exploration and reservoir appraisal! The method utili%es a controlled impulsive or explosive ener y source, to send acoustic shock waves throu h the upper layers of the earth, which are reflected back to the surface at acoustic discontinuities such as layerin in the earth, faults, and fractures +Fi ure1,! 6urveys may be recorded as two dimensional traverses or used to ima e the subsurface eolo y in three dimensions +5E,! The proportion of ener y reflected, or reflection coefficient, is a measure of the contrast in the acoustic impedance *the product of density and seismic velocity*of each layer +Eobrin, 1&A:,! This can be expressed by a simple e(uation where the reflection coefficient - is defined as.

- 3 +2v2 F 1v1, 4 +2v2 G 1v1,

+2#1,

where and v are density and seismic velocity respectively, and the subscript indicates the layer! The reflection coefficient at the discontinuity is, therefore, a function of the rock properties on either side of the discontinuity, such as litholo y, porosity, fluid content, and pressure! The reflected ener y is received at the surface and the information recorded to disk for subse(uent data analysis! @lectroma netic receivers are used onshore while pie%oelectric receivers are deployed offshore! The explosive nature of early sources resulted in hori%ontally transmitted ener y, also known as round roll! 6patially distributed receiver roups*arrays*were summed to attenuate this shot# enerated noise, and an offset was introduced between the source and receivers! "nitially, surveys recorded 9ust sin le traces, called sin le fold! To attenuate ener y trapped between subsurface layers, measurements were made of the same subsurface location at different surface offsets? these multifold measurements were then summed or stacked to reduce the multiple reflections! 2ith the onset of marine seismic recordin , hydrophones were towed in cables or streamers at depths of A#& m below the surface! 2hile this reduced source# enerated and environmental noise such as waves, it also decreased the resolution of the seismic record! 6eismic measurements have evolved considerably since their first commercial application in the early 1&'0s! The number and len th of streamers have increased, and remotely operated devices can now lay eophones or hydrophones on the seabed! The development of seismic technolo y in the 20th )entury has paralleled the di ital revolution in computin and information technolo y, with ever#increasin volumes of di ital data bein recorded and analy%ed, resultin in improved seismic ima es and a better understandin of the subsurface for plannin complex well architecture! 2-1( 4ulticomponent seismic recor ing ;and seismic recordin and marine seismic recordin , typically record only a sin le component of the ener y wavefield, the pressure or 8#wave! The development of marine

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Feb 14, 2005 multicomponent seismic recordin in the mid 1&&0s enabled recordin of the full waveform for both pressure and shear components +7arkved, $! et al, 2004,! /t each discontinuity in the subsurface, some of the compressional ener y +8#waves, is converted to shear waves +6#waves, at the reflection interface +Fi ure 2,! )ompressional waves have particle motion alon the direction of propa ation whereas shear waves have particle motion perpendicular to the direction of propa ation! 8# wave and 6#wave velocities, <p and <s, are expressed as. <p 3 +H G 445 I, 4 J <s 3 I 4 J where is the bulk modulus, is ri idity, and is density! +2#2, +2#5,

0ulticomponent seismic surveys measure 88#waves +8#wave both up and down,, and 86#waves +8#wave down and 6#wave up,! 88#waves respond to the fluid content of the rock, while 86 waves respond only to the litholo y and pressure! 6ince shear waves do not propa ate throu h water +3 0,, sea bed eophones anchored to the sea floor provide the solution commonly known as four#component, or 4), results, consistin of eophones measurin three ortho onal components plus a hydrophone +)aldwell, 1&&&,! Today, recordin devices with 5#component eophones have the ability to record and process mode#converted 86#waves and enerate shear wave seismic sections! =atural as present even in small (uantities perturbs the 8 wave transmission obscurin the underlyin tar ets or makin them invisible! 6hear technolo y has been used successfully to ima e reservoirs shadowed by overlyin as pocket or as cloud! 88 and 86 waves are independent measures of the same subsurface volume! They can, if combined, be used to et better and more reliable rock property estimates! The amount of ener y that is converted to shear waves depends on the an le of incidence and the contrast in 8oissonKs ratio*an elastic constant that is a measure of the compressibility of a material perpendicular to an applied stress*Fbetween the two layers! 8oissonKs ratio is related to litholo y, porosity, pore pressure, and fluid content! <ariation in seismic reflection amplitude with chan e in offset distance between source and receiver can indicate differences between litholo y and fluid content in rocks above and below a reflector +0allick, 6!, 1&&', -utherford and 2illiams, 1&'&,! $ne principal benefit of multicomponent recordin is a direct measurement of shear waves, thus avoidin the need to use /<$ for fluid identification! 86#waves that travel throu h the rock matrix are affected by fractures! 7y recordin two hori%ontal eophones placed perpendicular to each other, a measure of the vertical fracture orientation and the density of the fractures may be derived from the relative chan e in seismic velocities and amplitude! The an ular dependence of seismic velocity due to fractures, known as anisotropy, is an active area of applied research! "ndications are that shear#wave splittin *shear waves polari%ed in vertical and hori%ontal directions travel with different speed*may allow determination of fracture orientation and this will

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Feb 14, 2005 have an impact on determinin reservoirs! complex well architectures, especially in carbonate

2-1* 5ro uction-$uality seismic results "nnovations and technolo ical developments have resulted in improved (uality of the resolution, reliability, and repeatability of 5E seismic measurements! )onse(uently, 5E seismic data are not only bein ac(uired to locate exploration and appraisal wells, but also are helpin to determine the eometry for complex well architectures associated with hori%ontal and multilateral wells used for reservoir production! Dreater seismic reliability has been achieved throu h increased samplin , solid streamers, and sin le#sensor recordin ! "nstead of usin arrays in the field to attenuate noise, closely spaced sin le sensors are individually recorded +;arsen, 2002,! This technolo ical development has been made possible lar ely due to si nificant developments in the volume and speed of si nal processin ! The resultin data contain both si nal and noise? and the noise wavefield is attenuated usin di ital filters with associated improvement in the reliability of the processed data! The ability to filter noise wavefields implies that marine streamer data recorded at shallower depths can have hi her#fre(uency with correspondin improvements in seismic resolution! 7ed thicknesses less than 10 m are often bein ima ed +Fi ure 5,! $nshore, sin le#sensor recordin similarly impacts seismic resolution! 6tatic corrections*a bulk time shift applied to a seismic trace*are typically applied in seismic processin to compensate for a lower seismic velocity near the surface of the @arth due weatherin , and to compensate for differences in topo raphy and differences in the elevations of sources and receivers! Finer spatial samplin results in improved static for near#surface variations with hi her fidelity recordin ! "n thin#layered reservoirs, improved seismic fidelity may be critically important for hori%ontal well placement! /ccurate positionin of streamers is important both for 5E seismic ima in and for time#lapse or 4E seismic applications! "nnovations in steerable streamers help maintain streamer separation and result in more consistent subsurface samplin , which enhances the effectiveness of multiple attenuation al orithms! Furthermore, the ability to steer streamers close to infrastructure means that hi h#(uality, cost#effective towed streamer data can be ac(uired in con ested oilfield areas without si nificant poor data (uality %ones beneath field obstructions! 7etter seismic resolution, reliability and repeatability have si nificantly improved the (uality of time#lapse seismic ima es! The fidelity of the measurements enables time#lapse surveys to detect smaller chan es in the seismic si nal due to reservoir depletion or in9ection, and for surveys to be ac(uired with increasin fre(uency! 2-1, 6eser%oir escription The plannin of complex well architecture re(uires detailed reservoir delineation, especially in hetero eneous reservoirs! 6eismic attributes are a way to decipher information about the nature of rock and the fluid contained in its pores +Taner and

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Feb 14, 2005 6heriff, 1&AA, 6Lnneland ; and 7arkved $, 1&&0,! This information is contained in the amplitude, fre(uency, phase, polarity and other properties that are part of each trace of the seismic si nal! For example, as#filled sand sections enerate low#impedance events relative to surroundin shales, so the seismic si nature of the field exhibits a hi h amplitude, or Mbri ht spot!M /mplitude and other attributes derived from the seismic wavelet may indicate faults or lar er fractures! Eecomposition of the seismic wavelet into its constituent parts may enable roups of attributes to be related to particular lithofacies! =ew methods of automated interpretation help eoscientists perform interpretation more (uantitatively and translate this (uantitative information efficiently to the reservoir model! "n this new approach, the interpreter uses powerful poststack ima e processin methods to condense lar e volumes of data to relatively simple patterns or enhance and reveal subtle key features data +6Lnneland et al, 2004,! These patterns and features defined as seismic facies are classified and can be easily visuali%ed in their true 5E nature! The seismic facies are then calibrated with well data! From the seismic volumes, 5E seismic classification synthesi%es all relevant information into a 5E eolo ical model +Fi ure 4,! This provides detailed 5E seismic facies, the automation offers fast turnaround and reproducible results and the 5E mappin of sedimentary bodies reveals new (uantitative eolo ical information! The classification cube can be translated to a reservoir model populated with reservoir properties! "n this way, the reservoir model conserves the eometrical primitives iven by seismic data! This is a key advanta e compared to two#dimensional facies maps4 rids that are difficult to inte rate into reservoir models! This process provides a means to evaluate and (uantify risk and uncertainty for plannin complex well architectures and efficient reservoir draina e! These seismic facies or eobodies, whether they are sedimentary, structural, dia enetic, or fluid related features, constitute an attempt to identify, isolate and extract eolo ical and rock physics parameters in one sin le coherent model! 6eismic facies are then correlated with well lo data! $nce the correlation is determined between the seismic attribute and the reservoir property, that correlation is interpolated throu hout the seismic volume! 6eismic acoustic impedance and <p4<6 from multicomponent seismic data are additional attributes used to constrain the property population! 6eismic data resolution is limited by the bandwidth of the seismic source and the absorption of the hi h#fre(uency ener y wavelet by the earth itself! 6eismic data may be inverted to ive the acoustic impedance of the rock layers on either side of the discontinuity! This inverted acoustic impedance data is layer#based and is linked to well parameters such as layer velocities! /coustic impedance may have hi her resolution and contain information about chan es in rock properties that are not detectable from seismic reflection amplitudes or derived attributes! 1owever, reservoirs in different eolo ic settin s can have similar acoustic impedance even thou h the litholo y, porosity, and fluid content are widely dissimilar? statistical techni(ues may be used to assi n probabilities or reservoir predictions +0uker9i,T! et al 1&&',!

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Feb 14, 2005 /mplitude variation with offset +/<$, analysis is another techni(ue by which eophysicists attempt to determine reservoir properties +Fi ure 5,! 6uccessful /<$ analysis re(uires special processin of seismic data, well calibration, and seismic forward modelin to determine rock properties with a known fluid content +0c1u o, 6! 2005,! / as#filled sandstone mi ht show increasin amplitude with offset, whereas a coal mi ht show decreasin amplitude with offset! 2-1- Time-lapse reser%oir monitoring 2hen 5E seismic surveys are repeated durin field production, chan es in seismic amplitude or acoustic impedance can be attributed to chan es in saturation, pressure, stress, or temperature in the reservoir*chan es due to production from or in9ection into the reservoir +Fi ure :,! The time#lapse or 4E seismic method was developed durin the 1&&0s!The techni(ue was slow to be adopted because of difficulties in repeatin surveys, especially in the offshore environment! The errors in repeatin surveys due to relative chan es in the seismic survey parameters and non#repeatable 4E noise have, in the past, impacted the (uality of time#lapse reservoir recordin ! 1owever, many of the problems are now bein surmounted throu h the development of new technolo ies specifically desi ned to improve repeatability and eliminate 4E noise!
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Time#lapse seismic technolo y has a role throu hout the reservoir life cycle +Fi ure A,! 2hen first ac(uired soon after commencin field production, time#lapse seismic methods can record as comin out of solution due to production#related chan es in reservoir pressure! This information can be used to identify compartmentali%ation within the reservoir and in the plannin and placement of infill production wells! Towards the end of the reservoir life cycle, repeat surveys can be used to identify chan es in saturation and pressure, thereby identifyin attic oil, bypassed pay, sealin faults, and strati raphic barriers or baffles +6onneland et al, 1&&A,! Time#lapse seismic methods identify chan es in the reservoir throu hout the field, and this information can be incorporated into the history match and dynamic reservoir model! Time#lapse seismic techni(ues can be used to map producer#in9ector connectivity, in water mana ement, and in improved# and enhanced#oil#recovery pro9ects! Time#lapse seismic surveys have also been used in monitorin the effectiveness of thermal#enhanced recovery pro rams such as steam# assisted ravity draina e! )han es in seismic amplitude over time only provide a (ualitative indication of chan e within a reservoir, from which it may be difficult to identify relative chan es in saturation and pressure! The chan e in the acoustic impedance within an individual reservoir layer may, however, ive further information and indicate the nature of the fluid or pressure chan e! /n increase in acoustic impedance is enerally associated with waterfloodin a reservoir +Fi ure ',! The /<$ analysis of time#lapse seismic datasets enables a (uantitative assessment of relative saturation and pressure chan e in the reservoir! -ock#physics studies can be used to model the chan e in seismic response with different types of fluid content, for time#lapse studies

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Feb 14, 2005 8ressure chan es due to in9ection will also have a 4E si nature, albeit a weak one! -ock parameters computed from acoustic impedance, shear impedance, and density after prestack inversion can help to differentiate water saturation and pressure chan es! The 4E inversion results are calibrated by fluid and pressure replacement modelin usin well#lo data! Time#lapse stress effects on seismic data may have a similar ma nitude as time#lapse effects caused by chan es in saturation and pore pressure! 8roduction#induced stress chan es occur not only in the reservoir interval itself, but are also manifested in the overburden! 7ecause stress fields caused by reservoir production are directionally dependent, the resultin chan es in the elastic properties yield an anisotropic seismic response! )han es in anisotropic seismic velocity observations from stress chan es in the reservoir and overburden due to reservoir depletion can also be observed by repeat multicomponent surveys! /lthou h this technolo y is only 9ust bein developed, it may have the potential to impact the architecture of complex wells in some eolo ic situations! 2-1. 7uture seismic e%elopments The permanent emplacement of recordin instruments for offshore fields represents 9ust one future development trend that can be identified in the industry today! 8ermanent emplacement of hydrophones and eophones in marine environments enables repeat surveys to be ac(uired without uncertainty in streamer positionin ! 6urveys can be ac(uired with increasin fre(uency, or on demand, and after the initial installation, timeF lapse measurements may be taken at relatively low additional cost! /ll measurements from permanently emplaced receivers can be multicomponent with the added advanta es of more reliable eomechanical and rock property predictions! The value of seismic as a drillin and development tool is now well accepted! Nnowin the reservoir at the well and extrapolatin in between and away from the wells usin the spatial resolution of three dimensional seismic can solve the problem of reservoir hetero eneity! 1owever, 6uccessful desi n and execution of complex well architecture re(uires inte ration of petrophysical, eolo ical, eophysical and en ineerin expertise!
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Fi ure )aptions
Fi ure 2#1 a, 6in le hori%ontal well in a thick and homo eneous formation, enerally not a ood confi uration b, multi#level hori%ontal laterals, preferred Fi ure 2#2 )losely#spaced parallel hori%ontal laterals, placed at the bottom, to retard and modify as crestin , or placed at the top to modify water crestin Fi ure 2#5 Duided stacked hori%ontal laterals drainin a layered formation with len ths ad9usted to reflect layer productivity Fi ure 2#4 0ultiple vertical branches emanatin from a hori%ontal mother bore drilled above a laminated formation! <ertical branches can be hydraulically fractured for both well stimulation and vertical communication in laminated reservoirs Fi ure 2#5 Eual lateral well architecture in a naturally fractured formation Fi ure 2#: 2ater in9ection4production scheme in naturally fractured reservoirs with the in9ectors formin a bank parallel to the fracture planes and producers drilled as a BfishboneC confi uration normal to the fracture planes Fi ure 2#A Duided multilateral wells in a compartmentali%ed reservoir Fi ure 2#' BFishboneC well architecture in a braided channel formation Fi ure 2#& @xtensive multi#branched well architecture for cold production of heavy crude reservoirs! +)ourtesy 8etro%uata, Fi ure 2#10 6team assisted ravity draina e +6/DE, with stacked producers in a heavy crude reservoir! Fi ure 2#11. The seismic reflection method! /coustic shock waves enerated by seismic sources travel throu h the earth! /t acoustic discontinuities some of the acoustic ener y is reflected back towards the surface where it is recorded at seismic receivers! Fi ure 2#12. 0ulticomponent seismic ac(uisition principles! -eceivers are placed on the sea#floor +ocean#bottom recordin ,! /t acoustic interfaces some of the downward travelin 8#wave ener y is converted to shear waves and reflected back to the surface where it is recorded in 4#component receivers +offshore, and 5#component receivers +onshore,! Fi ure 2#15. 1i h resolution sin le#sensor seismic data! 7ase of hi h amplitude events define oil4water contact of the reservoir! 7ed thickness of 5#: meters can be resolved +)ourtesy of 2esternDeco,!
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Fi ure 2#14. 2orkflow to define a detailed eolo ical4 structural model! The process includes automated hori%on and fault interpretation, and classification of seismic facies based on texture attributes! The seismic facies are then calibrated with well lo data, usin acoustic impedance and <p4 <s ratios to define a static reservoir model! /s new data is available throu h additional drillin and production, the reservoir model is refined! Fi ure 2#15. /<$ inversion. from seismic traces to reservoir properties! @stimates of 8# wave and 6#wave reflectivity are obtained from an le athers usin the /<$ method! 8 and 6 impedances are inverted for 8#impedance and 6#impedance! "mpedances are inverted to rock properties*<p4<s, compressibility O, ri idity I and density J! 1i h IJ values are indicative of potential porous sandstones, whilst low OJ values may indicate as %ones! Fi ure 2#1:. Time#lapse seismic principles! )han es in the fluid content, pressure, temperature and stress fields over time lead to chan es in seismic reflectivity! 2ater replacin oil is typically associated with a dimmin in reflection stren th, while a chan e in reflection polarity and increased ma nitude may be associated with as cap expansion or as in9ection! Fi ure 2#1A. Time#lapse seismic throu hout the reservoir life#cycle! Time#lapse or 4E seismic surveys are ac(uired at different sta es in the reservoir history! Fre(uent monitorin late in field life aids in dynamic modelin of the reservoir and may help identify bypassed pay Fi ure 2#1'. 0onitorin draina e patterns usin acoustic impedance differences! The structural confi uration of reservoir is shown on the left! The mapped difference in acoustic impedance between seismic surveys recorded in 2001 and 2005 is shown on the ri ht! "n this example an increase in acoustic impedance in red +outlined in yellow, may be e(uated with a chan e in the reservoir condition from oil saturated to water saturated! /reas of possible bypassed oil are indicated in blue dashed areas +)ourtesy of 6tatoil =orsk 1ydro, @=", 8etoro and 6hel,!

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6eferences
/ylor, 2!N!. BThe -ole of 5#E 6eismic in a 2orld#)lass Turnaround,C The ;eadin @d e, Eecember1&&', pp 1:A'#1:'1! 7arkved, $!, 7artman, 7!, )ompani, 7!, Daiser, P!, <an Eok, -!, Pohns, T!, Nristiansen, 8!, 8robert, T! and Thompson, 0!. MThe 0any Facets of 0ulticomponent 6eismic Eata,M $ilfield -eview 1:, no! 2 +6ummer 2004,, pp 42 #5:! )aldwell, P!. B0arine 0ulticomponent 6eismic#/c(uisition Techni(ues,C 8aper $T) 10&'1, presented at the $ffshore Technolo y )onference, 1ouston, Texas, Q6/, 0ay 5# :, 1&&& )hristie, 8!, =ichols, E!, R%bek, /!, )urtis, T!, ;arsen, ;!, 6trudley, /!, Eavis, -! and 6vendsen, 0!. B-aisin the 6tandards of 6eismic Eata Suality,C $ilfield -eview 15, no! 2 +6ummer 2001,, pp 1:#51! Eobrin, 0! 7. "ntroduction to Deophysical 8rospectin , =ew Tork, 0cDraw#1ill, 1&A: Dreenlee, 6! 0!, Daskins, D! 0! and Pohnson, 0! D!. B5#E 6eismic 7enefits from @xploration Throu h Eevelopment. /n @xxon 8erspective,C The ;eadin @d e, 15, no! A, Puly 1&&4, pp A50#A54! Peffers, 8! 7!, Puranek, T! /! and 8offenber er, 0! -!. B5#E versus 2#E Erillin -esults. "s There 6till a SuestionU,C presented at the 6@D :5rd /nnual "nternational 0eetin and @xposition, 2ashin ton, E), Q6/, 6eptember 2:#50, 1&&5 Nim, P!. B1ow )ould Tou 8ossibly 8redict the <alue of 5#E 6eismic 7efore Tou 6hoot "tU,C ,8aper 68@ 5:44:, 1&&&! ;arsen, ;. B=orth 6ea operators provide feedback on new marine seismic system,C 2orld $il, Puly 2002, pp 45#4: 0allick, 6!. B/<$ and elastic impedance,C The ;eadin @d e, $ctober 2001, pp10&4# 1104 0allick, 6!, ;auve, P!, /hmad ,-!, and 8atel,N!. B1ybrid 6eismic "nversion. a -econnaissance Tool,C :&th /nnual 0eetin , 6oc! @xpl! Deophysics, @xpanded /bstracts, 1&&& 0orice, 6!, -onen, 6!, )anter, 8!, 2elker, N! and )lark, E!. BThe "mpact of 8ositionin Eifferences on 4E -epeatability,C @xpanded /bstracts, 6@D "nternational @xposition and A0th /nnual 0eetin , )al ary, /lberta, )anada, /u ust :#11, 2000, pp 11:1#11:4! 0uker9i, T!, Porstyad, /!, 0avko, D!, and Dranli, P!-!. B/pplyin 6tatistical -ock 8hysics and 6eismic "nversions to 0ap ;ithofacies and 8ore Fluid 8robabilities in a
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Feb 14, 2005 =orth 6ea -eservoir,C :'th /nnual "nternational 0eetin , 6oc! @xpl! Deophysics, @xpanded /bstracts, 1&&', pp '&4#'&A! 0c1u o, 6, )ooke, /, 8ickerin 6!. BEescription of a 1i hly complex -eservoir Qsin 6in le 6ensor 6eismic /c(uisition,C $ffshore @urope, 2005 )onference abstract! =estvold, @! $!. BThe 5E 6eismic -evolution. )ost 7enefits and Their "mplications,C presented at the 6@D 6ummer -esearch 2orkshop on 5#E 6eismolo y. "nte rated )omprehension of ;ar e Eata <olumes, -ancho 0ira e, )alifornia, Q6/, /u ust 1#:, 1&&5! $ldenbur , E! 2!, 6cheuer, T! and ;evy, 6!. B-ecovery of the /coustic "mpedance from -eflection 6eismo ram, Deophysics, <ol 4', 1&'5, pp 151'#155A! $sdal, 7!, 2004! Qsin hi h (uality and repeatable S#0arine data in reservoir monitorin of the =orne field. ::th @/D@ )onference and @xhibition, A#10 Pune, 8aris, France! @xtended /bstract D045! -utherford, 6!-! and 2illiams, -!1!. B/mplitude#<ersus#$ffset in Das 6ands,C Deophysics, <ol! 54, 1&'&, pp :'0#:''! -eymond, 6!7!, 0athews, @! and 6issons, 7!. B"nte ratin 2ell 8roduction Eata and 5E 6eismic /<$ )lassification,C 8aper 68@ :':44, 2001! -eymond, 6!. B=ew 6eismic 0ethods and 8otential for the -e ion, /88@/ Pournal, 2000, 52:#540 6Lnneland, ;! and 7arkved, $!. BQse of 6eismic /ttributes in -eservoir )haracteri%ation,C =orth 6ea $il and Das -eservoirs*", ;ondon, @n land. Draham V Trotman, 1&&0, 125# 12'! 6onneland,;!, 7or os, 1!D, 6kovn T!, )arrillat, /! and -anden T!.C/utomated Deometry @xtraction from 5E 6eismic Eata by ;ateral 2aveform -eco nition,C @xpanded /bstracts, ::th )onference V @xhibition, 8aris, A#10 Pune 2004 6Lnneland, ;!, <eire, 1! 1!, 1ansen, P! $!, 1utton, D!, =ickel, 0!, -eymond, 7!, 6i ner, )! and T9Lstheim, 7!. B-eservoir )haracteri%ation Qsin 4) 6eismic and )alibrated 5E /<$,C presented at :0 th @uropean /ssociation of Deoscientists and @n ineers )onference and @xhibition, ;eip%i , Dermany, Pune '#12, 1&&'! 6Lnneland, ;!, <eire, 1!, -eymond, 7!, 6i ner, )!, 8edersen, ;!, -yan, 6! V 6ayers, )!. B6eismic -eservoir 0onitorin on Dullfaks,C The ;eadin @d e, 6ept! 1&&A, 124A#1252! 6vendsen, 0! ;arsen, ;!, Eavis, -!. BTrue 4#E 6eismic Qtili%in S#0arine,C 8aper $T) 151:5, presented at the $ffshore Technolo y )onference, 1ouston, Texas, /pril 50 F 0ay 5, 2001!

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Feb 14, 2005 Taner 0T and 6heriff -@. B/pplication of /mplitude, Fre(uency, and $ther /ttributes to 6trati raphic and 1ydrocarbon Eetermination,C in 8ayton )@ +ed,. 6eismic 6trati raphic* /pplications to 1ydrocarbon @xploration //8D 0emoir 2:, //8D, Tulsa, $klahoma, 1&AA, pp 501#52A! 2alls, P! E, Taner, 0! T!, Duidish, T!, Taylor, D!, Eumas, E! and Eer%hi, =!. B=orth 6ea -eservoir )haracteri%ation Qsin -ock 8hysics, 6eismic /ttributes and =eural =etworks? a )ase 1istory,C :&th /nnual "nternational 0eetin , 6oc! @xpl! Deophysics, @xpanded /bstracts, 1&&&!

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