ITPO

By: DR.
ARKO PRAVA MUKHERJEE
1
© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee
BOOKS
An Introduction to the Petroleum Industry - Fagan, A
Petroleum Geoscience - Jon Gluyas
Geology & Geophysics in Oil Exploration – M. Sroor
Non-technical guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration,

Drilling and Production – Norman J. Hyne
Handbook of Petroleum Analysis (for Chemical Engg) –

J.G. Speight
A first course in Petroleum Technology – D. A.T.

Donobue and K.R. Lang
Geology of Petroleum – A. I. Leverson
Refer : UPES E-resource link
\\10.2.1.161\UPES -Library
© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 2

Introduction Production Storage Ref. & Distr.
Drilling V VI VII
IV
II
Surveys
Geology
I
III
Petroleum System
3
© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee
Introduction
What is Upstream sector ?

Also known as the ENP or Exploration aNd Production sector.
The Upstream sector involves

• Searching the Oil/Gas resources (offshore and onshore
blocks)
• Drilling of exploratory and production wells,
• Development of the Oil field
• Subsequently Production operations to recover and bring
the petroleum crude oil and/or gas to the surface
economically
Skills sets
Reservoir Engineers, Drilling Engineers, Production Engineers

Introduction
What is general stages in the Upstream sector ?
Access phase – Explor. – Appraisal – Dev. planning – Production – Decomm.
Decision making? Both in Mega – and Minor - Scale
Decision maker (Sr. Management)
Geophysicist Geologist
HSE 2 Petroleum Engineers
Finance Legal

?? + BD, PSCM
Introduction
Present Scenario: Global Oil & Gas Industry
High fluctuations of crude prices In last 3-4 months has been

observed.
The WTI crude is currently prices around $97/barrel
The Brent crude is currently prices around $117/barrel
The E&P activity has increased all over the world.
GRAPH

Present Scenario: Oil & Gas Industry in India
Crude oil consumption (2010) around 2.98 million barrels/day
Production is 752,000 barrels/day
India is importing around 75% of its oil needs
The exploitation activity for unconventional sources such as CBM has

geared up in India
The Indian government is planning to put up Shale Gas blocks on bid in

NELP rounds next year

Introduction
Source: BP Statistical
review of world energy
2010

Introduction
2010

FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Each activity is driven by a business need related to that particular phase. In

the later classes we will focus in more detail on individual elements of the
field life cycle
Fig: The field

life cycle and
typical
cumulative
cash flow.

FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Each activity is driven by a business need related to that particular phase. In

the later classes we will focus in more detail on individual elements of the
field life cycle
Fig: The field

life cycle and
a simplified
business
model.

Intro: Access Phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Step 1 : GAINING ACCESS PHASE
The first step an oil company will undertake in hydrocarbon exploration and
production is to decide what regions of the world are of interest. This will
involve evaluating the technical, political, economic, social and
environmental aspects of regions under consideration.
Technical aspects will include the potential size of hydrocarbons to be found

and produced in the region, which will involve scouting studies using publicly
available information or commissioning regional reviews, and a consideration
of the technical challenges facing exploration and production, for example in
very deep offshore waters.
Political and economic considerations include political regime and

Government stability, the potential for nationalisation of the oil and gas
industry, current embargoes, fiscal stability and levels of taxation, onstraints
on repatriation of profits, personnel security, local costs, inflation and
exchange rate forecasts. © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 12
Intro: Access Phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Contd ….Step 1 : GAINING ACCESS PHASE
Social considerations will include any threat of civil disorder, the availability
of local skilled workforce and local training required, the degree of effort
which will be required to set up a local presence and positively engage the
indigenous people.
Environmental considerations: The company will also consider the

precautions needed to protect the environment from harm during operations,
and any specific local legislation. There may also be a reputational issue to
consider when doing business in a country whose political or social regime
does not meet with the approval of the company‟s home Government or
shareholders.
Finally, an analysis of the competition will indicate whether the company has
any advantage. It may be that if the company has an existing presence in-
country from another business interest, such as downstream refining or
distribution, the experience from
© : Dr. these areas
Arko Prava could be leveraged
Mukherjee 13
Intro: Access Phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Some 90% of the world‟s oil and gas reserves are owned and operated by
National Oil Companies (NOCs), such as Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia),
Petronas (Malaysia), Pemex (Mexico). For an independent oil company to
take a direct share of exploration, development and production activities in a
country, it first needs to develop a suitable agreement with the Government,
often represented by the NOC.
The invitation to participate may be publicly announced, in the form of a

licensing round. Alternatively an arrangement for participation may be
privately agreed with the NOC. In order to gain an advantageous position on
this process, an oil company will expend effort to understand the local
conditions, often by setting up a small presence in-country through which
relationships are formed with key Government representatives such as the
Oil and Gas Ministry, Department of Environmental Affairs and local
authorities.
Intro: Access Phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
The investment made during the Gaining Access phase may be

considerable, especially in terms of time and the commitment of
representatives – it may take a decade of setting up the groundwork before
any tangible results are seen, but this is part of the investment process of
hydrocarbon exploration and production.

Intro: Exploration Phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Step 2 : EXPLORATION PHASE
For more than a century petroleum geologists have been looking for oil.
During this period major discoveries have been made in many parts of the
world. However, it is becoming increasingly likely that most of the „giant‟
fields have already been discovered and that future finds are likely to be
smaller, more complex, fields.
Fortunately, the development of new exploration techniques has improved

geologists‟ understanding and increased the efficiency of exploration. So
although targets are getting smaller, exploration and appraisal wells can now
be sited more accurately and with greater chance of success.
Despite such improvements, exploration remains a high-risk activity. Many

international oil and gas companies have large portfolios of exploration
interests, each with their own geological and fiscal characteristics and with
differing probabilities of finding oil or gas. Managing such exploration assets
and associated operations in© many
: Dr. Arkocountries represents a major task. 16
Prava Mukherjee
Introduction
2010 © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 17
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Contnd ….Step 2 : EXPLORATION PHASE
Traditionally, investments in exploration are made many years before there

is any opportunity of producing the oil (See Fig). In such situations
companies must have at least one scenario in which the potential rewards
from eventual production justify investment in exploration.
Fig: Phasing and

expenditure of a
typical exploration
programme.

FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Contnd ….Step 2 : EXPLORATION PHASE
It is common for a company to work for several years on a prospective area

before an exploration well is „spudded‟ – an industry term for starting to drill.
During this period the geological history of the area will be studied and the
likelihood of hydrocarbons being present quantified. Prior to spudding the
first well a work programme will have to be carried out. Field work, magnetic
surveys, gravity surveys and seismic surveys are the traditional tools
employed.

Intro: Appraisal Phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Step 3: APRAISAL PHASE
Once an exploration well has encountered hydrocarbons, considerable effort

will still be required to accurately assess the potential of the find. The amount
of data acquired so far does not yet provide a precise picture of the size,
shape and producibility of the accumulation.

FIELD LIFE CYCLE

Contnd ….Step 3: APRAISAL PHASE
Four possible options have to be considered at this point:
• To proceed with development and thereby generate income within a relatively short
period of time. The risk is that the field turns out to be larger or smaller than envisaged,
the facilities will be over or undersized and the profitability of the project may suffer.
• To carry out an appraisal programme with the objective of optimising the technical
development. This will delay „first oil‟ to be produced from the field by several years and
may add to the initial investment required. However, the overall profitability of the project
may be improved.
• To sell the discovery, in which case a valuation will be required. Some companies
specialise in applying their exploration skills, with no intention of investing in the
development phase. They create value for their company by selling the discovery on,
and then move on with exploration of a new opportunity.
• To do nothing. This is always an option, although a weak one, and may lead to
frustration on behalf of the host nation‟s Government, who may force a relinquishment if
the oil company continues to delay© action.
: Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 21
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Contnd…..Step 3: APRAISAL PHASE
In the second case, the purpose of appraisal is therefore to reduce the

uncertainties, in particular those related to the producible volumes contained
within the structure.
Having defined and gathered data adequate for an initial reserves

estimation, the next step is to look at the various options to develop the field.
The objective of the feasibility study is to document various technical options,
of which at least one should be economically viable.
The study will contain the subsurface development options, the process
design, equipment sizes, the proposed locations (e.g. offshore platforms) and
the crude evacuation and export system. The cases considered will be
accompanied by a cost estimate and planning schedule. Such a document
gives a complete overview of all the requirements, opportunities, risks and
constraints.
Intro: Development Phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Step 4: DEVELOPMENT PLANNING PHASE
Based on the results of the feasibility study, and assuming that at least one
option is economically viable, a field development plan (FDP) can now be
formulated and subsequently executed. The plan is a key document used for
achieving proper communication, discussion and agreement on the activities
required for the development of a new field, or extension to an existing
development.
The FDP‟s prime purpose is to serve as a conceptual project specification

for subsurface and surface facilities, and the operational and maintenance
philosophy required to support a proposal for the required investments

FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Contnd….Step 4: DEVELOPMENT PLANNING PHASE
The FDP should give management and shareholders confidence that all
aspects of the project have been identified, considered and discussed
between the relevant parties. In particular, it should include:
• objectives of the development

• petroleum engineering data
• operating and maintenance principles
• description of engineering facilities
• cost and manpower estimates
• project planning
• summary of project economics
• budget proposal.

FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Contnd….Step 4: DEVELOPMENT PLANNING PHASE
Once the FDP is approved, there follows a sequence of activities prior to the
first production from the field:
• FDP
• Detailed design of the facilities
• Procurement of the materials of construction
• Fabrication of the facilities
• Installation of the facilities
• Commissioning of all plant and equipment.

Intro: Production Phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Step 5: PRODUCTION PHASE
The production phase commences with the first commercial quantities of

hydrocarbons (first oil) flowing through the wellhead. This marks the turning
point from a cash flow point of view, since from now on cash is generated
and can be used to pay back the prior investments, or may be made
available for new projects. Minimising the time between the start of an
exploration campaign and „first oil‟ is one of the most important goals in any
new venture.
Development planning and production are usually based on the expected

production profile which depends strongly on the mechanism providing the
driving force in the reservoir. The production profile will determine the
facilities required and the number and phasing of wells to be drilled.

FIELD LIFE CYCLE
The production profile is usually characterised by three phases:
1. Build-up period: During this period newly drilled producers are

progressively brought on stream.
2. Plateau period: Initially new wells may still be brought on stream but
the older wells start to decline. Production facilities are running at full
capacity, and a constant production rate is maintained. This period is
typically 2–5 years for an oil field, but longer for a gas field.
3. Decline period: During this final (and usually longest) period, all
producers will exhibit declining production.

FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Fig: The field

life cycle and
typical
cumulative
cash flow.

Intro: Decommissioning phase
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Step 6: DECOMMISSIONING PHASE
The economic lifetime of a project normally terminates once its net cash flow
turns permanently negative, at which moment the field is decommissioned.
Since towards the end of field life the capital spending and asset
depreciation are generally negligible, economic decommissioning can be
defined as the point at which gross income no longer covers operating costs
(and royalties). It is of course still technically possible to continue producing
the field, but at a financial loss.
Most companies have at least two ways in which to defer the

decommissioning of a field or installation
(a) reduce the operating costs, or
(b) increase hydrocarbon throughput
In some cases, where production is subject to high taxation, tax concessions

may be negotiated, but generally host Governments will expect all other
means to have been investigated first.
FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Maintenance and operating costs represent the major expenditure late in

field life. These costs will be closely related to the number of staff required to
run a facility and the amount of hardware they operate to keep production
going.
As decommissioning approaches, enhanced recovery, for example chemical

flooding processes are often considered as a means of recovering a
proportion of the hydrocarbons that remain after primary production. The
economic viability of such techniques is very sensitive to the oil price, and
whilst some are used in onshore developments they can less often be
justified offshore.
When production from the reservoir can no longer sustain running costs but
the technical operating life of the facility has not expired, opportunities may
be available to develop nearby reserves through the existing infrastructure.

FIELD LIFE CYCLE
Ultimately, all economically recoverable reserves will be depleted and the

field will be decommissioned. Much thought is now going into
decommissioning planning to devise procedures which will minimise the
environmental effects without incurring excessive cost.
Steel platforms may be cut off to an agreed depth below sea level or toppled
over in deep waters, whereas concrete structures may be refloated, towed
away and sunk in the deep ocean. Pipelines may be flushed and left in place.
In shallow tropical waters opportunities may exist to use decommissioned
platforms and jackets as artificial reefs in a designated offshore area.

BOOKS
An Introduction to the Petroleum Industry - Fagan, A
Petroleum Geoscience - Jon Gluyas
Geology & Geophysics in Oil Exploration – M. Sroor
Non-technical guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration,

Drilling and Production – Norman J. Hyne
Handbook of Petroleum Analysis (for Chemical Engg) –

J.G. Speight
A first course in Petroleum Technology – D. A.T.

Donobue and K.R. Lang
Geology of Petroleum – A. I. Leverson
Refer: many books are available in UPES E-resource link
\\10.2.1.161\UPES -Library
Petroleum Agreements and Bidding
Introduction and Commercial Application: When the host government

notifies its intent to offer exploration acreage, the oil company has an
opportunity to gain access.
Two broad types of Petroleum Agreement exist: Licence Agreements and

Contract Agreements.

In a Licence Agreement the Government issues exclusive rights to an oil

company to explore within a specific area. The operations are financed by
the licence holder who also sells all production, often paying a royalty on
production, and always paying taxes on profits. Such a fiscal regime is often
called a Tax and Royalty system. The Government may insist upon an
obligatory level of State participation.
In a Contract Agreement, the oil company obtains the rights to an area

through a contract with the Government or its representative NOC.
Essentially the company acts as a contractor to the Government, again
funding all operations. However, in this case, title to the produced
hydrocarbons is retained by the Government, and the oil company is
remunerated for its costs and provided a share of the profits either in cash or
in kind (i.e. a share of the produced hydrocarbons). The most common form
of this type of agreement is a production sharing contract (PSC), also known
as a production sharing agreement (PSA)

THE INVITATION TO BID
As mentioned earlier the majority of the remaining world hydrocarbon

reserves lie under the control of NOCs, and usually this will be developed by
the NOC. Exceptions to this may arise for a variety of reasons:
• The NOC may not have the local expertise required

• The host Government may not have sufficient funds or manpower
• or an asset may be unattractive to the NOC
In cases such as these, the host Government may invite third parties to
participate in the region. Such an opportunity may be posted in the
international press, trade journals or by specific invitation.


The geographic area of interest is divided up into a number of blocks by a

grid, which is usually orthogonal. The size of these blocks varies from
country to country and even from area to area in some cases. For example,
UK North Sea licence blocks are 1020 km, Norwegian blocks 2020 km, GoM
blocks 33 miles and deepwater Angola blocks approximately 10050km.
The Government will decide at its discretion what blocks it wishes to include
in any bidding round, but there is often a geographic progression, from say
shallow water areas into deeper water as time moves on.
The invitation to bid may come in several forms. For example, in the UK,
licensing rounds are announced periodically by the Department of Trade and
Industry (DTI) on behalf of the UK Government. In India it is NELP rounds
are announced by Directorate of Hydrocarbons (DGH)


The invitation to bid may not be for exploration acreage. For example, some
blocks offered by Sonatrach, representing the Algerian Government, were for
fields that had many years of production history. In this case, the equivalent
of an information memorandum (IM) was provided to prospective bidders.
This information includes both technical data for the fields, such as the
production history by well, and an outline of the commercial agreement that
would be expected for any participation by a foreign investor. Investors were
invited to submit a forward development plan to increase the recovery of the
field above the base case. The commercial terms offer a fraction of the
incremental production to the investor as the profit element of their
investment.

MOTIVATION AND FORM OF BID
In offering an exploration opportunity in a block, the motivation of the

Government is to encourage investment in form of exploration activities, such
as shooting seismic and exploration drilling, with a view to development if the
exploration is successful. A signature bonus may form part of the bid
package.
The invitation to bid may include an outline of the form of bid required along
with the fiscal terms applicable to any subsequent development. The bid may
require a minimum work programme consisting of seismic data to be
acquired and a minimum number of wells; for example 2000km of 2-D
seismic and four wells. The bidder is of course at liberty to commit to more
than the minimum, and a heavier commitment will improve the
competitiveness of the bid.

SUGNATURE BONUS AND COSTS
SIGNATURE BONUS: In many regions, especially those operating PSAs, it

is normal to add a signature bonus to the work programme offered. This is
the promise of a cash sum payable by the successful bidder to the
Government on award of the block. A minimum signature bonus may be
indicated in the invitation to bid, but this element of the bid package is again
a choice to be made by the bidder.
In the early phases of exploration in a basin, when the risks of exploration

failure are high, signature bonuses are usually tens of millions of dollars.
However, once the first discoveries have been made in the area, interest will
be heightened and signature bonuses offered for subsequent nearby blocks
can escalate to hundreds of millions of dollars. It is important to realise that
this signature bonus, once paid, is a sunk cost and should be considered as
part of the cost of exploration. It is not a tax-deductable cost against future
revenues.

MOTIVATION AND FORM OF BID
The offer will have a bid deadline, after which submitted bids will be opened
by the Government, or its NOC representative. This may be done in public or
more commonly behind the closed doors. The winning bids may be publicly
announced, or kept confidential, depending on the country. The criterion by
which the bids are then compared is normally the total value of the bid
package – the combination of the work programme plus signature bonus.
Of course, where the combined values of competitors are close, the

Government will need to decide on the relative weighting it places on work
programme versus cash offered in the signature bonus.
Other considerations that the Government will take into account will be the
bidders‟ technical competence, general reputation, any existing working
relationships and any strategic reasons the Government may have to
encourage particular entrants into the region

WINNER OF THE BID
The details of the winning bids may be publicly announced and published,
which is both a useful piece of information for future bids and an interesting
comparison for each bidder to make with their own offer. In some cases all
bids are announced, in which case the margin by which the winner
succeeded is clear – the winner of course hopes not to have outbid the next
nearest competitor by an embarrassing sum, thereby „leaving money on the
table‟.

BLOCK AWARD
The successful bid will result in award of the block, giving the rights to
explore. Any signature bonus offered will be cashed by the Government.
There is often a prescribed sequence of events that dictate the timing of
carrying out the work programme and declaring a commercial interest in the
block – meaning that the company intends to progress beyond the
exploration stage and on to appraisal and possible development of a
discovery in the block. In this case, the company will need to convert the
exploration rights into development rights in the block.

BLOCK AWARD
The Figure below shows an example of the provisions in a PSA for
converting an exploration agreement into a production agreement.

BLOCK AWARD
The criteria for a commercial well would be based on production rate during
testing of a discovery well, whereas the declaration of a commercial
discovery (DCD) would depend on the oil company demonstrating that an
economic development can be justified – this will need to pass internal
economic screening criteria. In the example as shown in the previous Figure,
the Government is due a bonus payable at DCD, and a further bonus when
production from the development starts. Timeframes are typically imposed on
the events, shown above for a PSA between the oil company and the
Government.
In some cases there is a requirement to release only a fraction of the block if

commerciality has not been declared after a specified period of time.

BLOCK AWARD
The Figure below shows an example of drilling up a commitment of three
wells, and shooting 2-D seismic, whilst relinquishing fractions of the block
during this time.
Fig:
Example of
maturing of an
exploration
licence block.

FISCAL SYSTEM
The Petroleum Agreement will also include a description of the fiscal terms
by which the Government will claim its share of revenues during the
production period. This will fall broadly into four categories, as shown in the
Table below. Within these broad categories, there are in excess of 120
different fiscal systems in place around the world. Some 50% of these are
PSAs and 40% Tax and Royalty systems.

FARM-IN AND FARM-OUT
The participants in the block may change over time, for various reasons:
Firstly, in a PSA the Government may choose to award the block to several
companies, imposing a preferred split and a nominated operator. With the
approval of the Government, the incumbents may choose to trade the initial
splits. At any stage of the field life cycle, a company may choose to reduce its
share in a block by selling a fraction to another company – this is known as
„farming out‟. The company who accepts the share is said to have „farmed in‟.
The farm-out may be for cash or for a trade in another interest.
A company may choose to farm out if it is unable to raise the capital required
for development, or if it wishes to reduce its exposure in the project because
it considers its position to be too risky.
In fact, there is an active market in trading ownership of oil and gas properties
as companies adjust their portfolios to match their required risk profile or their
available budgets.
UNITISATION AND EQUITY DETERMINATION
We have seen how blocks are defined by a grid system. Unfortunately,

nature does not confine the hydrocarbon field size to the regularities of the
grids imposed, and commonly a field will span two or more blocks, often
owned by different groups. In the early days of field development, the
simplest way of defining the rights to exploration and development drilling
was to confine the drilling rig to the boundaries of the block.
Assuming wells were drilled vertically, the bottom hole location of the well
should be within the owner‟s block. Production from that well, however, could
be from the neighbouring block. It would therefore be in the interest of the
licence, block owner to site the production wells at the periphery of his block
and to produce aggressively, thus draining a neighbouring block without
concerns of reprisal from his neighbour. This gave rise to situations such as
that shown below at Spindletop, Texas in the early 1900s

Spindletop, Texas in the early 1900s


Apart from the obvious inequity of this arrangement, it also led to hugely
suboptimal field development costs and reservoir management.
To overcome this, most governments will insist that the field is „unitised‟ and
treated as one unit for development purposes. The owners of the field or the
Government will nominate an operator, and the development will be planned
based on the physical properties of the field, uninfluenced by ownership. The
split of the costs of development and the resulting net cash flow will be
determined by the „equities‟ held by the owners of the licence blocks which
the field straddles.
The basis for the equity determination is negotiated between the block
owners (Figure in next slide). This basis could be:
• areal extent of the accumulation, as mapped to the hydrocarbon–water
contact
• hydrocarbons initially in place
• moveable hydrocarbons initially in place
• recoverable hydrocarbons initially in place
• economically recoverable© hydrocarbons initially in place.
Fig: Options for the basis of equity.

Moving toward the apex of Figure, the basis for equity becomes
progressively more complex and lengthier to determine. The extreme case of
economically recoverable reserves requires estimates of both the technical
development plan and all of the economic assumptions such as costs and
product prices, right through to the end of field life.
Prior to development, a „deemed equity‟ may be agreed between the equity

groups in order to set the proportional funding of the field development. This
will usually be reviewed close to first production when more information is
available from the development wells. Adjustments are then made to the
initial funding to ensure that the correct contributions to the development
costs have been made.
Once production has commenced and more information about the reservoir
becomes available, it may become apparent that the initial equity is incorrect.
If one of the equity groups feels that a revision to the equity is required, then
a „re-determination‟ may be called, and new equities agreed. Again, this can
be a costly exercise. © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 55
INTRODUCTION
1. What are the different stages of Oil field life cycle ? Write short
notes on each stage.
2. What are the different parameters a Oil company considers to

target a area of Interest? Write a short note on each parameter
3. What are the 4 possible options a Oil company has once it has
been successful in finding oil in the exploration phase?
4. What is FDP? Why it is important in the Development Planning

Phase.
5. Describe Decommissioning phase with examples?

ACCESS PHASE
1. What are the different types of agreements in Access Phase?
2. Describe the process of bidding in Access Phase?
3. What is Signature Bonus? Describe its importance in Access

phase.
4. Describe with a diagram the different steps involved in

converting a exploration agreement into a production
agreement.
5. Describe Unitization and Equity determination process in

Access Phase?

ORIGIN OF PETROLEUM
Before one tries to understand the Geological methods of exploration – one

must understand the concept of Petroleum System. This starts with the „Origin
of Petroleum‟.
When animals and plants die, they leave an organic residue composed of
carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen. Most of this broken down by
bacteria. Some, however, is deposited in aquatic environments low in oxygen
– on the beds if inland seas, lagoons, lakes, or deltas – and is therefore
protected from the action of aerobic bacteria.
These residues are mixed with sediments (sand, clay, salt etc.), accumulate,
are compressed, and undergo a first transformation under the action of
anaerobic micro-organisms. This first stage of decomposition of the matter
gives rise to KEROGEN, the organic molecules of which are entrapped
within a clayey rock known as the SOURCE ROCK.

ORIGIN OF PETROLEUM
The mechanism of subsidence causes sediments to be entrained to great

depths , where they are exposed to high temperatures and pressures. The
KEROGEN is then transformed into hydrocarbons by thermal cracking: long
molecular chains are broken down, expelling the oxygen and nitrogen,
leaving molecules of carbon and hydrogen.
When temperatures exceed 50-70 deg C, kerogen is transformed into

Petroleum (or Oil). In range of 120-150 deg C the oil is subject to cracking, to
give WET gas, then DRY gas.
Higher the temperature and longer it is maintained, the shorter are the
resulting molecules, and therefore the
© : Dr. Arko lighter
Prava the hydrocarbons.
Mukherjee 60
ORIGIN OF PETROLEUM
When temperatures exceed 50-70 deg C, kerogen is transformed into

Petroleum (or Oil). In range of 120-150 deg C the oil is subject to cracking, to
give WET gas, then DRY gas.
PETROLEUM SYSTEM
The term PETROLEUM SYSTEM refers to the combination of the main

geological attributes which have led to the accumulation of hydrocarbons.
Several conditions need to be satisfied for the existence of a hydrocarbon
(SEE FIGURE)
© : Dr.and
Generation, migration Arkotrapping
Prava Mukherjee
of hydrocarbons. 62
Conditions necessary for Hydrocarbon accumulations:
• Sedimentary Basin: an area in which a suitable sequence of rocks has

accumulated over the geological time.
• Source Rock: Within a sedimentary basin there needs to be a source rock

enriched in high content of organic matter
• Maturation: Through elevated temperatures and pressures these rocks

must have reached maturation, the condition at which hydrocarbons are
expelled from the source rock.
• Migration: Migration describes the process which has transported the

generated hydrocarbons into a porous type of sediment, the reservoir
rock.
• Reservoir Rock: A porous and permeable which contains the

hydrocarbon and allow them to accumulate.
• Trap: Lastly the reservoir must be surmounted by an impermeable layer

(or should be deformed in a favorable shape) such that it acts as a
© : Dr.upward
natural barrier to the natural Arko Prava Mukherjee
movement of fluids. 63
ASSIGNMENT: PETROLEUM SYSTEM
SUBMISSION TIME : ONE WEEK

Exploration
INTRODUCTION
The objective of any exploration venture is to find new volumes of

hydrocarbons at a low cost and in a short period of time.
Once an area has been selected for exploration, the usual sequence of
technical activities starts with the definition of a basin.
The mapping of gravity anomalies and magnetic anomalies will be the first
two methods applied.
Next, a coarse two-dimensional (2D) seismic grid, covering a wide area, will
be acquired in order to define leads, areas which show for instance a
structure which potentially contains an accumulation (seismic methods will
be discussed in more detail in the next section).
A particular exploration concept, often the idea of an individual or a team

will emerge next. Since at this point very few hard facts are available to
judge the merit of these ideas they are often referred to as ‘play’.
Exploration
INTRODUCTION….contd
More detailed investigations will be integrated to define a ‘prospect’, a

subsurface structure with a reasonable probability of containing all the
elements of a petroleum accumulation, namely source rock, maturation,
migration, reservoir rock and trap.
Eventually, only the drilling of an exploration well will prove the validity of
the concept. A ‘wildcat’ well is drilled in a region with no prior well control.
Wells either result in discoveries of oil and gas, or they find the objective
zone to be water-bearing in which case they are termed ‘dry’.
Exploration activities are potentially damaging to the environment. The

cutting down of trees in preparation for an onshore seismic survey may
result in severe soil erosion in years to come. Offshore, fragile ecological
systems such as reefs can be permanently damaged by spills of crude or mud
chemicals. Responsible companies will therefore carry out an environmental
impact assessment (EIA) prior to activity planning and draw up contingency
plans should an accident occur (HSSE).
Exploration
GEOLOGICAL METHODS
There are four main branches of Geology relevant in exploration for

hydrocarbons:
• Sedimentology: i.e. the study of sedimentary rocks
• Stratigraphy: i.e. the study of the organization in time and space of

sedimentary rocks.
• Structural Geology: i.e. the study of structural deformation and fractures

of rocks
• Organic Geo-Chemistry: i.e. the study of the potential of rocks to

produce hydrocarbons.
The Geological and Tectonic history of the entire area is studied in details .

Exploration
GEOLOGICAL TOOLS….contd
When a site is relatively unexplored, prospectors first study the

TOPOGRAPHY and OUTCROPS in order to form a picture of the
characteristics of the subterranean formations and structures.
TRACES of hydrocarbon at the surface or in the subsoil can be a good

indication of the proximity of an accumulation.
Geologists drill small boreholes which allow them to take CORE samples for
chemical analysis by a laboratory. The results provide useful information on
whether there are traces of hydrocarbons present.
Particular efforts are made to gain a better understanding of the porosity and
permeability of potential reservoirs.
Geologists synthesize the information obtained into subsurface maps on

different scales, which may be extended over an entire basin or represent
just a single field.
Exploration
The most common Geological maps comprise of:

• Contours of equal thickness (ISOPACHS)
• Contours of equal depths (ISOBATHS)
• Physical properties of rocks (LITHOFACIES data)
Every time a new well drilled, additional data are obtained and added to
these subsurface maps.
These successive elaborations require a stratigraphic correlation

(SEQUENCE Stratigraphic) which involves identification of rocks of a similar
age by comparing fossils and well log data or from an outcrop with the data
from another well or outcrop in the light of the seismic results.
From the analysis of the data – if a major variation in thickness or in the type
of rock may provide an interesting geological clue.

Exploration

Exploration

Exploration

Exploration

Exploration

Exploration

Exploration
GEOPHYSICAL METHODS
There are various geophysical surveying methods that are routinely applied
in the search for potential hydrocarbon accumulations.
Geophysical methods respond to variations in physical properties of the

earth‟s subsurface including its rocks, fluids and voids. They locate
boundaries across which changes in properties occur.
These changes give rise to an anomaly relative to a background value; this

anomaly is the target which the methods are trying to detect.
The measurement of changes in signal strength along lines of a grid or

network, „profiling‟, allows anomalies to be mapped out spatially.
Care should be taken to avoid spatial „aliasing‟, the loss of fine detail
information as a result of gathering data at only a small number of measuring
stations

Exploration
GEOPHYSICAL METHODS
Care should be taken to avoid spatial „aliasing‟, the loss of fine detail
information as a result of gathering data at only a small number of measuring
stations.
Loss of information due to limited number of measurement points.

Exploration
GEOPHYSICAL METHODS
GRAVITY SURVEYS
The gravity method

measures small variations
of the earth‟s gravity field
caused by density
variations in geological
structures.
The measuring tool is a

sophisticated form of spring
balance designed to be
responsive over a wide
range of values.
Principle of gravity surveying.

Exploration
GEOPHYSICAL METHODS: GRAVITY SURVEYS
Fluctuations in the gravity field give rise to changes in the spring length
which are measured (relative to a base station value) at various stations
along the profile of a 2D network. The measurements are corrected for
latitudinal position and elevation of the recording station to define the
„Bouguer‟ anomaly.
The development of airborne gravity technology has allowed the surveying of

previously inaccessible areas and of much larger basins than is currently
practical with land-based measuring tools.

Exploration
GEOPHYSICAL METHODS
MAGNETIC SURVEYS
The magnetic method detects

changes in the earth‟s
magnetic field caused by
variations in the magnetic
properties of rocks.
In particular, basement and

igneous rocks are relatively
highly magnetic. If they are Source:
located close to the surface http://www.ga.gov.au/ausgeonews/ausg
they give rise to anomalies eonews200712/productnews.jsp
with a short wavelength and
high amplitude (see Figure).

Exploration
GEOPHYSICAL METHODS
MAGNETIC SURVEYS
The method is airborne

(plane or satellite) which
permits rapid surveying and
mapping with good areal
coverage.
Like the gravity technique

this survey is often employed
at the beginning of an
exploration venture.
Principle of magnetic surveying.

Exploration
GEOPHYSICAL METHODS:
CSEM SEABED LOGGING
Controlled source electro-magnetic

(CSEM) surveying or seabed logging is
a remote sensing technique which uses
very low frequency electro-magnetic
signals emitted from a source near the
seabed.
Receivers are placed on the seabed at

regular intervals and register anomalies
and distortions in the electromagnetic
signal generated by resistive bodies,
such as reservoirs saturated with
hydrocarbons.

Exploration
Fig: Principle of
CSEM seabed
logging.

Exploration
GEOPHYSICAL METHODS:
CSEM SEABED LOGGING
CSEM works best in deep water (>500 m) in areas characterised by

relatively simple sand-shale sequences (clastic reservoirs); it is particularly
useful for surveying large traps (prospects) where other marine methods are
less practical or economical.
It is being increasingly used in conjunction with seismic data to verify likely

fluid fill within the reservoir rocks of a prospect, thus helping to reduce risk
and to improve the chance of success by allowing wells to be targeted in a
more sophisticated way.

Geophysical methods of Exploration
SEISMIC METHODS (Seismic Data Acquisition and Processing)
Introduction:
From being a predominantly exploration focused tool, seismic surveying has

progressed to become one of the most cost effective methods for optimizing
field production. In many cases, seismic data have allowed operators to
extend the life of „mature‟ fields by many years.
Seismic surveys involve generating sound waves which propagate through

the earth‟s rocks down to reservoir targets. The waves are reflected to the
surface, where they are registered in receivers, recorded and stored for
processing.
The resulting data make up an acoustic image of the subsurface which is

interpreted by geophysicists and geologists.

Contd…..Introduction:
Seismic surveying is used in:
• exploration for delineating structural and stratigraphic traps

• field appraisal and development for estimating reserves and drawing up
FDPs
• production for reservoir surveillance such as observing the movement of
reservoir fluids in response to production.
Seismic acquisition techniques vary depending on the environment (onshore

or offshore) and the purpose of the survey. In an exploration area a seismic
survey may consist of a loose grid of 2D lines.
In contrast, in an area undergoing appraisal, a 3D seismic survey will be

shot. In some mature fields a permanent 3D acquisition network might be
installed on the seabed for regular (6–12 months) reservoir surveillance,
called ocean bottom stations© (OBS) or ocean bottom cables (OBC).
Principles of Seismic Surveying
Sound waves are generated at the surface (onshore) or under water

(offshore) and travel through the earth’s subsurface. The waves are reflected
back to the surface at the interface between two rock units where there is an
appreciable change in ‘acoustic impedance’ (AI) across that interface.
AI is the product of the density of the rock formation and the velocity of the
wave through that particular rock (seismic velocity).

Changes in acoustic impedance (AI)Prava

© : Dr. Arko giveMukherjee
rise to reflected seismic waves. 89
„Convolution‟ is the process by which a wave is modified as a result of

passing through a filter. The earth can be thought of as a filter which acts to
alter the waveform characteristics of the down-going wave (amplitude,
phase, frequency).
In schematic form (SEE Figure) the earth can be represented either as an AI

log in depth or as a series of spikes, called a reflection coefficient log or
reflectivity series represented in the time domain.
When the wave passes through the rocks its shape changes to produce a
wiggle trace that is a function of the original source wavelet and the earth‟s
properties.

Convolution of a reflected seismic wave.

Two attributes of the reflected signal are recorded:
• The reflection time, or travel time, is related to the depth of the interface or
„reflector‟ and the seismic velocity in the overburden.
• The amplitude is related to rock and fluid properties within the reflecting
interval and various extraneous influences that need to be removed during
processing.

Case a: When a seismic wave hits an interface at

normal incidence (see Figure-a), part of the energy
is reflected back to the surface and part of the
energy is transmitted.
Case b: In the case of oblique incidence the angle of

the incident wave equals the angle of the reflected
wave as shown in Figure-b. Again part of the energy
is transmitted to the following layer, but this time with
a changed angle of propagation.
Case c: A special case is shown in Figure-c where

an abrupt discontinuity, for example the edge of a
tilted fault block, gives rise to „diffractions‟, radial
scattering of the incident seismic energy. Such
artefacts can impede interpretation of the seismic
data but can be removed or suppressed during
processing (as outlined later©in: Dr.
this section).
Arko Prava Mukherjee 93

SEISMIC METHODS (Seismic Data Acquisition)
The time it takes for the wave to travel from the source S to a reflection point a at
depth z and up to a receiver R at an offset, or shot-receiver separation, x, is given by
the ratio of the travel path and the velocity (Figure a).
Time = Distance/Velocity (because Velocity = Distance/Time)
The acquisition system is arranged such that there are many shot-receiver pairs for
each reflection point in the subsurface, also called „common midpoint‟ or CMP.
Reflection times are measured at different offsets (x1, x2, x3,… xn); the further away
shot and receiver are for a particular reflection point in the subsurface, the longer the
travel time.
The difference in travel time between the zero offset case (normal incidence) and the
non-zero offset case (oblique incidence) is called the normal move out (NMO) and is
© and
dependent on the offset, velocity : Dr. Arko Pravato
depth Mukherjee
the reflector. 95
Source - receiver geometry for multiple offsets.

Collecting data from different offsets and also at different angles is important for
imaging the subsurface properly, for instance where intermediate layers or
structures impact on the amount of energy reaching the target (Figure b) or
where they give rise to variations in seismic velocity.
Seismic sources generate acoustic waves by the sudden release of energy.

There are various types of sources and they differ in:
• the amount of energy released: this determines the specific depth of

penetration of the wave
• the frequencies generated: this determines the specific „vertical resolution‟, or
ability to identify closely spaced reflectors as two separate events.
There is usually a trade-off between the two depending on the objectives of the
survey.
Studies of deep crustal structures require low frequency signals capable of

penetrating over 10 km into the earth, whereas a shallow geological survey
requires a very high frequency signal which is allowed to die out after only a few
hundred meters.
Typical sources for land surveys
are truck-mounted vibrating
sources or small dynamite charge
sources detonated in a shallow
hole. The most common marine
sources are pneumatic sources
such as air guns and water guns
that expel air or water into the
surrounding water column to
create an acoustic pulse.
There are also electrical devices

such as sparkers, boomers and
pingers that convert electrical
energy into acoustic energy.
Typically the latter produce less
energy and have a higher
frequency signal than pneumatic
sources. © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 98
Seismic detectors are devices that register a mechanical input (seismic

pulse) and transform it into an electrical output which is amplified before
being recorded to tape. On land the receivers are called geophones and they
are arranged in a spread on the ground or in shallow boreholes. At sea the
receivers are called hydrophones, often clustered in arrays, and they are
either towed in the water behind the boat or laid out on the sea floor in the
case of OBC

The acquisition geometry, or the configuration of source(s) and receivers

depends on the objectives of the survey, characteristics of the subsurface
geology and logistics.
Seismic surveys can be acquired along straight lines, zig-zag lines, in a

square loop and even in a circular pattern. Over the last few years multi-
azimuth surveys have become increasingly popular. Seismic data are
acquired along different azimuths (Figure) to allow structures to be imaged at
different angles thus enhancing the imaging of complex geology, such as
radial fault patterns and areas affected by salt.

Principle of
multi-azimuth
surveying.

SEISMIC METHODS : Borehole Seismic Surveying
In vertical seismic profiling (VSP) the seismic source is placed at the surface
and the receiver array is lowered down a borehole. In the case of borehole
tomography both source and receiver array are lowered into (different)
boreholes and the source is fired at different depths (Figure). Typically the
seismic sources use higher frequencies than in surface seismic surveys.
Advantages of borehole seismic techniques include improved resolution and

the ability to predict or more accurately model the velocity variations between
wells. Furthermore, the effects of the near-surface weathered layer are
removed or suppressed.
The result is that small-scale features and subtle variations in reservoir

continuity can be imaged better than using conventional surface seismic data
which has proved very powerful in field development and well planning.
More recently it has also been used to help characterize tight gas sands and
coal bed methane seams where very small features can have a dramatic
impact on resource distribution and recovery.
SEISMIC METHODS (Borehole Seismic Surveying)
Principles of borehole seismic surveying.

SEISMIC DATA PROCESSING
INTRODUCTION
The three main steps in seismic data processing are deconvolution, stacking
and migration. Additional processes are required to prepare or enhance the
seismic data before or after each of the main steps.
There are typically hundreds of traces in a 2D survey and thousands in a 3D

survey. Once they have been sorted, static corrections must be applied to
compensate for variations in topography, for example when seismic data are
acquired in an area covered by sand dunes. „Statics‟ also correct for
variations in seismic velocity in the near-surface, for example when a seismic
survey is acquired in a swampy area.

DECONVOLUTION
After static correction the next stage in processing is deconvolution. In

essence this is an inverse filtering procedure which removes or suppresses
unwanted signals. It aims to collapse the wavelet and make it as sharp as
possible so that it resembles a spike (Figure). In effect deconvolution tries to
remove the effects of the earth‟s filter by reproducing the geological
boundaries as a reflectivity series.

VELOCITY ANALYSIS AND NMO CORRECTION
It is clear that seismic velocity plays an important role in seismic surveying

and processing. It is the one parameter that allows the seismic image to be
converted into a geological depth section. There are several types of seismic
velocity, such as average, root mean square (RMS) and interval velocity.
The first two are statistical parameters only, whereas the interval velocity is
geologically more meaningful. In the case of normal incidence and horizontal
layers, it is simply the ratio of the interval thickness to the interval transit time
as illustrated in Figure

VELOCITY ANALYSIS AND NMO CORRECTION
As mentioned previously, there is a difference in travel time between the zero

offset case and the non-zero offset case for each CMP – this is known as
NMO. Viewing the traces side by side (Figure a), it is clear that the NMO for
each non-zero offset trace needs to be removed before the traces can be
summed. The stacking velocity is the seismic velocity which results in the
best correction for NMO (Figure b).

STACKING
All the reflections from the various offsets associated with a CMP are
summed, or „stacked‟ to give one trace for each CMP; this leads to an
improvement in the „signal-to-noise ratio‟.
Signals from spurious noise tend to vary between the different traces and
will, therefore, get cancelled out or at least suppressed. True geological
signals from the different traces tend to be similar and are thus boosted
during the stacking process.

SEISMIC DATA PROCESSING : MIGRATION
Ideally, after stacking the seismic data are in the correct position and have
the correct amplitudes. However, steeply dipping horizons cause reflections
to be recorded at surface positions which are different to their actual
subsurface position as shown in Figure. This also happens when large and
sudden variations occur in seismic velocity

HORIZONTAL REFLECTOR: The incident wave coming from the source at

S1 hits a point at position a and depth z and is reflected to the receiver at R1.
In the case of horizontal reflectors the travel time of the incident wave is the
same as the travel time of the reflected wave. Point a at depth z is recorded
at position a‟ at the surface and associated with depth z‟; both the position
and the depth are correct: a = a‟ and z = z‟.
STEEPLY DIPPING REFLECTOR: In the case of steeply dipping reflectors

the travel time of the incident wave is different to the travel time of the
reflected wave. In the picture the travel time of the reflected wave is much
smaller than the travel time of the incident wave. This leads to point a being
recorded updip of its true position with a shift in surface position (a ≠ a‟) and
a shift in depth (z ≠ z‟); the same occurs at point b and so on. The true dip (ø
true) of the reflector is imaged incorrectly and the apparent dip (ø app) is
shallower.
REMEDY: Migration is the process of repositioning reflected signals to show

an event (geological boundary or other structure) at its true position in the
subsurface and at its correct©depth.
TYPES OF MIGRATION: There are two main types of migration: pre-stack

and post-stack migration. The first involves migrating the seismic data prior
to the stacking Sequence, the second after stacking has occurred.
If the geological layers are almost flat and the seismic velocities are uniform,
a simple post-stack time migration will give a good result. If the seismic
velocities vary only a little or the dips are small then a pre-stack time
migration will give a good solution.
In areas of complex geological structures, for example sub-salt or sub-basalt,

neither technique will image the events below the salt or basalt correctly and
pre-stack depth migration (PSDM) will need to be applied. PSDM requires
the processor to draw up a model of the seismic velocities of the subsurface,
this in itself can be quite challenging. The input model allows the reflectors to
be restored to their true position in the subsurface and corrects apparent dips
to true dips.
Although PSDM is an important tool in the imaging of complex structures it is

an expensive and time-consuming process. PSDM is often only applied
when other methods have failed to give a working solution.
SEISMIC OUTPUT:
A 2D seismic survey consists of a network of lines, usually arranged in an

orthogonal grid at regular spacing, for example 500 m. The processed result
is a series of seismic sections in time or depth (Figure) that tie at the nodes
or intersections of the lines. A single 2D line typically contains several
hundred traces.
A 3D seismic survey is acquired in a series of parallel swathes each

containing a large number of inlines (sail lines) and crosslines (perpendicular
to the sail lines) typically with a spacing between 12.5 and 50 m. The
processed result is a 3D „volume‟ or cube of data (Figure ) that can be
viewed along all three axes (line, trace, time/depth). These days the volumes
can also be sliced along an „arbitrary line‟ such as along the axis of a
meandering channel. A 3D seismic volume typically contains thousands of
traces.

SEISMIC OUTPUT:

SEISMIC OUTPUT:

SEISMIC OUTPUT:

SEISMIC OUTPUT:

SEISMIC OUTPUT:

Exercise:
Interpret the Seismic profile (data) and mark all the structural features like folds
(anticline, syncline), unconformity, prominent bedding plan

Exercise:
Interpret the Seismic profile (data) and mark all the structural features like folds
(anticline, syncline), unconformity, prominent bedding plan

Drilling Engineering
INTRODUCTION
Drilling operations are carried out during all stages of the project life cycle
and in all types of environments. The main objectives are the acquisition of
information and the safeguarding of production. Expenditure for drilling
represents a large fraction of the total project‟s capital expenditure (CAPEX)
(typically 20–60%), therefore an understanding of the techniques, equipment
and cost of drilling is important.
An initial successful exploration well will establish the presence of a working

petroleum system. In the following months, the data gathered in the first well
will be evaluated and the results documented. The next step will be the
appraisal of the accumulation requiring more wells. If the project is
subsequently moved forward, development wells will have to be engineered.

WELL PLANNING
The drilling of a well involves a major investment, ranging from a few million
US$ for an onshore well to 100 million US$ plus for a deepwater exploration
well.
Well engineering is aimed at maximizing the value of this investment by

employing the most appropriate technology and business processes, to drill
a „fit for purpose‟ well, at the minimum cost, without compromising safety or
environmental standards. Successful drilling engineering requires the
integration of many disciplines and skills.
Successful drilling projects will require extensive planning. Usually, wells are
drilled with one, or a combination, of the following objectives:
• to gather information
• to produce hydrocarbons
• to inject gas or water to maintain reservoir pressure or sweep out oil
• to dispose of water, drill cuttings or CO2 (sequestration).

WELL PLANNING
To optimize the design of a well it is desirable to have as accurate a picture

as possible of the subsurface. Therefore, a number of disciplines will have to
provide information prior to the design of the well trajectory and before a
drilling rig and specific equipment can be selected.
The subsurface team will define optimum locations for the planned wells to
penetrate the reservoir and in consultation with the well engineer agree on
the desired trajectory through the objective sequence. In discussions with
production and well engineers maximum hole inclination and required
wellbore diameter will be determined.
Wellhead locations, well design and trajectory are aimed at minimizing the
combined costs of well construction and seabed/surface facilities, whilst
maximizing production.
During exploration drilling and the early stages of field development

considerable uncertainty in subsurface data will prevail.
WELL PLANNING
It is important that the uncertainties are clearly spelled out and preferably
quantified. Potential risks and problems expected or already encountered in
offset wells (earlier wells drilled in the area) should be incorporated into the
design of the planned well. This is often achieved by using a decision tree
approach in the well planning phase. The optimum well design balances risk,
uncertainty and cost with overall project value.
The basis for the well design is captured in a comprehensive document. This
is then „translated‟ into a drilling programme.
In summary, the well engineer will be able to design and cost the well in
detail using the information obtained from the petroleum engineers,
geoscientists and production engineers. In particular, he will plan the setting
depth and ratings for the various casing strings, cementing programme, mud
weights and mud types required during drilling, and select an appropriate rig
and related hardware, for example drill bits.

RIG TYPES AND RIG SELECTION
The type of rig which will be selected depends upon a number of

parameters, in particular:
• cost and availability

• water depth of location (offshore)
• mobility/transportability (onshore)
• depth of target zone and expected formation pressures
• prevailing weather/metocean conditions in the area of operation
• experience of the drilling crew (in particular the safety record!).
PRESENTLY the following types of rig can be contracted for offshore drilling:
• Swamp barges
• Drilling jackets
• Jack-up rigs
• Semi-submersibles
• Drill ships
• Tender-assisted drilling
RIG TYPES
SWAMP BARGES : operate in very

shallow water (less than 20 ft). They can
be towed onto location and are then
ballasted so that they „sit on bottom‟. The
drilling unit is mounted onto the barge.
This type of unit is used in the swamp
areas of, for example Nigeria, Venezuela
and US Gulf Coast.
Source:
http://www.deepwater.com/fw/main/H
©
ibiscus-25C16.html?LayoutID=17
RIG TYPES
DRILLING JACKETS: are small steel

platform structures which are used in areas
of shallow and calm water. A number of
wells may be drilled from one jacket. If a
jacket is too small to accommodate a
drilling operation, a jack-up rig is usually
cantilevered over the jacket and the
operation carried out from there.
Once a viable development has been

proven, it is extremely cost-effective to build
and operate jackets in a shallow sea
environment. In particular, they allow a
flexible and step-wise progression of field
development activities.
Phased developments using jackets are

common in coastal waters, for example
South China Sea and the shelf GoM.
RIG TYPES
JACK-UP RIGS: are either towed to the
drilling location (or alongside a jacket) or
are equipped with a propulsion system.
The three or four legs of the rig are
lowered onto the seabed. After some
penetration the rig will lift itself to a
determined operating height above the
sea level.
If soft sediment is suspected at seabed,

large mud mats will be placed on the
seabed to allow a better distribution of
weight. All drilling and supporting
equipment are integrated into the overall
structure. Jack-up rigs are operational in
water depths up to about 450 ft and as
shallow as 15 ft. Globally, they are the
most common rig type, used for a wide
range of environments and all types of
wells.
RIG TYPES
SEMI-SUBMERSIBLES : are used for
exploration and appraisal in water depths too
great for a jack-up. A semi-submersible rig is
a movable offshore vessel consisting of a
large deck area built on columns of steel.
Attached to these heavy-duty columns are at
least two barge-shaped hulls called
pontoons.
Before operation commences on a specified

location, these pontoons are partially filled
with water and submersed in approximately
50 ft of water to give stability.
A combination of several anchors and

dynamic positioning (DP) equipment assists
in maintaining position. Relocation of the
semi-submersible vessel is made possible by
the utilization of tugboats and/or propulsion
machinery. E.g Deep water horizon
RIG TYPES
DRILLING SHIPS : are used for deep

and very deep water work. They can be
less stable in rough seas than semi-
submersibles. However, modern high-
specification drill ships such as
Discoverer Enterprise can remain
stable, and on target during 100 knot
winds using powerful thrusters
controlled by a DP system.
The thrusters counter the forces of

currents, wind and waves to keep the
vessel exactly on target, averaging less
than 2m off her mark, without an
anchor. Heavy-duty drill ships are
capable of operating in water depths up
to 3000m
RIG TYPES
DRILLING SHIPS :

RIG TYPES
TENDER-ASSISTED DRILLING :In some cases, oil and gas fields are
developed from a number of platforms. Some platforms will accommodate
production and processing facilities as well as living quarters. Alternatively,
these functions may be performed on separate platforms, typically in shallow
and calm water. On all offshore structures, however, the installation of
additional weight or space is costly. Drilling is only carried out during short
periods of time if compared to the overall field life span and it is desirable to
have a rig installed only when needed. This is the concept of tender-assisted
drilling operations.
In tender-assisted drilling, a derrick is assembled from a number of

segments transported to the platform by a barge. All the supporting functions
such as storage, mud tanks and living quarters are located on the tender,
which is a specially built spacious barge anchored alongside (Figure).
It is thus possible to service a whole field or even several fields using only
one or two tender-assisted derrick sets. In rough weather, barge type tenders
quickly become inoperable and unsafe since the platform is fixed whereas
the barge moves up and down with the waves.
RIG TYPES
TENDER-ASSISTED DRILLING :

DRILLING SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENTS Drilling Engineering
ROTARY RIG: Whether onshore or offshore drilling is carried out, the basic
drilling system employed in both the cases will be the rotary rig (Figure ). The
parts of such a unit and the three basic functions carried out during rotary
drilling operations are as follows:
• Torque is transmitted from a power source at the surface through a drill

string to the drill bit.
• A drilling fluid is pumped from a storage unit down the drill string and up
through the annulus. This fluid will bring the cuttings created by the bit
action to the surface, hence clean the hole, cool the bit and lubricate the
drill string
• The subsurface pressures above and within the hydrocarbon-bearing

strata are controlled by the weight of the drilling fluid and by large seal
assemblies at the surface (BOPs).
However, in practice, onshore and offshore drilling units are often quite
different in terms of technology and degree of automatisation. This is largely
driven by rig availability, costs
© : and safety
Dr. Arko considerations
Prava Mukherjee 134
DRILLING SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENTS
ROTARY RIG:
© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 135 rig

The basic rotary
DRILLING SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENTS DETAILS OF ROTARY RIG:

DRILLING SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENTS
ROTARY RIG:
http://www.globalpetrotec
h.com/rig-fleet/g-2.htm
© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 137 rig

The basic rotary
ELEMENTS OF THE DRILLING SYSTEMS
We will now consider the rotary rig in operation, visiting all elements of the
system.
DRILL BITS
The most frequently used bit types are the roller cone or rock bit and the
polycrystalline diamond compact bit or PDC bit
Roller
cone bit
(left) and
PDC bit.

DRILL BITS
On a rock bit, the three cones are rotated and the attached teeth break or
crush the rock underneath into small chips (cuttings). The cutting action is
supported by powerful jets of drilling fluid which are discharged under high
pressure through nozzles located at the side of the bit.
After some hours of drilling (between 5 and 25 h depending on the formation

and bit type), the teeth will become dull and the bearings wear out. Later on
we will see how a new bit can be fitted to the drill string.
The location of the drilling fluid outlets is critical in the design of a bit that will
allow cuttings to be carried out from under the cutting surfaces.
The selection of bit type depends on the composition and hardness of the
formation to be drilled and the planned drilling parameters.

TYPES OF DRILL BITS
As mentioned THE DRILL BIT is the most critical component of the drill
stem. Bit technology has undergone more technological advancement than
any other element of the drill stem
Types of Bit include:
• Drag bits
• Rolling Cutter bits
• Diamond bits
• Special Purpose bits
DRAG BIT: The oldest of the rotary bits, the drag bit utilizes flat cutter blades
to scrap away the rock. These bits, though relatively simple and inexpensive,
and still used for drilling soft, shallow formations, have been largely replaced
by other types of bits.

TYPES OF DRILL BITS
ROLLING CUTTER BIT: The rolling cutter bit, which is also called a roller
cone bit, three-cone bit, or rock bit, is the most commonly used today and
comes in a variety of designs.
The cones of this bit are designed to individually roll as the bits turn on the
bottom of the hole. While the cones distribute the weight of the drill collars,
their teeth bite into the rock, gouging and scraping away the cuttings, which
are then carried to the surface by the circulating mud.
According to the type and configuration of their teeth and types of bearing
used they are classified into TWO types:
• Steel tooth or Milled tooth

• Insert bit
Steel tooth or Milled tooth bits : have long widely spaced teeth for soft
formation models and shorter, closely teeth for harder formation types.
TYPES OF DRILL BITS
Contd ……ROLLING CUTTER BIT
Insert bits : The teeth of insert bits also vary in length depending on use, but
are made of extremely hard tungsten carbide, and inserted into the steel
cones.

TYPES OF DRILL BITS
DIAMOND BIT : Diamond bits operate similarly to drag bits, in that they have
no moving parts such as cones or bearings, but rely on industrial diamonds
to crack and abrade the formation.
The diamonds are set in a high strength steel matrix, with a pattern and
spacing optimally designed for the drilling conditions expected.
A relatively new type of diamond bit the polycrystalline diamond compact or

PDC bit. Here a layer of polycrystalline diamond is bonded to a layer of
Tungsten carbide to create a cutting surface with both high-wear and impact-
resistant properties.
The PDC surface is self-sharpening as it wears away, continually presenting

a fresh edge.
This type of bit is popular because of its much better rate of penetration
(ROP), longer lifetime and suitability for drilling with high revolutions per
minute (rpm), which makes it the preferred choice for turbine drilling.
TYPES OF DRILL BITS
DIAMOND BIT :

TYPES OF DRILL BITS
SPECIAL BIT : Other bit-type tools are designed for special purposes,
notably hold openers and under reamers. These tools are run above a bit to
maintain or enlarge the hole size.
Under-reamers have collapsible arms that are held open by the pressure of
mud circulating through the drill stem. These arms enable them to enlarge
the bottom of the hole and then be retrieved through the smaller diameter
upper portion of the hole.

DRILL STRING
Between the bit and the surface, where the

torque is generated, we find the drill string
(Figure).
Whilst primarily being a means for power

transmission, the DRILL STRING string
fulfils several other functions, and if we
move up from the bit we can see what
those are.

SECTIONS OF THE DRILL STRING
The DRILL COLLARS (DCs) are thick-

walled, heavy lengths of pipe. They keep the
drill string in tension (avoiding buckling) and
provide weight onto the bit.
STABILIZERS are added to the drill string at

intervals to hold, increase or decrease the
hole angle.
The BOTTOM HOLE ASSEMBLY (BHA)

described so far is suspended from the
DRILL PIPE, made up of 30 ft long sections
of steel pipe (joints) screwed together.

The drill string is connected to the kelly

SAVER SUB. A saver sub is basically a short
piece of connecting pipe with threads on
both ends. In cases where connections have
to be made up and broken frequently, the
sub „saves‟ the threads of the more
expensive equipment.
The KELLY is a six-sided piece of pipe that

fits tightly into the kelly bushing which is
fitted into the rotary table. By turning the
latter, torque is transmitted from the kelly
down the hole to the bit. It may take a
number of turns of the rotary table to initially
turn the bit thousands of meters down the
hole.

The kelly is hung from the travelling block.

Since the latter does not rotate, a bearing is
required between the block and the kelly.
This bearing is called a SWIVEL.
Turning the drill string in a deep reservoir

would be the dimensional equivalent to
transmitting torque through an everyday
drinking straw dangling from the edge of a
75-storey high-rise building! As a result, all
components of the drill string are made of
high-quality steels.

DRILLING OPERATION
The four basic drilling functions are:

1. Hoisting
2. Rotating
3. Circulating
4. Controlling
1. HOISTING (Derrick, Drawworks, Blocks and Hooks)
• The DERRICK, or mast, and the substructure it sits upon, support the weight
of the drill stem and allow vertical movement of the suspended drillpipe.
• The SUBSTRUCTURE also supports the rig floor equipment and provides
workspace for its operation.
• The DRILLSTRING is removed from time to time to allow fitting (connecting)

or disconnecting of DRILLPIPE sections. The length of the DRILL PIPE
section that can be disconnected and stacked to one side of the DERRICK is
determined by the height of the DERRICK.
DRILLING SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENTS DETAILS OF ROTARY RIG:

DRILLING SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENTS :

contd…..HOISTING (Derrick, Drawworks, Blocks and Hooks)
• A joint of DRILLPIPE is usually about 30 ft (9.1m) long, and a DERRICK that

will allow the pulling and stacking of pipe , in three-joints section (90ft or
27.4m), is about 140 ft (42.7m) high.
• The DRAWWORKS is a spool or drum upon which the heavy steel cable
(DRILLING LINE) is wrapped.
• From the DRAWWORKS, the line is threaded through the CROWN BLOCK
at the top of the DERRICK and then through the TRAVELLING BLOCK,
which hangs suspended from the crown block.
• By reeling in or letting out drill line from the drawworks drum, the travelling
block and the suspended drillstem can be raised or lowered.
• Hydraulic brakes are applied to safely control the movement of the heavy
TRAVELLING block and mechanical brakes are applied to bring it to a
complete stop.
contd…..HOISTING (Derrick, Drawworks, Blocks and Hooks)
• The DRAWWORK also features an auxiliary axle, or „CAT-SHAFT‟, with

rotating spools on each end called „CAT-HEADS‟. One Spinning CAT-HEAD
is used to provide power to tighten the DRILLPIPE JOINTS via a cable from
the cathead to the rotary tongs. The other CAT-HEAD is used for “Breaking
out” or loosening the pipe joints when the pipe is being withdrawn in
sections.
• The HOOK it is attached to the travelling block and is used to pick up the
DRILLSTEM via the SWIVEL and KELLY when drilling, or with elevators
when tripping into or out of the hole.

2. ROTATING (Swivel, Kelly, Rotary Table)
• The SWIVEL allows the drillstem to rotate while supporting the weight of the
drillstring in the hole and providing pressure-tight connection for the
circulation of the drilling fluid.
• The drilling fluid enters the SWIVEL by the way of the „GOOSENECK‟, a
curved pipe connected to a high-pressure hose.
• Connected to the SWIVEL is the KELLY, a three-, four – or six – sided 40 ft

(12.2m) length hollow steel, which is used to transmit the rotary movement of
the ROTARY TABLE to the drillstring.
• The term DRILLSTEM refers to the KELLY and attached DRILLPIPE, DRILL
COLLARS, and BIT. The DRILLSTRING refers to the DRILLPIPE and the
DRILLCOLLARS.
• The flat-sided KELLY fits through a corresponding opening in the KELLY

DRIVE BUSHING, which in turn fits into the MASTER BUSHING SET into
the ROTARY TABLE.
contd…..ROTATING (Swivel, Kelly, Rotary Table)
• The ROTARY TABLE is turned by the RIG‟s POWER SOURCE, the table
turns bushing and the KELLY BUSHING turns the KELLY, the KELLY in turn
turns the DRILLPIPE, and so on …. Down to the BIT.

3. CIRCULATING (Pumps, Standpipe, Return line, Solids control equipment)
• Circulation of a DRILLING FLUID to carry cuttings up the hole and cool the
bit is an important function of any rotary drilling rig.
• The heart of the CIRCULATION SYSTEM is the MUD PUMP (or Pumps),
which is (are) powered by the rig‟s prime power source, as are the rotary
table and drawworks.
• MUD PUMPS are positive displacement pumps that push a volume of

DRILLING MUD through the system with each stroke of its pistons. The
output of a mud pump can be determined from the piston and cylinder sizes,
the number of strokes per minute, and the type of piston arrangement.
• The MUDPUMPS pump the DRILLING FLUID from the MUD PITS or
TANKS up the STANDPIPE to a point on the DERRICK where the ROTARY
HOSE connects the STANDPIPE to the SWIVEL.
• The flexible, high-pressure HOSE allows the travelling block to move up and
down in the derrick while maintaining a pressure-tight system.

• The circulating drilling mud moves through the swivel, kelly, drillpipe, and
drillcollars, exiting through the bit at the bottom of the hole (or casing),
carrying the drilled rock pieces in suspension to the surface.
• At the surface , the mud leaves the hole through the RETURN LINE and falls
over a VIBRATING SCREEN called the SHALE SHAKER. This device
screens out the CUTTINGS and dumps some of them into a SAMPLE TRAP
and the rest into the RESERVE PIT.
• Once cleaned of large cuttings, the mud is returned to the MUD TANK, from
which it can be once again pumped down the hole.
• FINE PARTICLES are removed by centrifugal force by flowing the mud

through DESANDERS, DESILTERS or a CENTRIFUGE. A DEGASSER is
used to remove small amounts of gas picked up in the mud from the
subsurface formations.

4. CONTROLLING (Blowout preventers, Choke system)
• As mentioned earlier controlling the SUBSURFACE PRESSURES

encountered during drilling is an important part of the operation.
• One of the purpose of the DRILLING MUD is to provide a hydrostatic head of

fluid to counter balance the pore pressure of fluids in permeable formations.
• In spite of this, however, for variety of reasons, the well may „KICK‟; that is
formation fluids may flow into the wellbore, upsetting the balance of the
system, thus pushing mud out of the hole and exposing the upper part of the
hole and equipment to the higher pressure of the deep subsurface.
• If left uncontrolled, this can lead to a „BLOWOUT‟, with the formation fluids
forcefully erupting from the well, often igniting and endangering the crew, the
rig and the environment. For such extreme emergencies BLOWOUT
PREVENTERS or BOPs are installed.
• BOPs are a series of powerful sealing elements designed to close off the
annular space between the pipe and hole where the mud is normally
returning to the surface.
• The resulting choke from the BOPs allows the drilling crew to control the
pressure that reaches the surface and to follow the necessary steps for
„KILLING‟ the well and restoring a balanced system.
• Figure shows a typical

set of BLOWOUT
PREVENTERS,
including the annular
preventer, which has a
rubber sealing element
that is hydraulically
squeezed to conform
tightly to the drillpipe in
the hole.


• Also shown in the figure are RAM TYPE preventers, which grip the pipe with
rubber lined steel rams (pipe rams), or can shear the pipe in two with a
powerful hydraulic force to SEAL off the hole (Blind Rams or shear Rams).
• BOPs are opened and closed by hydraulic fluid stored under 1500 to 3000
psi (10,000 to 20,000 kPa) in an ACCUMULATOR.
• The CHOKE MANIFOLD houses the series of positive and/or adjustable

chokes that are usually controlled from a remote panel on the rig floor.
• Also, often a rig that is encountering a frequent gas kicks will also have a
mud-gas separator, which saves the drilling mud that is expelled along with a
large flow of formation gas, and separates from the gas for safe flaring at
some distance from the rig.

ENGINES
• Hoisting, Rotating and Circulating equipments is supplied with power from a

prime power source, usually diesel engines.
• Engine capacity may range from 500 to 6000 HP, and power may be
transmitted to the rig either mechanically or electrically.
• Mechanical drive rigs have a combination of Belts, Sprockets, Clutches, and

Pulleys, which transfer power from the diesel engines to the Drawworks,
pumps, and rotary table.
• The more modern diesel-electric rigs use their engines to drive generators
that produce electricity. This electricity in turn is sent through cables to a
switch and control house from which point it is relayed to power the
ELECTRIC MOTORS of each end user.

DRILLING FLUIDS
Drilling fluid technology has become increasingly sophisticated in the last two
decade. Whatever type of bit is used, all bits perform their job with the help of
the drilling fluid, which cools the cutting surfaces and circulates rock chips
from underneath.
Most wells are drilled with clear water for faster penetration rates, until a dept
is reached where hole conditions dictate a need for a fluid with special
properties.
The addition of clay and chemicals to the water permits the adjustment of
viscosity and, density, and other properties to improve hole cleaning and
prevent sloughing shale, lost circulation, formation flow and formation
damage.
In most cases, the circulating fluid utilized in a rotary drilling operation is a

water-based mixture of clays, suspended solids, and chemical additives. In
some cases oil is added to the fluid or the entire system is converted into a
oil based mixture.
DRILLING FLUIDS
A small percentage of wells are drilled with air or foam as the circulating fluid
for part of the drilling operation.
In any case the properties of the fluid must be such that it performs the
following functions:
• Control subsurface pressure

• Remove cutting from the hole
• Cool and lubricate the drill stem
• Aim formation evaluation and productivity
Control subsurface pressure: Subsurface pressure is controlled by adjusting

the density of the drilling fluid so that a balance is maintained between the
hydrostatic pressure imposed by the column of drilling fluid and the pore
pressure of the formation being drilled.

DRILLING FLUIDS
Control subsurface pressure: Subsurface pressure is controlled by adjusting

the density of the drilling fluid so that a balance is maintained between the
hydrostatic pressure imposed by the column of drilling fluid and the pore
pressure of the formation being drilled (FIGURE).
While the drilling fluid density allows it to

control pressures, other properties of
drilling mud allow it to form a protective
layer cake of clay particles on the wall of
the hole, preventing excess fluid loss
(filtrate) into permeable formations and
preventing sloughing or caving-in, of the
sides of the hole.
Mud density is measured by means of a

mud balance; a simple scale commonly
graduated in pounds per gallon (ppg) or
pounds per cubic feet (ppcf) increments.
DRILLING FLUIDS
Remove Cuttings from the Hole: Viscosity if the drilling fluid property which is
important when removing cuttings from the hole. Mud must have proper
viscosity to the lift the rock cuttings (chips) out from underneath the bit and
carry them up the annulus to the surface (FIGURE).
In addition the drilling fluid must exhibit sufficient gel strength to hold the
cuttings in suspension when circulation stops, and prevent from settling to
the bottom of the hole, collecting around the bit, making the pipe stick to the
hole.
The mud must also liquify, however, upon resumption of pumping, and must
release the cuttings easily at the surface.
Viscosity is usually determined with a Marsh funnel, which measures the

time it takes for a certain volume of mud to flow through a orifice. Gel
strength is a measured with a viscometer, which shears mud between metal
cylindrical surfaces.
The velocity at which the fluid is circulated is also important and is usually
100-200 ft/ min.
DRILLING FLUIDS
Remove Cuttings from the Hole: (FIGURE).

DRILLING FLUIDS
Cool and Lubricate the Drill stem: This function is performed primarily at the
bottom of the drillstem, where the bit is forced against the bottom of the hole
and rotated.
Force applied to the bit ranges from 10,000 to 100,000 lb (45 to 445 kN),
and rotating speed may range from 50 to 200 rpm. This combination of
weight and speed creates frictional heat within the bit that must be removed
by circulating fluid to prevent rapid wear.
Lubricants added the mud can help reduce the friction at the bit, between
the drill string and hole, and within the drillstring itself, where the frictional
pressure losses can require high pressures.
Air or foam drilling fluids are particularly efficient at performing this cooling
function.

DRILLING FLUIDS
Aid Formation Evaluation and Productivity: Drilling fluid properties should be

monitored to ensure that the interaction between mud and formation doesnot
prevent the formation from being easily evaluated or produced.
For e.g. Oil based muds make it difficult to evaluate potential of producing
horizons. In some cases the formation can be irreparably damaged by the
invasion of mud and mud filtrate.
Oil based mud in gas zones and fresh water-muds in zones containing water
sensitive clays, are examples of permeability damaging situations.
Density, viscosity, gel strength, lubricity, filter cake formation – all these
properties are important to the proper functioning of the drilling fluid. A wide
variety of chemical additives are available to help control these properties.
Some common examples are:
• Bentonite: clay added to fresh water to improve properties of a natural
mud resulting from native clays.
• Attapulgite: clay added to saltwater-based muds.
• Barite: used for giving added weight
DRILLING FLUIDS
Aid Formation Evaluation and Productivity….contd
• Chrome lignosulfates: mordern chemical thinners used to decrease

viscosity.
• Polymers: long chain molecules that act to increase viscosity
• Lost circulation materials: any of a variety of items that act to plug
fractures, including wall nut hulls, shredded cellophane, mica flakes and
vegetable fibres.

DRILLING PROGRESS
With the rig in the position and the conductor pipe in place, drilling can
begun. The largest bit is first to be run. The drilling program is designed so
that the initial bit will drill a hole large enough for casing that can
accommodate successively smaller bits and casing strings.
The number of casing strings necessary to reach the target depth will
determine the initial hole size. Attached to the drill bit are the first drill collars
and stabilizers, followed with joints of drill pipe.
Weight is applied to the bit by allowing the BHA to rest on the bottom
somewhat, and the rotary table begins to turn the Kelly. As the bit chews
away at the bottom of the hole, the mud pumps circulate the cuttings up the
annulus.
The Kelly slowly moves downward until the top of the kelly and the attached
swivel are near the drilling floor (after about 30 – 40 ft [9 to 12 m] has been
drilled).

DRILLING PROGRESS … contd
From now on, each time a kelly length has been drilled down, another joint of
drill pipe is added to the drill stem. The new joint of pipe will have been
hoisted into the “MOUSEHOLE” in preparation, waiting to be connected
(FIGURE).



The kelly and attached drillstring are lifted up in the derrick until the kelly
bushing has cleared the drill floor and the tool joint between kelly and
drillpipe is visible.
SLIPS (flexible, tooth wedges) are set in the rotary table to grip the drillstring
and allow it to hand motionless while the crew “breaks out” (UNSCREWS)
the kelly with the rotary tongs.
The ROTARY TONGS are nothing more than oversized pipe wrenches hung
from the derrick, over the drill floor, and pulled by a cable from the drawworks
(FIGURE).
So now the kelly is hanging freely fro the hook, and the crew can swing it
over to the pipe joint that is waiting, “BOX END UP” in the mousehole
(FIGURE). The Kelly is screwed into the new joint and both are lifted up into
the derrick and swung over the drillstring held by the slips.
into the box end of the waiting joint. The pipe is quickly screwed together and
tightened with the tongs

The driller lowers the assembly and carefully “STABS” the pin of the new
joint into the box end of the waiting joint. The pipe is then quickly screwed
together and tightened with the tongs before the slips are removed.
The entire assembly as then lowered back into the hole to drill another joint
length. After the kelly has been “DRILLED DOWN” 30-40 ft (9-12 m), the
connection process must be repeated, and is repeated joint after joint, as the
hole is deepened.
POOH (PULLING OUT OF HOLE) or Trip out
Sometimes it becomes necessary to pull out (“trip out”) of the hole or POOH;
perhaps to change the bit or to run casing. When making such a “trip”,
drillpipe is handled in stands, usually two or three joints each (about 60 or 90
ft, or 18 to 27 m).
Pipe is removed from the hole and placed on the floor. First the kelly, rotary
bushing, and swivel are towed in the “RATHOLE” (FIGURE)
POOH (PULLING OUT OF HOLE) or Trip out….contd


With to the Kelly and other equipments out of the way, the elevators, which
hand from the hook, can be latched around the pipe just below the tool joint
box and used to lift the pipe out of the hole.
When a stand of several joints has been pulled up into the derrick, the slips
are used once again to hang the drillstring in the rotary table while the
bottom tool joint is “broken” with the tongs and unscrewed with a spinning
wrench (FIGURE).
The stand of pipe is then swung to one side of the drill floor, where it is set
down and secured at the top by the derrickman. Free of their load, the hook
and elevators are lowered once again to grip another stand of pipe and
repeat the process until all the drillstem is racked in the derrick.
The bit is removed from the final stand of drill collars with a “bit breaker”, and
the rotary table is carefully covered to prevent any loose items from falling
into the hole. “TRIPPING IN” the hole is the reverse procedure of POOH.
DIRECTIONAL DRILLING
Because offshore operations are so expensive, a major means of cutting

costs is to drill several wells from a single platform – sometimes up to 20 or
more.
Obviously, since the well‟s surface locations are about the same, their
bottomhole locations will need to be widely spaced in order to effectively
drain the reservoirs they penetrate. This requires that the wells be
directionally drilled.

Although some situations require „directional drilling‟ approach on land

(FIGURE), it is most common in offshore regions.

Directionally drilled wells will usually be drilled according to one of three

basic hole patterns (FIGURE).

After making an initial deflection from vertical, the well may be drilled to the
target, or deflected once more to allow the bottom of the hole to be drilled
vertically (“double dogleg”).
The deviation begins when the hole is deflected using one of several
techniques:
• Downhole hydraulic motors with a “bent sub”

• Jet bits
• Whipstock
WITH DOWNHOLE MOTORS: Downhole motors are drilling tools that rely
on a turbine powered by drilling mud to turn the bit. The drilling system is not
rotated; there fore a rotary steerable system usually with a BENT SUB can
be used to point the bit toward the side of the hole (FIGURE).
With the tool positioned on bottom, the mud is circulated to operate the motor
and drill the hole at an angle for a short distance. Once the angle is formed, a
conventional drillstem can be© used
: Dr. Arkoto
Prava Mukherjee the hole.
continue 187
DOWNHOLE MOTORS….contd

WITH JET BITS: Jet bits are conventional tricone bits with one of their three
nozzles opened up and the other two openings closed off or reduced in size
(FIGURE).
In soft formations, the bit can be oriented at the bottom of the hole, and
drilling mud can be circulated at high velocity to wash out the side of the hole
(FIGURE). This washed out section is a path of least resistance, which the
bit will follow.

WITH JET BITS …. contd

WITH WHIPSTOCKS: Whipstocks are long, inverted, concave steel wedges

(FIGURE) with heavy steel collars through which the drillstem fits. The tools
deflect the rotating drillstem to the side of the hole and is then removed.

TRACKING THE TRAJECTORY: Of course , it is necessary, in a

directionally drilled hole, to be able to keep track of the deviated borehole
and ascertain exactly how far it has inclined from vertical and in what
direction.
Inclination and direction is usually obtained with a magnetic survey deviced.

When run inside the drillpipe and positioned inside a special non-magnetic
drill collars, this wireline tool records a compass reading on film. Upon
retrieval the film can be quickly developed and interpreted. In casedholes,
where magnetic interference is inescapable, a similar system is employed
using a gyroscope.
In situations where extremely precise and continuous drilling hole location

data is required, measurement while drilling, or MWD, tools may be used.
The MWD tools used a downhole mud motor to power instrumentation that
records hole data and transmits it to the surface as pulses in the drilling fluid.
A surface readout gives the position of the bit while it is drilling.
MUD Turbines and mud motors are also used for directional drilling.
Rotational movement of the drill string is restricted to the motor or turbine
section, whilst the rest of the drill string moves by „sliding‟ or being rotated at
a lower speed to ensure hole cleaning.
In the example of the turbine shown in (FIGURE), the mud is pumped

between the rotor and the stator section, inducing a rotational movement
which is transmitted onto the drill bit.
Nowadays, Motors and turbines are being replaced by the rotary steerable
system for cost and operational reasons. Their use is increasingly limited to
such applications as kicking off a sidetrack or where a sharp change in angle
is required in a short-radius horizontal well.

TRACKING THE TRAJECTORY …. Contd

Mud turbine

When a well is directionally drilled, the hole is maintained on course by

varying the type and position of the components in the bottomhole assembly,
by variation of weight-on-bit, and by adjustment of rotary speed and rate of
circulation.
When the hole is completed, a compilation of the survey data gives a plot of
the wellbore‟s path in both the vertical and horizontal planes (FIGURE).


CASING AND CEMENTATION
Imagine that a reservoir exists at a depth of 2500 m. We could attempt to

drill one straight hole all the way down to that depth.
That attempt would end either with the hole collapsing around the drill bit,
with the loss of drilling fluid into formations with low pressure or in the worst
case with the uncontrolled flow of gas or oil from the reservoir into
unprotected shallow formations or to the surface (blowout).
Hence, from time to time, the borehole needs to be stabilized and the drilling
progress safeguarded. And thus Casing is used.

When the surface hole has been drilled out of the conductor, as deep as
5000 ft (1524m) in some cases, the surface casing must be set before drilling
can continue further, This casing is set for several reasons:
• To protect shallow freshwater aquifers from contaminations

• To support the unconsolidated, low-pressure formations nearer the
surface and prevent the loss of drilling mud as it is weighted up to permit
deeper drilling
• To provide a base for well control equipment
After the pipe is tripped out (POOH), the casing crew moves in and runs the
casing in much the same manner as the drillpipe is run into the hole. Special
casing elevators, slips and tongs are required, however, to handle the large-
diameter pipe.

The casing design will usually start with a 23 in. conductor, then 18 5/8 in.
surface casing, 13 3/8 in. intermediate casing above reservoir, 9 5/8 in.
production casing across reservoir section and possibly 7 in. production
„liner‟ over a deeper reservoir section (FIGURE). A liner is a casing string
which is clamped with a packer into the bottom part of the previous casing; it
does not extend all the way to the surface, and thus saves cost.

Several items that are incorporated into

the casing string are described as
follows :
• GUIDE SHOE: A guide show

(FIGURE) is attached to the bottom of
the first joint casing lowered into the
hole. Its rounded nose facilitates the
movement of the casing down the
hole.

• FLOAT COLLAR: This component

is (FIGURE) placed several casing
lengths above the guide shoe, and
contains a one way valve. This
backpressure valve enables the
casing to “float” down the hole by
preventing the entry of drilling fluid
into the casing. The valve also
prevents a blowout through the
casing, should a kick occur during
the cementation operation, and
prevents backflow of cement after
pumping.

• CENTRALIZERS AND SCRATCHERS:

The first of these components hold the
casing away from the wall of the hole;
the second abrades the mudcake when
the casing string is reciprocated (moved
back and forth in the hole). This
procedure ensures a uniform distribution
of cement around the pipe, and good
bonding among pipe, cement, and the
formation (FIGURE).

Casing joints are available in different grades, depending on the expected

loads to which the string will be exposed during running, and the lifetime of
the well. The main criteria for casing selection are :
• Collapse load: originates from the hydrostatic pressure of drilling fluid,

cement slurry outside the casing and later on by „moving formations‟, for
example salt.
• Burst load: this is the internal pressure the casing will be exposed to during
operations.
• Tension load: caused by the string weight during running in; it will be
highest at the top joints.
• Corrosion service: carbon dioxide (CO2) or hydrogen sulphide (H2S) in

formation fluids will cause rapid corrosion of standard carbon steel and
therefore special steel may be required.
• © : Dr.
Buckling resistance: the load Arko Pravaon
exerted Mukherjee 204
the casing if under compression.
The CEMENTING procedure can vary in its

complexity, depending on the depth of the hole,
the number of stages required to fill the annular
space between casing and hole, and the
possible need for remedial cementing if the
first job is insufficient. The procedure for
conventional single-stage cementing is
illustrated in FIGURE.
PROCESS
• With the casing near the bottom, several

barrels of water “SPACERS” is pumped into
the casing, followed by a RUBBER PLUG that‟
seals against the inside wall of the casing as it
is pumped down the hole.

PROCESS …contd
• The plug serves to isolate the cement slurry, which

has been mixed at the surface and pumped
immediately behind the plug.
• When the amount of cement calculated to be

required to fill the space between the casing and
the hole has been pumped, another plug is
inserted into the casing.
• Drilling mud is then pumped behind the second

plug to push the progression of water, plug,
cement, and plug, down the casing.
• When the first PLUG reaches the FLOAT COLLAR,

a diaphragm in its core breaks under pressure, and
the cement slurry moves through the FLOAT
COLLAR VALVE, around the shoe and up the
© : Dr. and
annular space between the hole Arko Prava
theMukherjee
casing. 206
PROCESS…contd
• With the casing near the bottom, several

barrels of water “SPACERS” is pumped into
the casing, followed by a RUBBER PLUG that‟
seals against the inside wall of the casing as it
is pumped down the hole.
• When the second PLUG reaches the float

collar, all the cement has been displaced
around the casing, leaving only a small amount
inside the casing between float collars and
GUIDE SHOE. The second PLUG will not
rupture, and the increase in pump pressure at
the surface indicates that the job is almost
complete.

PROCESS…contd
• The volume of cement pumped must be

carefully calculated to ensure that it is sufficient
to fill the annulus between casing and hole,
• When the cement is “SET” sufficiently, the

drillpipe can be run back into the hole (with the
next SMALLER BIT , of course) and the entire
assembly of plugs, float collars, cement and
guide shoe can be drilled through as the hole
is deepened (These components are
constructed of materials that allow them to be
easily drilled through).
• With casing securely cemented in the hole, the

hole can safely deepened without fear of losing
circulation into the shallow, low pressure
formations. © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 208
PROCESS…contd
• As drilling continues, successive casing strings

will be run and cemented concentrically to
isolate and protect the intervals of openhole.
• After the hole is deepened from the surface

casing shoe, an intermediate casing string may
be set, possibly followed by a casing liner.
• A CASING LINER is a string of casing, set from

inside the intermediate casing extending
downward into the openhole, but not
necessarily “tied back” to the surface.
• This saves the cost of the entire hole length,

when safety concerns do not require it.

PROCESS…contd
• Finally, production casing is run to bottom

when total depth of the well has been reached.
This string protects the producing formation
and allows for the tubing to be easily installed.
• On most wells, sufficient depth is drilled to

ensure an adequate “SUMP” or “RATHOLE”
below the producing interval – the space in
which junk and debris may accumulate during
the completion procedure.

“DRILLING AHEAD”
• When not making a connection or tripping, the

driller is doing what we would expect –
“DRILLING AHEAD” ! Standing on the CONTROL
CONSOLE on the drilling floor, the driller monitors
and adjusts several important drilling parameters.
• WEIGHT ON BIT (WOB) is displayed on the

weight indicator and is adjusted by lowering and
raising the drillstem to allow more or less of its
weight to rest on the bit.
• The driller also monitors rotary speed to make

sure that the combination of rpm and WOB is
correct for efficient drilling.
• A MUD LEVEL RECORDER, TORQUE

INDICATOR, and pump pressure gauge allow the
driller to be quickly informed of any anomalous
situation that could indicate a© potential problem.
“DRILLING AHEAD”
• An important device, often located in drilller‟s

“DOGHOUSE”, is the DRILLING RATE
RECORDER, which keeps a log of depth drilled
versus time. Both Geologists and Engineers use
this device to keep track of drilling depth versus
time.

Formation Evaluation
As the drilling target is approached, preparations for the evaluation of the

potentially productive formation will begin. Presently many methods are
available for evaluating the formation as described in the table below:

MUD LOGGING
• Mud Logging is an important procedure whereby samples of the drilling

cuttings are routinely collected and analyzed. The properties of the mud are
also monitored to determine if oil or gas formations have been penetrated.
• Based on cuttings, a mud logger prepares a lithological log of the hole

showing the types of rock and depth at which it was drilled. This information
is extremely helpful to the geologists and drilling engineers in anticipating the
conditions ahead of the bit.

CORING
• To gain an understanding of the composition of the reservoir rock, inter-

reservoir seals and the reservoir pore system, it is desirable to obtain an
undisturbed and continuous reservoir core sample.
• Cores are also used to establish physical rock properties by direct

measurements in a laboratory. They allow description of the depositional
environment, sedimentary features and the diagenetic history of the
sequence.
• In the pre-development stage, core samples can be used to test the

compatibility of injection fluids with the formation, to predict borehole stability
under various drilling conditions and to establish the probability of formation
failure and sand production.

CORING…contd
• Coring is performed in
between drilling operations.
Once the formation for
which a core is required has
been identified on the mud
log, the drilling assembly is
pulled out of hole. For
coring operations, a special
assembly is run on drill
pipe comprising a core bit
and a core barrel (FIGURE)

CORING…contd
• Unlike a normal drill bit which breaks down the formation into small cuttings,
a core bit can be visualised as a hollow cylinder with an arrangement of
cutters on the outside. These cut a circular groove into the formation. Inside
the groove remains an intact cylinder of rock which moves into the inner core
barrel as the coring process progresses. Eventually, the core is cut free
(broken) and prevented from falling out of the barrel whilst being brought to
surface by an arrangement of steel fingers or „catchers‟.
• Core diameters vary typically from 3 to 7 in. and are usually about 90 ft long.
However, in favorable hole/formation conditions longer sections may be
achievable.
• Commonly, a fibre glass or aluminium sleeve is inserted into the steel inner
core barrel and the core is retrieved within the sleeve. At the surface the gap
(annulus) between the inner sleeve and core is injected with an inert
stabilizing material which „sets‟ to hold the core in place. The core is cut into
sections (typically 1 m) and shipped to the laboratory.
CORING…contd

CORING…contd
• In addition to a geological evaluation on a macroscopic and microscopic

scale, plugs (small cylinders of 3 cm diameter and 5 cm length) are cut from
the whole core, usually at about 30 cm intervals. Core analysis is carried out
on these samples.
• Routine core analysis of plugs will include determination of:

1. porosity
2. horizontal air permeability
3. fluid saturation
4. grain density.
• SCAL will include measurements of:

1. electrical tests (cementation and saturation exponents)
2. relative permeability
3. capillary pressure
4. strength tests.
CORING…contd
• Finally, the core will be sectioned (one third:two thirds) along its entire length
(slabbed) and photographed under normal and ultraviolet light (UV light will
reveal hydrocarbons not visible under normal light, as shown in FIGURE).
Photograph of
core (left = normal
light, right = UV).

SIDEWALL SAMPLING
• The sidewall sampling tool (SWS) can

be used to obtain small plugs (2 cm
diameter, 5 cm length, often less)
directly from the borehole wall. The tool
is run on wireline after the hole has
been drilled and logged.
• Some 20–30 individual bullets are fired

from each gun (FIGURE) at different
depths. The hollow bullet will penetrate
the formation and a rock sample will be
trapped inside the steel cylinder. By
pulling the tool upwards, wires
connected to the gun pull the bullet and
sample from the borehole wall.

SIDEWALL SAMPLING AND CORING
• Sidewall samples are useful to obtain direct indications of hydrocarbons

(under UV light) and to differentiate between oil and gas. The technique is
applied extensively to sample microfossils and pollen for stratigraphic
analysis (age dating, correlation, depositional environment). Qualitative
inspection of porosity is possible, but very often the sampling process results
in a severe crushing of the sample, thus obscuring the true porosity and
permeability.
• In a more recent development a new wireline tool has been developed that
actually drills a plug out of the borehole wall. With SIDE WALL CORING
(FIGURE), some of the main disadvantages of the SWS tool are mitigated, in
particular the crushing of the sample. Up to 20 samples can be individually
cut and are stored in a container inside the tool.

SIDEWALL SAMPLING AND CORING
Sidewall coring tool

Formation Evaluation and Well Logging
WIRE LINE LOGGING
INTRODUCTION
• Wireline logs represent a major source of data for geoscientists and

engineers investigating subsurface rock formations. Logging tools are used
to look for reservoir quality rock, hydrocarbons and source rocks in
exploration wells, support volumetric estimates and geological/geophysical
modelling during field appraisal and development, and provide a means of
monitoring the distribution of remaining hydrocarbons during the production
lifetime.
• A large investment is made by oil and gas companies in acquiring openhole

log data. Logging activities can represent between 5 and 15% of total well
cost. It is important therefore to ensure that the cost of acquisition can be
justified by the value of information generated and that thereafter the
information is effectively managed.

WIRE LINE LOGGING
SETUP and WORKING : FIGURE

depicts the basic setup of a wireline
logging operation. A sonde is
lowered downhole after the drill
string has been removed. The
sonde is connected via an insulated
and reinforced electrical cable to a
winch unit at the surface. At a speed
of about 600 m/h the cable is
spooled upward and the sonde
continuously records formation
properties like natural GR radiation,
formation resistivity or formation
density. The measured data are
electrically transmitted through the
cable and are recorded and
processed in a sophisticated logging
unit at the surface.
WIRE LINE LOGGING
PRESSURE MEASURMENTS AND FLUID SAMPLING
• A common objective of a data gathering programme is the acquisition of fluid

samples. The detailed composition of oil, gas and water is to some degree
required by almost every discipline involved in field development and
production.
• One method of sampling reservoir fluids and taking formation pressures

under reservoir conditions in openhole is by using a wireline FPT. A number
of wireline logging companies provide such a tool under the names such as
RFT (repeat formation tester) and FMT (formation multitester), so called
because they can take a series of pressure samples in the same logging run.
Newer versions of the tool are called a modular dynamic tester or MDT
(Schlumberger tool), shown in FIGURE and reservoir characterisation
instrument or RCI.

PRESSURE MEASURMENTS AND FLUID
SAMPLING…Contd
• The tool is positioned across the objective formation and

set against the side of the borehole by either two packers
or by up to three probes (the configuration used will
depend on the test requirements). The probes are pushed
through the mudcake and against the formation. A
pressure drawdown can now be created at one probe and
the drawdown be observed in the two observation probes.
This will enable an estimate of vertical and horizontal
permeability and hence indicate reservoir heterogeneities
as well as recording a pore pressure.
• Alternatively fluids can be sampled. In this case, a built-in

resistivity tool will determine when uninvaded formation
fluid (hydrocarbons or formation water) is entering the
sample module. The flow can be diverted back into the
wellbore until only the desired fluid is flowing, thus
providing fluid samples uncontaminated with mud.
PRESSURE MEASURMENTS AND FLUID SAMPLING…Contd
MDT tool
configuration for
permeability
measurement.

WIRE LINE LOGGING : TYPES OF LOGGING TOOLS
ELECTRICAL LOGS: measure the voltage generated naturally by alternating

types of rock beds (Spontaneous Potential Log or SP Log), and the resistivity
and conductivity of the rocks and their saturating fluids to an electric current
(electric survey log, induction log, dual induction log etc. )

WIRE LINE LOGGING
ELECTRICAL LOGS (LATERALLOG)
The most common method for measuring

formation resistivity and hence determining
hydrocarbon saturation is by logging with a
resistivity tool such as the laterolog.
The tool is designed to force electrical

current through the formation adjacent to
the borehole and measure the potential
difference across the volume investigated.
With this information the formation
resistivity can be calculated and output
every foot as a resistivity log

WIRE LINE LOGGING
ELECTRICAL LOGS (INDUCTION

TOOL)
The laterolog tool needs a conductive

environment to operate. Therefore, in oil
based mud (OBM) other types of tools
are used. The most common is the
INDUCTION LOG TOOL, based upon the
principles of mine detection. A
transmitting coil induces currents in the
formation which in turn induce a current
in the receiver coil.

WIRE LINE LOGGING
SP LOG EXAMPLE

RADIOACTIVE LOGS: measure the natural radioactivity of different rock

formations, or else the response of those different formations to
bombardment by neutron or gamma rays (neutron log, gamma ray or GR log
etc. )

RADIOACTIVE LOGS: GAMMA RAY LOG
• Non-productive layers such as shales can be differentiated

from clean (non-shaly) formation by measuring and
comparing natural radioactivity levels (Gamma ray
emission) along the borehole.
• Shales contain small amounts of radioactivity elements

such as thorium, potassium and uranium which are not
normally present in clean reservoir rock, therefore high
levels of natural radioactivity indicate the presence of
shale, and by inference non-productive formation layers.
• The thickness of productive (net) reservoir rock within the

total (gross) reservoir thickness is termed the net to gross
or N/G ratio. The most common method of determining the
N/G ratio is by using wireline GR logs.

RADIOACTIVE LOGS: GAMMA RAY LOG

WIRE LINE LOGGING :
GAMMA RAY LOG
EXAMPLE

ACOUSTICAL LOGS: measure the time it takes for a sonic pulse to travel
through a formation (Sonic log etc).
The sonic tool works by sending a sound pulse into the formation and
measuring the time taken for the sound wave to return to a receiver located
further up (or down) the tool.
The transit time in tight (nonporous) sandstone or limestone is short; while in

porous formations it is longer and in mudstone it is longer still. For Coal it is
very slow.
Its main use is in the evaluation of porosity in liquid filled holes.

ACOUSTICAL LOG EXAMPLE
Sonic log responses in a

sandstone and mudstone
sequence:
In the sandstones have a

lower sonic velocity than
the shales (mudstones).

Types of Well Logging Tools
A vast
variety of
logging tools
are in
existence

Well Logging Tools
SUMMARY:
In usual practice many types logs and different combination of the log data is
used to evaluate the formation and finally all this data is used to determine the
thickness, porosity and hydrocarbon saturation of the rock formations.

Well Logging Tools
LOGGING/MEASURMENT WHILE DRILLING (LWD / MWD TOOL):
Basic MWD technology was first introduced in the 1980s by drilling

companies, and was initially restricted to retrievable inserts for directional
measurements and then natural GR logs. These developments were quickly
followed by logging tools integrated into drill collars (DCs) (LWD).
Recently, LWD development has progressed to the stage where most of the
conventional wireline logging tools can be effectively replaced by a LWD
equivalent.
Early LWD technology was often considered to be inferior to wireline.

However, recent mergers between wireline and drilling companies has
resulted in technology-transfer in R&D which has led to a significant
improvement in LWD log quality.
A lazy use of terminology within the industry means that LWD and MWD can
be considered as synonymous. A more appropriate term for today‟s
sophisticated devices is formation evaluation while drilling (FEWD).
Well Logging Tools
Perhaps the greatest stimulus for the development of such tools has been
the proliferation of high-angle wells in which deviation surveys are difficult
and wireline logging services are impossible (without some sort of pipe
conveyance system), and where LWD logging can minimize formation
damage by reducing openhole exposure times.
Whilst providing deviation and logging options in high-angle wells is a

considerable benefit, the greatest advantage offered by LWD technology, in
either conventional or high-angle wells, is the acquisition of REAL TIME data
at surface.
Most of the LWD applications which are now considered standard, exploit
this feature in some way, and include:
• real time correlation for picking coring and casing points
• real time overpressure detection in exploration wells
• real time logging to minimise „out of target‟ sections (geosteering)
• real time formation evaluation to facilitate „stop drilling‟ decisions.
Well Logging Tools
Schlumberger geosteering tool with LWD.

Well Logging Tools
BakerHughes Inteq „Pentacombo‟ tool.

Well Logging Tools
Data transmission may be within the downhole assembly from the sensors
to a memory device or from the sensors to surface. The latter is usually
achieved by mud pulse telemetry, a method by which data are transmitted
from the tool in real time, that is as data are being acquired.
Electrical power is supplied to LWD tools either from batteries run in the
down hole assembly or from an alternator coupled to a turbine set in the
mudstream.

Perforation and Well Activation
BASIC WELL COMPLETION TECHNOLOGY
Each drilled wellbore awaiting completion is unique. Even nearby wells

drilled to the same reservoir can have different depths, formation
characteristics, and hole sizes.
It follows, then, that a wide variety of equipment designs and procedures

have been developed to provide safe, efficient conduits from subsurface
reservoirs to the surface in different situations.
In each case, the ideal completion design minimizes initial completion and
operation costs, while providing for the most profitable operation of an oil or
gas well over its entire life.
Thus in the following slides we will concentrate on the typical rig-site

procedure involved in well completions, rather than attempting to cover the
enormous number of specific completion designs practically possible.

Types of completion:
• the openhole completion - in which the producing formation is not isolated

by the casing, which extends only to the top of the producing interval

Contd….. Types of completion:
• the liner completion - which is not cemented and not "tied back" to the
surface

Contd …..Types of completion:
• the cased and perforated completion - which involves cementing the

production casing across the productive interval and then perforating the
casing for production. When a liner is cemented and perforated it could be
considered a cased and perforated completion.

One of these configurations will be the basis for the completion design,
which may incorporate one or multiple strings of tubing and a variety of
tubing components to facilitate production from one or multiple zones.
A cased and perforated well with a single tubing string will serve to illustrate
the typical completion procedure.
COMPLETION PROCEDURE
After the contract casing crew runs the final casing, cementing follows the
usual procedure, although stage cementing may be necessary to cement an
extremely long string. The production string has been hauled out to the
location and the inside diameter checked to make sure that imperfections
will not prevent the subsequent running in of tubing and packers after the
string is set.

Contd…..COMPLETION PROCEDURE
Special care must be taken to prevent the possibility of future leaks. If stage
cementing is necessary, the bottom section is first cemented in place and
then a series of plugs are pumped down the casing to open ports that allow
the upper end of the annulus to receive cement.
After the cement has set, the inside of the casing must be drilled out and
flushed clean of cement and other debris to a depth below that of the
proposed completion.

It is important that the inside diameter of the

production casing be clean and smooth. It is also
important that the cement form a competent seal
between the casing and borehole over the entire
openhole interval.
To ensure this, an acoustic cement bond log is

sometimes run on electric line to determine if
voids exist between casing and hole because
cement has bypassed the drilling fluid (figure). If
the bond is poor in an area, particularly if the
area is between productive formations, a cement
squeeze will be required. This technique
involves selectively perforating the casing and
pumping cement into the empty spaces.

Often the cement bond log is run in conjunction with a gamma ray log and a
casing collar log. The drilling engineers can correlate this gamma ray log
with the logs run earlier during formation logging. This correlation is
important because as we zero in on the target-the productive formation-the
need to locate tools precisely relative to that formation is critical.
At this point, many operators move the drilling rig off location and replace it
with a less expensive, and often less powerful, completion rig. This gives the
operator time to design the rest of the completion, provide for a sales
contract, and order equipment.
Whichever rig is used, the next step in the completion is to measure the
tubing while running it into the hole. A careful count must be kept of the
exact number of tubing joints run into the hole and their total length.
With the tubing in the hole, the BOP stack, which is now attached above the
tubing head where the tubing will hang, may be tested.
The casing may also be pressure tested, and a filtered completion fluid may
be circulated into the well to displace the drilling mud prior to perforating.
This fluid is usually a heavy brine, which provides the hydrostatic pressure
needed to control the well; but does not contain solids that can plug the
perforations and damage the formation.
If perforating is to be done at this point, the tubing is removed and the

perforating gun is lowered and positioned according to the correlation log
and casing collars. It is critical that the gun be placed precisely; once
inaccurate perforations are made, they can only be plugged off with a costly
cement "squeeze."

If perforating is to be done at this point, the tubing is removed and the

perforating gun is lowered and positioned according to the correlation log
and casing collars. It is critical that the gun be placed precisely; once
inaccurate perforations are made, they can only be plugged off with a costly
cement "squeeze."

With the well perforated, it may now be time to stimulate the well by either
acidizing or hydraulically fracturing the formation. Acid can be used to
dissolve formation-damaging particles left by the drilling mud or to eat away
portions of the rock itself, increasing the size of flow passages.
Hydraulic fracturing involves the high pressure pumping of fluid into the
formation to split the rock apart and to increase the flow capacity of tight
formations.
Normally, the next step is to run and set a completion packer, either
incorporated into the tubing string or set independently on electric wireline.
The packer is pressure tested to ensure its sealing ability. (Many shallow,
low pressure wells, however, do not require a packer to isolate the casing
from produced fluids.)

The tubing must then be "spaced out." This requires that a length of tubing
be removed from the upper end so that it can be "landed" in the tubing head,
which is some distance below the rotary table.
Once the tubing has been landed in the tubing head, a temporary plug can
be set inside the tubing while the BOP stack is removed and the surface flow
control equipment ("Christmas tree") installed. This plug is then removed
through the Christmas tree, and the well is completed.
The rig will often be moved off location at this point, allowing the well to be
"brought in." On an offshore platform, the rig may be skidded to the next well
slot.
If a rod pump is required on the well, it may be installed at this time and the
necessary rods and downhole pumping mechanism run into the tubing. If
gas lift valves have been incorporated into the tubing string, gas may be
used to blow the completion fluid out of the tubing and permit the well to flow
on its own.
In some cases, the well will be "swabbed in" at this point, by running a
close-fitting plunger into the tubing on wireline and pulling it back up, thereby
displacing the completion fluid in the tubing and allowing the formation to
flow. After an initial well test, which may be conducted with temporary test
facilities, the flow line needed to produce the well on a continuous basis will
be connected.

COMPLETION PROCEDURE : PERFORATION
The use of cemented steel casing to line the wellbore and isolate producing
zones is only practical when a method for easily reopening those zones for
production exists.
Jet perforating is the procedure whereby an explosive charge is used to

selectively open passages to the formation through the casing and cement
sheath. This method is the most widely used today, because of its versatility
and power.
Having evolved from the same technology that produced the military
bazooka, the jet perforator relies on a conical-shaped charge of explosives
to produce a high pressure stream of particles. Bullet perforators, on the
other hand, fire metal projectiles at the inside of the casing to penetrate
casing, cement, and rock.

Jet perforating guns consist of a carrier with a series

of explosive charges linked together by a detonating
cord.
A variety of gun designs exist; they vary according

to:
• whether the gun is to be run on an electric
conductor line or attached to the bottom of the
tubing;
• whether the gun is to be run through the casing on
electric line or tubing, or is to be lowered through
the tubing on electric line;
• whether the gun is retrievable following detonation
or is expendable (meaning it is destroyed when the
gun is fired);
•the diameter and length of the perforation desired.
Wider, longer perforations require larger, stronger

jet charges, and, accordingly, larger guns to hold
them. The charge itself is held in a metal case
(FIGURE) that is linked to similarly shaped charges
by a detonating cord ending in an electric detonator.
When the gun is fired, an electric current from the

surface sets off the blasting cap detonator, which
secondarily ignites the detonating cord leading to
the main explosive charges.

When a charge is fired (FIGURE), the metallic liner

collapses to form a stream of high-pressure, high-
velocity jet particles. Traveling at 30,000 ft/sec
(9100 m/sec), the jet stream strikes the casing at 15
x 106 psi (100 x 106 kPa) a fraction of a second
after detonation, displacing the metal, cement, and
rock to form a perforation.

COMPLETION PROCEDURE :
PERFORATION
Retrievable hollow carrier guns have

cylindrical steel bodies with closed
ports opposite each jet charge
(FIGURE a).
Fully expendable guns enclose the

charges in a frangible aluminum or
ceramic case that disintegrates on
firing (FIGURE b),
whereas semiexpendable guns consist

of wire or metal strip' carriers that are
retrieved after firing (FIGURE c).

Through-casing and through-tubing guns of these types differ primarily in the

diameter of the gun (3 to 5 in [7.6 to 12.7 cm] for casing guns, 1 to 2 in [2.5
to 5.1 cm] for tubing guns) and in the size of the jet charges.
After firing, the gun component' of the tubing is released with a wireline
shifting tool to allow full flow into the tubing.
In addition to perforation diameter and length, two important considerations

in all types of perforating are the shot density and phasing of the
perforations. The shot density, or shots per foot, is usually 2, 4, 8, 12, or 16
holes in each foot of perforated interval.

GUN PHASING: Phasing pertains to the direction of each successive shot

relative to its neighbors; if each charge is pointed 90 deg away from the
next, we have 90 deg phasing.
In the case of 180 deg phasing, each shot points directly opposite from the
next one in the carrier. Gun phasing can be particularly important when
perforating a fractured well, a highly deviated well, or a multiple completion,
where the gun must be oriented to avoid perforating an adjacent tubing
string.
The decision about the interval to be perforated is often made by the

geologist or by the engineer and geologist responsible for the area in which
the well is drilled.
Consideration will be given to maximizing flow rate and minimizing

production problems such as produced sand, water coning, or excessive gas
production in an oil well.
Contd….. GUN PHASING:
The decision is often made after careful review of the log and core data back
at the company office. The geologist„s input concerning net pay, sidewall
core descriptions, and the areal extent of sand intervals can be crucial in
determining the best interval to be perforated.

COMPLETION PROCEDURE : WELL STIMULATION
Well stimulation techniques like Acidizing or Fracturing is a routine part of

the completion program. Either type of stimulation may also be applied soon
after a well has been completed and has tested at lower production rates
than expected.
Stimulation may also be part of a remedial or "workover" program designed

to improve productivity following a decline in production. Stimulation will
often follow a formation pressure buildup test that was run to determine if the
cause of low productivity was i) permeability reduction near the wellbore, ii)
low permeability throughout the reservoir, or iii) low reservoir pressure.
Acid stimulation can improve the first condition, whereas fracturing is

necessary to significantly improve the second condition. Of course, the third
condition can only be helped by pressure maintenance through injection of
water or gas.

Both acidizing and fracturing pumping of fluids down the tubing or drillpipe
and into the formation.
In fracturing, the objective is to apply enough pressure to actually split the

formation apart, creating flow channels to the wellbore where either none or
few previously existed.
In most acidizing procedures, the objective is to squeeze the acid into the
existing pore spaces of the rock matrix, where it can react to enlarge the flow
channels and improve permeability.
Acid-fracturing treatments create fractures that are simultaneously widened

by acid dissolution.



COMPLETION PROCEDURE : SAND CONTROL
A certain amount of sediment will always be produced along with formation

fluids. Sand control is the technology and practice of preventing sand flow
from unconsolidated sandstone formations.
Such a problem is often found in Tertiary sediments, at shallow depths, and

in areas such as Nigeria, Indonesia, Trinidad, Venezuela, Canada, the U.S.
Gulf Coast, and the Los Angeles Basin (Patton and Abbott 1982).
Sand production leads to any or all of the following problems:
• casing collapse
• abrasion of downhole and surface equipment
• reduced productivity
• completely plugged ("sanded-up") wells

Methods for controlling sand production have generally involved one of two
approaches:
• a metal screen and sand grain barrier that screens out the formation sand
but does not inhibit fluid flow into the well bore; or
• an epoxy resin that can be injected into the formation near the well bore and
allowed to harden; this cements the sand grains together and by
consolidating them prevents their movement (sand consolidation).

Metal wire-wrapped screens and gravel packs work

in a manner analogous to a large crowd of people
trying to leave a theatre through a small door. Each
could pass through the door individually, but when
several try at once they form a "bridge" that
prevents those at the rear of the pack from moving
at all. In sand control, bridging methods employ
wire-wrapped screens or slotted casing, both of
which have carefully sized openings that allow the
formation sand to be deposited against them. In the
case of gravel packs, carefully sized clean sand is
placed outside the screen to retain the formation
sand at its outer edge (FIGURE).

Correct sizing of both the gravel pack sand and the

gravel pack screen requires knowledge of the
information about formation grain size distribution
that had been obtained from cores.
Guidelines have been developed to select sand and

screen sizes that will prevent formation sand
movement but not inhibit formation fluid flow.

Production Engineering
INTRODUCTION
Up to this point, describing the static geologic structure has been a basic
part of the exploration and development process. Wells are drilled and
logged, maps are revised, and the reservoir begins to take shape as a
volume having certain dimensions – stochastic model
But once production begins, the reservoir is only a part of a larger system
that includes the reservoir, wellbore, tubing string, artificial lift equipment,
surface control devices, gathering lines, separators, treaters, tanks, and
metering devices. All of these elements behave according to their own
specific performance relationships, but each, in turn, also depends upon and
influences the other elements.
PRODUCTION ENGINEERS are thus concerned with the interaction of

these performance relationships as production occurs over time, anticipating
performance changes and designing the system to maximize recovery of oil
and gas economically. Understanding this dynamic production system as
well as the static geologic structure is a practical objective for everyone
involved in the exploration an production effort – DYNAMIC MODELLING
COMPLETION COMPONENTS
The basis for any completion is the heavy steel pipe lining the wellbore-the
casing. Together with the cement sheath holding it in place, the casing
performs several important functions:
• supporting the sides of the hole;

• preventing communication of fluids and pressures between shallow and
deep formations;
• allowing for control of pressures; and
• providing a base for surface and subsurface equipment.

A cross section of a typical casing installation is

shown in FIGURE. The number of concentric
"strings“, their relative sizes and strengths, the
setting depths, and cementing techniques will vary
according to the depth and drilling program for the
well.
The conductor casing prevents the surface hole

from caving and it also prevents lost circulation. In
offshore situations, the drive pipe is hammered into
the mud to provide a conduit from below the
seafloor to the production deck, and the conductor
casing is set inside the drive pipe.

There may be intermediate casing strings

between surface and production casing if the
depth of the well requires it. Each casing string is
cemented in place and the production string is
perforated across the productive zone.

COMPLETION COMPONENTS : TUBING
The central downhole component of a completed well is

the production tubing (FIGURE). There are four primary
reasons for utilizing production tubing as a conduit for
producing fluids:
• It is relatively easy to remove if problems develop.
• It isolates producing fluids from the casing and makes

control of the fluids easier.
• It facilitates circulation of heavy fluids into the wellbore

to control the well.
• Its smaller diameter allows for safety devices and

artificial lift equipment to be included in the completion
design. It allows for more efficient producing rates from
lower productivity wells.
Tubing is suspended from a tubing hanger within the

wellhead at the surface, and the producing zone(s) may
be isolated by production packers in the tubing string.
A well may be completed with several strings of tubing

(dual completion, triple completion, etc.), each carrying
production from a different zone.
Some extremely productive wells produce through

casing without tubing, or through both tubing and the
casing-tubing annulus.

COMPLETION COMPONENTS : TUBING COMPONENTS
The design of a particular completion depends on:
• the number and type of productive zones;
• the expected pressures and flow rates;
• the need to control sand production;
• the need for artificial lift or stimulation; and
• the regulations governing operations in the area.

TUBING
COMPONENTS
FIGURE shows
schematic
examples of a
number of typical
completions. In
addition, the
following
definitions and
associated figures
describe the most
common
components of
those completion
examples.

TUBING
COMPONENTS
FIGURE shows
schematic
examples of a
number of typical
completions. In
addition, the
following
definitions and
associated figures
describe the most
common
components of
those completion
examples.


COMPONENTS
A) PACKERS:
The packer seals the casing-tubing annulus

with a rubber packing element, thus preventing
flow and pressure communication between
tubing and annulus.
Packers are designed either to remain in the

well permanently (FIGURE) or to be retrieved if
future downhole work is required (FIGURE).

COMPLETION COMPONENTS :
TUBING COMPONENTS
A) PACKERS: Retrievable packers

A) PACKERS:
Mechanically set packers rely on tubing or drillpipe movement to force

grooved "slips" to grip the casing and to expand the sealing element during
the setting procedure.
Hydraulically set packers are engaged by fluid pressure. Some packers can
also be set with an explosive charge triggered from the surface by an
electrical cable (electric line), or wireline.
There are a wide variety of packers available to meet the requirements of

specific completion designs.


COMPONENTS
OTHER COMPONENTS
Multistring Packer (FIGURE): The multistring

packer seals the casing-tubing annulus where
more than one tubing string is involved. Up to
five-string packers are available, but more than
a triple completion is rare because of the
difficulty of retrieval if problems develop.


COMPONENTS
Sliding Sleeve : The sliding sleeve component is

a wireline-operated sleeve, which will open or
close ports in the tubing to allow fluid in or out.
This feature is useful for circulating annular fluid
out of the hole after a packer is set, or for opening
a selective completion at a future date. This type
of component is also called a circulating sleeve.


COMPONENTS
Tubing Anchor : The tubing anchor is

essentially a packer without the sealing element
and is designed to prevent tubing but not fluid
movement. It also allows partial removal of the
tubing string.


COMPONENTS
Blast Joint : A blast joint is a section of heavy duty

tubing located opposite production perforations in a
multistring completion. It prevents erosion of the tubing
by high-velocity flow (especially with sand production).


COMPONENTS
Safety Joint : The safety joint allows for the parting of

an auxiliary tubing string beneath a multiple string
packer when the packer is being retrieved. Usually it
consists of a sleeve-type arrangement with shear pins
that part after a certain tension is reached.


COMPONENTS
Landing Nipple: Landing nipples are a variety

of short tubing components with interior profiles
that allow for the wireline setting of plugs,
safety valves, chokes, pressure gauges, etc.,
within the tubing by using the appropriate
locking device. Using a wireline to set and
retrieve production tubing equipment is
common practice in areas where pulling the
entire tubing string is difficult or expensive, for
example, offshore.
A flow coupling is a short, heavy-duty tubing

joint run above and below tubing restrictions
(safety valves, chokes, etc.) that minimize
abrasive effects of turbulent flow caused by the
restrictions.

COMPONENTS
Gas-Lift Mandrels: A gas-lift mandrel is a

tubing component that holds a gas-lift valve
which, in turn, allows the passage of gas-lift
gas between annulus and tubing. Side-
pocket mandrels allow for wireline
placement and retrieval of gas-lift valves
within the tubing string.

TUBING COMPONENTS
Subsurface Safety Valve: This component is a

valve assembly within the tubing string, which is
designed to close in case of emergency. The
valve can be an integral part of the tubing string
(tubing retrievable) or set inside the tubing with
wireline (wireline retrievable). These valves can
be surface controlled by means of hydraulic
pressure or designed to close at a certain
predetermined flow rate.

TUBING COMPONENTS
PACKERS:
Subsurface Safety Valve:

.

Tubing string components are expensive, and so is the cost of pulling the string
out of the hole should future problems arise.
A good completion design anticipates future performance problems and

provides the flexibility to handle them, while balancing completion costs
against the risk of future remedial work.

COMPLETION COMPONENTS : SURFACE FLOW CONTROL EQUIPMENTS
The valves and connections at the top of the well are often referred to
collectively as the "wellhead" or "christmas tree.“
The primary purpose of this equipment is to safely control the flow of fluids
under pressure. Other functions are sealing the annular openings between
concentric casing and tubing strings, and providing a base for blowout
control equipment during drilling operations.

The design of the entire arrangement depends on several factors:
• the expected maximum and operating pressures;

• the number and sizes of casing strings;
• the number and sizes of tubing strings;
• the need for auxiliary equipment, such as subsurface safety valves,
electrical conduits for submersible pumps, and chemical injection
equipment;
• the outside environment-onshore, offshore, or subsea;
• the inside environment: CO2 and H2S content of produced fluids or
corrosive formation water;
• the operator's safety policy and the prevailing safety regulations; and
• the operator's equipment inventory and preference for a given
manufacturer.

COMPLETION COMPONENTS : SURFACE

FLOW CONTROL EQUIPMENTS
The FIGURE shows a typical surface flow

control installation for a multiple casing string,
single tubing string, flowing well.

SURFACE FLOW CONTROL
EQUIPMENTS
The casinghead is screwed or welded to

the outermost casing stub.
The inside of the casinghead provides a

shouldered sealing surface for the casing
hanger, which grips the hanging casing
and usually allows the weight of the
casing string to provide the force
necessary to seal off the annulus
between the outer and inner casing
strings.


A casing packoff, or similar sealing

element, is sometimes used to provide
additional pressure sealing for the annulus.
Casing spools allow for additional casing
strings to be hung and sealed off above the
casinghead. During the drilling operation,
the inside of the casinghead or spool, is
protected with a temporary bushing to
prevent damage from drillpipe rotation.
Normally, the casinghead and casing

spools have at least one additional
connection designed to allow fluid access
and pressure monitoring of the concentric
annular spaces during production.

SURFACE FLOW CONTROL
EQUIPMENTS
The TUBING HEAD performs a function

similar to the casinghead, in that it
accommodates a tubing hanger
(FIGURE), which usually screws onto the
top of the tubing string(s) and seals off
the casing-tubing annulus with metal-to-
metal and/or rubber sealing elements.
Often the tubing hanger is further

secured by a series of set screws. An
adapter (also called a tubing "bonnet")
provides a transition from the tubing
head to the arrangement of valves and
fittings above the casing and tubing
head, used to control flow (the
"Christmas tree"). © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 307

In the Christmas tree, the bottom valve often

called the master valve, is the primary means
for completely shutting in the well. This and
other valves used in the tree are normally gate
valves that operate by moving a metal barrier
to block the flow stream (FIGURE).
Often, safety regulations require that one valve

be pressure-actuated to automatically shut off
flow in case of operating problem or natural
disasters. Offshore wells usually require a
downhole safety valve in addition to this
surface safety system.


The tree allows for vertical entry into the tubing

by removal of the top adapter. A "tee" - type
fitting allows for redirection of the vertical flow
stream to a horizontal flow line.
The produced fluids in the flowing well, before

entering the surface flow line, must pass
through the smallest restriction in the surface
flow equipment- the choke.
Chokes, located in the Christmas tree, provide

a means for controlling production rate by
restricting the area available for flow. This
restriction is normally a bean or orifice of a
specified diameter, and must be inserted into
the choke body. © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 309
FIGURES below show examples of surface flow control equipment for a

variety of completions.

While most manufacturers make components with bolted flange

connections, some companies also manufacture wellhead and Christmas
tree equipment with clamp connections to allow speedy assembly.
Wellhead and Christmas tree components are available for all types of
specific design situations. Most equipment can be adapted to allow that
different manufacturers' components be combined in a single installation.

SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES: INTRODUCTION
The fluid produced from a well is usually a mixture of oil, gas, water, and
sediment at elevated temperatures and pressures. The oil alone is a
complex mixture of many hydrocarbon compounds, and oils from different
reservoirs have different physical and chemical characteristics.
All crude oils have a certain amount of gas dissolved in them. A gas phase
may exist in the production stream, having come out of solution with the drop
in pressure up the tubing, or it may exist in and be produced from the
reservoir as free gas. In some cases, the only hydrocarbons found in a
reservoir exist as a gas and, thus, we have a dry gas reservoir.
Formation water may be carried in the gas state as vapor, emulsified as a

liquid with the oil, or produced as free water. Sand, silt, and clay from the
formation can be carried by the produced fluids into the wellbore and be
produced along with scale and corrosion products from the casing or tubing.
Various contaminants can be present in the oil, gas, and water. These
include CO2, H2S,and dissolved salts.
SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES
INTRODUCTION
Surface production facilities are designed to turn this mixture into separate
streams of clean, dehydrated oil and gas, and safely disposable water. Only
then can the oil and gas be metered and sold, or sent for further processing
to a plant or refinery.
Of course, the diversity of well fluid mixtures has led to the development of
an assortment of vessels to clean and separate these mixtures at various
pressures and temperatures.
Now to start with lets discuss the production stream of oil well

SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES: SEPARATION
The produced fluids leave the Christmas tree via a flow line-usually a 2- or
3-in (5- to 8-cm) pipe, which may be below or above ground at onshore
installations, or perhaps on the seafloor for a subsea completion.
Subsea completions are often equipped with TFL or through-flow-line

connections (FIGURE) whereby the flow line connects to the Christmas tree
in a smooth loop. This arrangement allows for production devices (plugs,
etc.) to actually be pumped through the flow line and into the tubing, thus
eliminating the need to disconnect any Christmas tree fittings. (A valuable
consideration if your wellhead is in 300 ft of water!)
The flow line (gathering line) generally travels by the shortest route to the
surface production facilities. If the production facilities are shared by a group
of wells, as is often the case, the flow line will probably connect to a
production manifold. This is an assembly of valves that allows each well's
flow stream to be shut in or diverted to a particular portion of the production
facilities.
Normally, a separator is the first piece of production processing equipment

the fluid stream encounters. Separators are usually classified by physical
shape. FIGURE shows the Vertical, horizontal, and spherical separator
configurations.
A conventional separator divides the produced fluid stream into oil and gas,
or liquid and gas, and is known as a gas-oil separator or gas-liquid
separator.

SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES:

SEPARATION
Sometimes separators are also called

"traps." Conventional separators can be
two-phase or three-phase depending on
whether they separate oil and gas, or oil,
gas and water.
WORKING PRINCIPLE:
The FIGURE shows two-phase, gas-liquid

separator.
The oil-gas-water mixture enters through

an inlet on the side of the tank-shaped
vessel.


SEPARATION
Contd….WORKING PRINCIPLE:
The fluid stream immediately strikes a

metal plate, which diverts the flow around
the inner surface of the cylindrical
separator, imparting a centrifugal motion.
This motion throws the liquid to the outer

edge of the cylinder and allows the gas to
remain near its center.
The lighter gas portion of the fluid stream,

now separated, rises through the center of
the vessel while the liquid falls. Some
separators have an arrangement of metal
fins at the inlet, which abruptly changes the
fluids flow direction and velocity.

SEPARATION
In this case, the liquid's higher inertia

carries it way from the gas and downward,
while the gas rises to the top of the
separator.
Still another feature of some separators is

the presence of a system of baffles, which
spread the liquid out as it drops to the
bottom of the vessel. This allows any gas
bubbles, carried in the liquid, to easily
escape.


SEPARATION
The amount of time the oil is allowed to
settle in the separator prior to being
dumped at the outlet is termed retention
time. Normal retention time is usually 30 to
90 seconds. For a given liquid flow rate
through the separator, an increase in
retention time will require an increase in
vessel size or liquid depth.
The added cast of a larger separator may

not be justified by the additional separation
of gas that a longer retention time allows.
Our surface design, then, must be based
an economical considerations as well as
system performance.
SURFACE PRODUCTION
FACILITIES: SEPARATION
The gas phase, which is directed to

the upper portion of the vessel, is
usually passed through a mist
extractor (FIGURE) to remove
minute liquid droplets entrained in
the gas. Here, three processes act
to separate liquid from the gas: flow
velocity changes; direction
changes; and impingement, e
adherence and coalescence of
liquid mist an a surface.


SEPARATION
A combination of these three processes is

incorporated into a coalescing pack-type
mist extractor (FIGURE) made of knitted
wire mesh or layers of inert particles with
shapes designed far maximum surface
area.


SEPARATION
Centrifugal-type mist extractors

(FIGURE) used in vertical separators
have a set of vanes that cause the
circular motion of gas, throwing the
heavier liquid droplets to the wall of
the vessel to drain to the bottom. Its
efficiency increases as the velocity of
the gas stream increases.

The gas flow rate through the separator is controlled by a backpressure

valve, which maintains the desired pressure in the vessel. A liquid level
controller causes oil to be discharged from the separator when the
appropriate level is reached, and prevents gas from escaping through the
liquid outlet,.
The control is usually pneumatic (gas pressure-operated), but in low-

pressure applications, an internal, float-operated lever valve is employed.

Separators are sized according to the expected oil and gas production rates,
the necessary operating pressure and temperature, and the oil and gas
properties.
For example, a vertical separator about 2 ft (.61 m) in diameter and 10 ft

(3.05 m) high, with a retention time of one minute, will handle about 1300
bbl/D (207 m3/d) of typical crude oil.
A single barrel horizontal separator 2 ft (.61 m) in diameter and 10 ft (3.05 m)

long will handle about 2000 bbl/D (318 m3/d) and a 3 ft (.91 m) diameter
spherical separator about 1100 bbl/D (175 m3/d). For comparison, 100 to
200 bbl/D (16 to 32 m3/d) is about the output of a normal garden hose.


SEPARATION
SEPARATOR TYPES:
VERTICAL: Vertical separators are

often used an low to intermediate gas-
liquid ratio well streams. They are more
readily cleaned if sand - paraffin are
produced, and occupy less floor space
an offshore platforms.
However, a vertical separator can be

mare expensive than a horizontal
separator with the same separation
capacity.


SEPARATION : SEPARATOR TYPES:
HORIZONTAL: Horizontal separators, therefore , are usually more cost

efficient, especially far high to medium gas-liquid ratio streams, for liquid-
liquid separation, and in applications where foaming oil is a problem.
Horizontal separators (fig. a) often have closely spaced horizontal baffle

plates that extract liquids. A double barrel horizontal separator (fig. b) has a
higher liquid capacity because incoming free liquid is immediately drained
away from the upper section into the lower. This allows a higher velocity gas
flow through the upper baffled-section.






SPHERICAL SEPARATORS:
Spherical separators are much more common than vertical or horizontal

types. They tend to have lower installation and maintenance costs. They are
more compact, but lack the capacity for high gas rates or liquid surges.

OIL TREATMENT
In many oil fields, following the initial gas-oil separation process, the oil must
be treated to remove water, salt, or H2S. Most pipeline quality oil must have
its water content reduced to the 0.2% to 2% by volume range.
Because salt water is generally associated with oil in the reservoir, its
production along with the oil is not unusual. Almost all well streams contain
water droplets of various sizes. If, because of their higher density, they
collect together and settle out within a reasonably short time they are called
free water.

SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES: SEPARATION :
OIL TREATMENT
The water cut measured on one or several samples of the well stream
normally refers to free water, and is expressed as the volume of water
relative to the total volume of liquid.
The sample is assumed to be representative. A free-water knockout (figure)

is a simple separation vessel located along the flow stream at a point of
minimum turbulence, where the oil and water mixture is allowed sufficient
time for its density differences to act to separate the phases.


OIL TREATMENT

OIL TREATMENT
A more difficult separation problem arises when the oil and water are
produced as an emulsion. Most oilfield emulsions are the water-in-oil type,
where individual water particles are dispersed in a continuous body of oil
(figure).


SEPARATION :
OIL TREATMENT
An inverted, or oil-in-water, emulsion can also occur, especially when the

ratio of water to oil is very high. Two things are necessary to produce an
emulsion of water and oil: agitation and an emulsifying agent.
As well fluids move through the formation, through the perforations and
completion equipment, up the tubing and through a choke, turbulence and
mechanical mixing provide the agitation necessary to disperse the droplets
of water throughout the oil phase, or droplets of oil throughout the water
phase.
Many crude oils also contain carbonates, sulfates, and finely divided solids,
which may act as emulsifying agents. These agents increase the stability of
the interfacial films separating the dispersed and continuous phases.


SEPARATION :
OIL TREATMENT
In order to "break" the emulsion and separate the oil from the water, a
variety of processes have been developed.
Treating vessels, which utilize more than one treating process to attack
particularly stable or "tight” emulsions, are common.
Chemical treatment uses chemical action to rupture the tough film

surrounding the dispersed droplets. The selection of the most effective
chemical demulsifier for a given crude oil-water emulsion is usually a trial-
and-error process.
Chemicals are normally added continuously to the produced fluids, as far

upstream from the treating or separation facilities as possible. Heat
treatment to reduce the viscosity of the emulsion and promote gravity
segregation is also used in treating
© : Dr. Arko emulsions.
Prava Mukherjee 335

SEPARATION :
OIL TREATMENT : DIRECT HEATERS
In direct heaters, the crude oil

emulsion is passed through a coil of
pipe that is exposed to a direct flame.
In indirect heaters the pipe carrying
the emulsion passes through a water
bath, which obtains its heat from a
fire-tube. Sometimes an internal
heater is used in a "gunbarrel"
treater-an older but still useful treating
method shown in FIGURE.
Here the emulsion flows into the

central flume and enters the tank at
the bottom, rising through a water
layer heated by internal coils.

SEPARATION :
OIL TREATMENT : HEATER TREATERS
Heater-treaters (figure) heat the emulsion

and separate the oil and water in the same
processing vessel.
The raw emulsion is preheated by the

warm, clean oil leaving the vessel, and the
water level is controlled by a siphon.
Collision and coalescence of dispersed
water droplets in an emulsion can be
accomplished by inducing electrical
charges in the particles through the
application of an electric field.

OIL TREATMENT : ELECTROSTATIC TREATERS
Electrostatic treaters are normally horizontal vessels, such as those shown

in FIGURE. The emulsion enters this form of treater and passes through an
initial separating section where it is heated and must pass upward through a
water layer. Any emulsion not yet broken then rises through an electrically
charged grid. The salt water droplets then become dipoles with oppositely
charged ends.
The droplets are attracted to one another. They collide, coalesce, and form
larger drops until they are heavy enough to settle to the water section of the
vessel and be drained. Electrostatic forces can be hundreds of times greater
than the gravitational forces acting to separate oil and water in a
conventional treater.


OIL TREATMENT : ELECTROSTATIC TREATERS

OIL TREATMENT :
Most produced oil still contains small amounts of emulsified water with solids
dispersed within it even after separation and treatment. Contract
specifications require that this BS&W (Basic Sediment and Water) be
reduced to a small percentage before sale. Even such small amounts of
water can still cause problems, particularly if the salinity is high.

SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES: OIL METERING
Crude oil metering can be classified as either the automatic or manual

measurement of the produced oil volume.
The types of automatic measurement devices can be subdivided into four

classes: positive volume, positive displacement, turbine, and mass flow
meters.
Manual "gauging" of oil production involves a hand measurement of oil

level in a storage tank before and after oil is removed to the sales line.
Appropriate samples are taken from the tanks to ensure the oil is of pipeline
quality. This approach is still used in some areas but most measurement
techniques utilized in large fields, offshore, or in recently developed areas,
involve automatic measurement.

POSITIVE VOLUME METERING involves the filling of a predetermined

volume, the automatic discharge of that volume by liquid level-actuated
valves, and the recording of the discharge by some type of counter.
Positive volume meters may be found in metering separators and heater-

treaters, dump tank meters, and weir tanks. Some separators and treaters
are equipped with liquid level controlled valves, which periodically release
volumes of oil or liquid and record the action.
When several wells produce to a central tank battery, this type of vessel may
be used for individual well tests, but the final metering of commingled oil is
often accomplished by using a series of tanks as shown in FIGURE


SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES: OIL

METERING
At least two tanks are required-one to

collect the surge of production, and one to
act as a measuring volume to be filled
and emptied in to the pipeline. If
continuous rather than intermittent flow to
the sales pipeline is required, additional
tanks may be needed to allow for
alternate filling and discharge, and to
provide a full sump tank from which oil
can be pumped to the sales line.
Sometimes these functions can be

combined in a single vessel where an
enclosed tank (figure) is filled and
emptied to another portion of the vessel
for transfer. There are several versions of
this system available. © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 344
POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT METERS are highly efficient fluid motors used

for measuring oil volumes. They consist of a measuring chamber and a
sealing section between the inlet and outlet connections (FIGURE) .These
rneters are operated by fluid pressure. The fluid stream is divided into
segments within the meter and the movement of these segments through
the meter is registered on a counter.

ELECTRIC METERING : For electric metering, the movement of the counter

transmits an electrical pulse or signal. Because each pulse represents a
discrete volume, the total number of pulses, integrated over time, represents
the volume metered. The signals are amplified, then converted and
displayed as totalized flow via electronic instrumentation.
-----------------
LEGAL PROCESSES: When oil or gas is delivered into a sales line at a
metering point, a legal custody transfer takes place. In many cases this is
accomplished before the oil or gas leaves the lease on which it is produced.
In offshore situations, the produced fluids may travel quite some distance to
shore before being separated, metered, and transferred to the sales line.
Lease Automatic Custody Transfer (LACT) refers to a system designed to

provide continuous unattended transfer of crude oil from the producer to the
pipeline. This approach is particularly useful where large numbers of wells
are located in a remote area. In addition to accurately metering the liquid,
the unit must also monitor the quality (BS&W) of the production, or obtain a
representative sample at line
© :conditions.
Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 346
Contd……LEGAL PROCESSES:
LACT units utilize positive displacement-type oil meters, and some

incorporate a capacitance probe, which determines the BS&W content of the
oil by measuring the dielectric constant of the passing fluid. If the crude is
not of pipeline quality, it is automatically diverted for reprocessing.


SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES: ARTIFICIAL LIFT
Introduction
If the producing bottomhole pressure becomes so low that it will not allow
the well to produce at a desired flow rate (or perhaps any flow rate!), some
sort of artificial energy supply will be needed to lift or help lift the fluid out of
the wellbore.
Energy can be supplied indirectly by injecting water or gas into the reservoir
to maintain reservoir pressure, or through a variety of artificial lift methods
that are applied at the producing well itself.
There are many artificial lift methods, however, all are variations or
combinations of three basic processes:
1. lightening of the fluid column by gas injection (gas lift);
2. Subsurface pumping (beam pumps, hydraulic pumps, electric
submersible centrifugal pumps); and
3. Piston like displacement of liquid slugs (plunger lift).
ARTIFICIAL LIFT
Introduction
The relative usage of the common artificial

lift methods in the United States is shown in
FIGURE.
Sucker rod or beam pumping is the most

common method (85%), with gas lift
second (10%), and then electrical
submersible and hydraulic pumping
about equal (2%) in usage. Plunger lift and
several variations of all these processes are
in limited use.

Introduction
The prominence of sucker rod pumping is due, in part, to the large number
of shallow, low productivity wells in the midwestern and western United
States, which are pumped with beam pumps.
If stripper well production is removed from consideration, the relative

percentages of artificial lift usages are 27% for beam pumping, 53% for gas
lift, and about 10% each for electrical submersible and hydraulic pumping.
Remember, this distribution does not always hold in specific areas. For
example, gas lift is used almost exclusively offshore where space and
operating costs are major considerations.
Also, submersible pumps are gaining in popularity in onshore areas of the

United States. Beam pumping is seldom used in parts of the world where
wells produce at high production rates.
SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES: ARTIFICIAL
LIFT
Gas lift
Gas lift provides artificial lifting energy by the injection

of gas into or beneath the fluid column. The gas
decreases the fluid density of the column and lowers
the bottomhole pressure, allowing the formation
pressure to move more fluid into the wellbore.
Note the effect of decreasing the bottomhole pressure

on production rate in FIGURE. Injected gas bubbles
also expand as they rise in the tubing above their
injection point, pushing oil ahead of them up the
tubing. The degree to which each of these
mechanisms affects the well's production rate depends
on the type of gas lift method applied: continuous flow
or intermittent flow.
LIFT
Gas lift
Continuous flow gas lift relies on the constant

injection of gas-lift gas into the production stream
through a downhole valve (FIGURE). The installation
can be designed to allow for injection from the
casing/tubing annulus into the tubing (most common),
for injection into a smaller concentric tubing string
within the production tubing ("macaroni" string), or for
injection from the tubing into the casing/tubing annulus
(annular flow installation).
The fluid column above the injection point is lightened

by the aeration caused by the relatively low density
gas. The resulting drop in bottornhole pressure causes
an increase in production rate.
LIFT
Gas lift
Intermittent gas lift (FIGURE) allows for the huildup
of a liquid column of produced fluids at the bottom of
the wellbore. At the appropriate time, a finite volume of
gas is injected below the liquid and propels it as a slug
to the surface. The propelling gas may be injected at a
single point below the liquid slug or may be
supplemented by multipoint injection as the slug
moves past successive valves.
An intermitter at the surface controls the timing of

each injection-production cycle. Intermittent gas lift is
used on wells with low fluid volumes, a high
productivity index, and low bottornhole pressure, or a
low productivity index and high bottomhole pressure.
Gas lift is a very flexible artificial lift method. A properly
designed installation can produce efficiently at a rate
as high as 1000 bbl/D (159 m3/d) or as low as 50
bbl/D (7.9 m3/d).
LIFT
Gas lift valves
There are a number of gas-lift valves that are used in

gas-lift operations. They are distinguished by their
sensitivity to the casing and/or tubing pressures
needed to open and close them (FIGURE).
The casing pressure operated valve (also called a

pressure valve) requires a buildup in casing pressure
to open and a reduction in casing pressure to close.
Fluid-operated valves require a buildup in tubing

pressure to open and a reduction in tubing pressure to
close.
A throttling pressure valve is sensitive to tubing
pressure in the open position, and once opened by
casing pressure buildup, requires a reduction in tubing
or casing pressure to close.
LIFT : Gas lift valves
For a specific gas-lift design, the valves will be

located at appropriate intervals in the tubing string.
The type of valve and its location will depend on the
expected flow characteristics of the well over its
lifetime, whether continuous or intermittent gas lift is
to be used, and whether the upper valves are to be
used for simply unloading the fluid in the annulus or
for multipoint injection.
Conventional gas-lift valves are attached to gas-lift

mandrels and wireline retrievable gas-lift valves are
set in side-pocket mandrels (figure). For
conventional valves to be changed or serviced, the
entire tubing string must be pulled, while retrievable
valves can be latched and set through tubing with a
wireline unit.
Rod Pumping
Subsurface pumping can be achieved by various methods. The most

common is sucker rod pumping, where the pumping motion is transmitted
from the surface to the pump by means of a string of narrow jointed rods
placed within the tubing.

ARTIFICIAL LIFT : Rod Pumping
Rod pumping systems (figure) consist

essentially of five components:
• the subsurface pump, which displaces

the fluid at the bottom of the well and
thereby reduces bottomhole pressure;
• the rod string, which transmits power to

the pump from the surface;
• the surface unit, which transfers rotating

motion to a linear oscillation of the rod
string; and,
• the gear reducer, which controls the

speed of the motor or engine that is the
prime mover.
SURFACE PRODUCTION FACILITIES: ARTIFICIAL LIFT : Rod Pumping
The subsurface pump (figure) is essentially a plunger and valve

arrangement within a tube or barrel. When the close-fitting plunger is lifted
within the barrel, it creates a low-pressure region below the plunger, which is
filled by fluid from the formation.
Simultaneously, the plunger and rods lift fluid up the tubing. The valves are
designed to open and close so that they allow fluids to enter the pump on
the upstroke and be displaced above the traveling valve on the downstroke
the fluid above the traveling valve moves one full stroke upward on the
upstroke. There is a wide variety of pumps designed for many different
applications.

The subsurface pump (figure)

The different types of API pump designations are given in the next figure.
The API (American Petroleum Institute) has designed a classification system
using the criteria listed in the following:
• tubing size
• pump bore size
• rod or tubing pump
• barrel-type
• plunger-type
• pump seating assembly location
• traveling or stationary barrel
• type of seating assembly
• barrel length
• plunger length
• extensions

The
different
types of
API pumps

SURFACE PRODUCTION
FACILITIES:
ARTIFICIAL LIFT :
Rod Pumping
The sucker rods are usually

about 25 ft (7.62 m) long and are
connected with threaded
couplings. In deep wells, a
tapered string of rods,
decreasing in diameter with
depth, can be run to maximize
strength at the point of maximum
load-the top of the string (figure).

The surface unit also varies in design and size. Typical designs are the
conventional (Class I) and the Mark II or air balanced units (Class III units)
(figure) . Unit sizes are designated by torque rating, peak load, and stroke
length.
They can range from a unit with a 16-in (.406-m) stroke and a maximum load
of 3200 lb (1451 kg), to one with a 300-in (7.62-m) stroke and a maximum
load of 47,000 lb (21,319 kg). The torque rating for the gear reducer of these
two units varies by a factor of 570.
Rod pumping meets a wide range of artificial lift needs with typical producing
rates from 5 to 600 bbl/D (.795 to 95.4 m3/d).


ARTIFICIAL LIFT : Rodless Pumping
The majority of rodless subsurface pumps fall into two categories: hydraulic
and electrical submersible centrifugal.
Hydraulic pumps rely on the use of a high-pressure power fluid pumped

from the surface to operate a downhole fluid engine. The engine, in turn,
drives a piston to pump formation fluid and spent power fluid to the surface
(figure).

Most engine/pump units can be circulated

in and out of the well for maintenance.
The power fluid system can be either

open (OPF) or closed (CPF) depending
on whether the power fluid is commingled
with the produced fluids or is returned to
the surface in a closed conduit.
In addition to the downhole equipment,

this type of pumping system requires a
surface power fluid pump and a power
fluid reservoir. The power fluid is normally
crude oil or water. Hydraulic pumps have
a fairly wide range of production rate
applications, typically 135 to 15,000 bbl/D
(21.5 to 2385 m3/d)
Electrical submersible centrifugal pumps are a second type of rodless

pumping system. In figure, we see a typical system layout. Electrical power
is supplied via a bank of transformers that convert primary line voltage to
system voltage.
A switchboard provides
instrumentation for control and
overload protection. The junction
box acts as a vent to prevent gas,
which may have migrated up the
power cable, from reaching the
electrical switchboard.
Power is transmitted through the

power cable to an electric motor
at the bottom of the tubing string.
The motor is isolated from well
fluids by a protector. © : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 369
Electrical submersible centrifugal pumps…contd
Above that is a gas separator and the motor driven

pump, which normally is a multistage centrifugal
pump (figure). These pumps can handle a wide range
of rates-from 200 to 60,000 bbl/D (31.8 to 9540
m3/d).
----------------------------------
Rod and rodless pumping systems achieve a

reduction in bottornhole pressure by mechanical
displacement of fluid up the tubing.

ARTIFICIAL LIFT : Plunger lift
A third artificial lift process involves the use of gas to power a plunger the
length of the tubing string-in effect, a gas-lift powered pump that utilizes the
entire tubing string as the barrel.
Plunger lift is typically an intermediate artificial lift method for wells that
ultimately must be pumped but have a low productivity index (PI) and a high
enough gas-oil ratio to operate the plunger.
------------------------
Several variations on the methods mentioned have been proposed and

tested by producers and service companies. These include: jet pumping, a
hydraulic pump, which uses a nozzle to transfer power fluid momentum
directly to the produced fluid; chamber lift, a gas-lift installation, which allows
for production from low PI wells without the backpressure from injected gas;
and modified rod pumping unit designs, such as the winch- or pneumatic-
type pumping unit.
ARTIFICIAL LIFT : Summary
There are a variety of artificial lift methods available to the production

engineer. The particular method chosen for a given well will depend on
factors such as the pressures, fluid types, space limitations, power
requirements, well depth, and operation experience.
While gas lift is the major method employed offshore, rod pumping is the
most widely used artificial lift method onshore, an in general.

Refining, Transportation and Distribution
REFINING
BACKGROUND

CASE ‘B’ = OIL WELL:
As mentioned earlier in the „separator‟ section – As the gas and liquid enter
the larger space, the "beer bottle" effect happens. The pressure drops
further and light gases that were dissolved in the crude oil vaporize and
bubble out.
Just like the fizz in a beer when you pop the top. Natural gas is drawn off the
top of the separator, and crude oil from the side. Almost every reservoir also
has water vapor entrained in the oil and gas, and almost all of that separates
in the field separator and is drawn off the bottom. The crude oil comes out off
above the water.
The natural gas coming from this well is called associated gas.

CASE ‘A’ = GAS WELL:
The production from this well is called nonassociated gas or gas well gas.
In most cases, some oil is dissolved in the gas.
When the gas from the wellhead goes through a field separator, the heaviest
hydrocarbons drop out in the form of liquids called condensate, which are
like a very light crude oil.
Sometimes the gas production has almost no hydrocarbons heavier than

butane, in which case it is referred to as dry gas.

The production from this well is called nonassociated gas or gas well gas.
In most cases, some oil is dissolved in the gas.
When the gas from the wellhead goes through a field separator, the heaviest
hydrocarbons drop out in the form of liquids called condensate, which are
like a very light crude oil.
Sometimes the gas production has almost no hydrocarbons heavier than

butane, in which case it is referred to as dry gas.
The distinction between associated and non associated gas is not important
chemically, but only from a management point of view.
Natural gas consumption varies with seasonal change or may have limited
market access, especially if the well is in a remote location (then called
stranded gas).
Producers may have a ready market for the crude oil but not the gas. The
penalty for shutting in the gas is huge because the oil would have to be shut
in as well.
Historically, in every part of the world, unmarketable gas was flared, or

burned on site. Nowadays, in the case of stranded gas, it is more likely re-
injected into the reservoir, saving it for later production and meanwhile
enhancing the produce ability of the crude oil.
The basic constituent of natural gas is methane, but despite the fact that the
natural gas has gone through a field separator, some hydrocarbons heavier
than methane (but not as heavy as condensate) may still remain in the vapor
stream. The natural gas may be processed in a gas processing plant, or
simply gas plant (fig), for the removal of these natural gas liquids (NGLs).

Producers may have a ready market for the crude oil but not the gas. The
penalty for shutting in the gas is huge because the oil would have to be shut
in as well.
Historically, in every part of the world, unmarketable gas was flared, or

burned on site. Nowadays, in the case of stranded gas, it is more likely re-
injected into the reservoir, saving it for later production and meanwhile
enhancing the produce ability of the crude oil.
The basic constituent of natural gas is methane, but despite the fact that the
natural gas has gone through a field separator, some hydrocarbons heavier
than methane (but not as heavy as condensate) may still remain in the vapor
stream. The natural gas may be processed in a gas processing plant, or
simply gas plant (fig), for the removal of these natural gas liquids (NGLs).

GAS Plants
The NGLs consist of ethane, propane, butanes, and natural gasoline. The
first three are volatile and gaseous at room temperature. By itself natural
gasoline is liquid at room temperature, but it can remain gaseous when
mixed with enough natural gas.
Sometimes the natural gasoline and the butanes content can be large
enough, perhaps 10%or more, that during cold winter months they can
condense (liquefy) in a natural gas transmission line. The buildup of the
liquid in low spots in the line can reduce the capacity of the pipeline or, more
seriously, droplets can damage the turbines that push the gas through the
pipeline system. For that reason, some gas streams must be processed in
gas plants to remove these components.
Besides these operational aspects of removing butane and natural gasoline,

there is often an economic incentive to remove them, as well as the propane
and the ethane, at the gas plant. These streams may be worth more in other
markets than being sold as constituents of natural gas.

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By: DR.

ARKO PRAVA MUKHERJEE

An Introduction to the Petroleum Industry - Fagan, A

Petroleum Geoscience - Jon Gluyas

Geology & Geophysics in Oil Exploration – M. Sroor

Non-technical guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration,

Handbook of Petroleum Analysis (for Chemical Engg) –

A first course in Petroleum Technology – D. A.T.

Geology of Petroleum – A. I. Leverson

Refer : UPES E-resource link

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 2

What is Upstream sector ?

The Upstream sector involves

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 4

What is general stages in the Upstream sector ?

Access phase – Explor. – Appraisal – Dev. planning – Production – Decomm.

Decision making? Both in Mega – and Minor - Scale

Decision maker (Sr. Management)

HSE 2 Petroleum Engineers

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 5

High fluctuations of crude prices In last 3-4 months has been

The WTI crude is currently prices around $97/barrel

The Brent crude is currently prices around $117/barrel

The E&P activity has increased all over the world.

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 6

Crude oil consumption (2010) around 2.98 million barrels/day

Production is 752,000 barrels/day

India is importing around 75% of its oil needs

The exploitation activity for unconventional sources such as CBM has

The Indian government is planning to put up Shale Gas blocks on bid in

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 7

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 8

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 9

Each activity is driven by a business need related to that particular phase. In

Fig: The field

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 10

Each activity is driven by a business need related to that particular phase. In

Fig: The field

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 11

FIELD LIFE CYCLE

Step 1 : GAINING ACCESS PHASE

Technical aspects will include the potential size of hydrocarbons to be found

Political and economic considerations include political regime and

FIELD LIFE CYCLE

Contd ….Step 1 : GAINING ACCESS PHASE

Environmental considerations: The company will also consider the

FIELD LIFE CYCLE

Contd ….Step 1 : GAINING ACCESS PHASE

The invitation to participate may be publicly announced, in the form of a

FIELD LIFE CYCLE

Contd ….Step 1 : GAINING ACCESS PHASE

The investment made during the Gaining Access phase may be

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 15

FIELD LIFE CYCLE

Step 2 : EXPLORATION PHASE

Fortunately, the development of new exploration techniques has improved

Despite such improvements, exploration remains a high-risk activity. Many

FIELD LIFE CYCLE

Contnd ….Step 2 : EXPLORATION PHASE

Traditionally, investments in exploration are made many years before there

Fig: Phasing and

© : Dr. Arko Prava Mukherjee 18

FIELD LIFE CYCLE

Contnd ….Step 2 : EXPLORATION PHASE