Journal of Petroleum & Environmental Biotechnology

Volume loss modeling for lost circulation, Hartha formation, South Rumalia Field, Iraq

6^th International Conference on Petroleum Engineering

June 29-30, 2017|Madrid, Spain

Ridha Gharbi

Kuwait Oil Company, Kuwait

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Pet Environ Biotechnol

Abstract:

Development of producing reservoirs using horizontal wells is now common in primary, secondary and tertiary oil recovery processes. However in Kuwait, most of the existing wells are vertical wells and at the same time there are several reservoirs in which horizontal wells could significantly improve the oil production. Because of the large surface area associated with them, the production of oil by horizontal wells can be very efficient. In fact, the performance of horizontal wells can reach an order of magnitude higher than that of vertical wells. However, reservoir heterogeneity and the existence of fractures can conspire to make the production process less efficient. Therefore, there should be a need for a comprehensive understanding of the performance behavior of horizontal wells before they are tried in the field. This study discusses the steps undertaken to develop and evaluate a small-scale simulation model of a candidate reservoir in order to investigate the benefit if/any of using horizontal wells as a new production strategy. A systematic approach was followed to design and study the performance of several scenarios in order to recommend future management and production strategies under which the use of horizontal wells in this reservoir may yield better recovery. Sensitivity analysis of horizontal well length, well location, orientation and well completion on the reservoir performance were investigated. In each case, the reservoir performance using horizontal wells was compared to that of using vertical well. This study has resulted in significant new insights into the performance of horizontal well in this reservoir. Results from this study show that the use of horizontal wells is a very attractive management strategy even with a short lateral horizontal well length. An optimum horizontal well configuration was obtained that includes well location, orientation, lateral horizontal well length and the penetrated layers.

Biography :

Email: rgharbi@kockw.com