Chapter I Rotary Drilling Process The objectives of this chapuer are (1) 10 familiarize the wiadent with the basic rotary drilling equipment and operational procedures ant Q) tw introduce the stu dent to drilling cost evaluation. 1.1 Drilling Team ‘The large investments required to drill for oil and gas are made primarily by oil companies. Small oil companies invest. mostly in the shallow, les expensive wells drilled on land in the United States. Investments in expensive offshore and non-US. wells can be afforded only by large oil compan Drilling costs have become so great in many arcas that several major oil companies often will form groups to share the financial risk, Many specialized talents are required to drill a well safely and economically. As in most complex in- dustries, many different service companies, con- actors, and consullanis, each with its own organization, have evolved 10 provide necessary services and skills. Specialized groups within the major oil companies also have evolved. A staff of drilling engineers is generally identifiable as one of these groups. A.well is classified as a wildcat well if ts purpose is lo discover a new petroleum reservoir. In contrast, the purpose of a development well is (0 exploit Inown reservoir. Usually the geological group recommends wildcat well locations, while the reservoir engineering group recommends develop- ment well locations. The drilling engineering group makes the preliminary well designs and cost estimates for the proposed well. ‘The legal group secures the necessary drilling and production rights and establishes clear title and right-of-way for access. Surveyors establish and stake the well location. Usually the drilling is done by a drilling contractor. Once the decision to drill the well is made by management, the drilling engineering group prepares a more detailed well design and writes the bid specifications. The equipment and procedures that the operator will require, together with a. well description, must be included in the bid specifications and drilling contract, In areas where previous experience has shown drilling to be routine, the bid basis may be the cost per foot of hole drilled i areas where costs cannot be estimated with reasonable certainty, the bid basis is usually a contract price per day. In some cases, the bid is based fon cost per foot down to a certain depth or formation ‘and cost per day beyond that point. When the well is being financed by more than one company, the well plan and drilling contract: must be approved by drilling cagineers representing the various companies involved. Before the drilling contractor can begin, the surface location must be prepared (0 accommodate the specific rig. Water wells may have to be drilled to supply the requirements for the drilling operation. The surface preparation must be suited to local terrain and supply problems; thus, it varies widely from area to area. In the marshland of south Louisiana, drilling usually is performed using an inland barge. The only drillsite preparation required is the dredging of a stip to permit moving the barge to location. In contrast, drillsite preparation in the Canadian Arctic Islands requires construction of a manmade ice platform and extensive supply and storage facilities. Fig. 1.1 shows an inland barge on location in the marsh area of south Louisiana and Fig. 1.2 shows a drillsite in the Canadian Arctic Islands, Afler drilling begins, the manpower required to drill the well and solve any drilling problems that occur are provided by (1) the drilling contractor, (2) the well operator, (3) various drilling service com panies, and (4) special consultants. Final authority rests cider with die drilling contractor when the rigis| drilling ona cost-per-foot basis or with the well operator when the rig is drilling om a cost-per-day basi Fig. 1.3 shows a typical drilling organization often used by the drilling contractor and well operator when a well is drilled on a cost-per-day basis. The Grilling engineer recommends the drilling procedures thar will allow the well to be drilled as safely and economically ss possible. Int many eases, the original well plan must be modified as drilling progresses because of unforeseen circumstances. These ations also awe the responsibility of dhe company representative, usin te decisions concerning illing operitions and other serviees aveded. The rig operation aid Fig personel supervision are the responsibility of te tool pusher, . the well phi, nztkes the onAPPLIED ORILUING ENGINEERING Fig, 1.1=Texaco diling barge Gibbens on location In Fig, 4.2—Man.made Ice platform in deep water arva of Lafitte field, Louisiana, the Canadian Arctic Islands, eee] | meme) | | ee (Es | [est ra ee [oti tten] eatin) [ses] [ane | coma eae | [sve2tti ecw: ] =e eH ) age = Fig. 1.3 Typical ariling rig organizations.HOLAHY DRILLING PROCESS: comrexrons) [noe] care] [rare ay ~The rotary drilling process. Rotary drilling rigs are used for almost all drilling done today. A sketch illustrating the rotary drilling process is shown in Fig. 1.4. The hole is drilled by rotating a bit to which a downward force is applied. Generally, the bit is turned by rotating the entire rillscring, using a rotary table at the surface, and the downward force is applied to the bit by using sections of heavy thick-walled pipe, ealled drill collars, in the drillstring above the bit. The cuttings are lifted to the surface by circulating a fluid down the drillstring, through the bit, and up the annular space between the hole and ‘the drillstring. The cuttings are separated from the drilling fluid at the surface. As shown in Fig. 1.5, rotary drilling rigs can be classified broadly as land rigs or marine rigs. The main design features of land rigs are portability and maximum operating depth. The derrick of the conventional land rig must be built on location. In many cases the derrick is left over the hole after the well is completed. In the early days of drilling, many of these standard derricks were built quite close together as a field was developed. However, because Of the high cost of construction, most modern land rigs are built so that the derrick ean be moved easily and reused. ‘The various rig components are skid- mounted so that the rig can be moved in units and connected easily. The jackknife, or cantilever, Gerrick (Fig, 1.6) is assembled on the ground with pins and then raised as unit using the rig-hoisting equipment. The portable mast (Fig. 1.7), which is suitable for moderate-depth wells, usually is counted on wheeled trucks or trailers that corporate the hoisting machinery, engines, and |_ co) [Fewoanas Fig. 1.5 Classification of rotary ailing rigs derrick as a single unit. The telescoped portable mast is raised to the vertical position and then extended to full height by hydraulic pistons on the unit. ‘The main design features of marine rigs are portability and maximum water depth of operation. Submersible drilling barges generally are used for inland water drilling where wave action is not severe ‘and water depths are less than about 20 ft. The entire rig is assembled on the barge, and the unit is towed to the location and sunk by flooding the barge. Once drilling is completed, the water is pumped from the barge, allowing it to be moved (o the next location After the well is completed, a platform must be built to protect the wellhead and to support the surface production equipment. In some cases, the operating water depth has been extended to about 40 ft by ‘esting the barge on a shell mat built on the seafloor. Offshore exploratory érilling usually is done using self-contained rigs that can be moved easily. When water depth is less than about 350 ft, bottom supported rigs can be used. The most comunon type of bottom-supported mobile rig is the jackup (Fig. 1.8). The jackup rig is towed to location with the legs elevated. On location, the legs are lowered to the bottom and the platform is “jacked up” above the wave action by means of hydraulic jacks. ‘Semisubmersible rigs that can be flooded similar to an inland barge can drill resting on bottom as well as, in a floating position. However, modern semisub- metsible rigs (Fig. 1.9) are usually more expensive than jackup rigs and, thus, are used mostly in water depths too great for resting on bottom. AL present, most semisubmersible rigs are anchored over the hole, A few semisubmersible rigs employ large engines to position the rig aver the hale dynamically This can extend greatly the maximum operating water depth, Some of these rigs can be used in water 63615