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DC Sept08 DeepwaterCementing PDF
DC Sept08 DeepwaterCementing PDF
the pressure-depleted interval. The lengths. Reductions in surge effect have as possible and has sufficient pass-
planned completion program consisted been accomplished by using a more com- through diameter for the launcher at
of sidetracking out of the original well- pact launcher assembly with a flapper the bottom of the liner assembly.
bore through a 10 ¾ x 9 7/8-in. tieback at valve that allows for better filling while
14,000 ft and directionally drilling an 8 running the liner into the wellbore. • While milling to clean up the whip-
½-in. pilot hole to planned TD. stock window, extra care should be
These improvements have led to mini- taken to assure that all debris are
The hole would subsequently be opened mizing surge effects of weak formations removed and not accumulated at or
to a 9 ½-in. hole size to run a 7 5/8-in. pro- and provide a major saving on potential below the window exit.
duction liner. During drilling operations mud losses, which translates into better
through the production interval, wellbore hole conditions for cementing operations. • Give attention to the possibility that
pressures indicated that it would not be Hole size and preparation should be debris might have accumulated just
possible to continue without encounter- satisfactory to accept the liner for pass- below the window section and might
ing significant losses. To still reach lower through plus adequate final expansion. be circulated back once the liner is at
objectives and complete with a 7-in. pro- setting depth.
duction liner, the use of a 7 5/8 in. x 9 5/8- In the GC 243 project, an 8 ½-in. hole
was initially drilled, followed with a hole • Consider whipstocks with longer whip
in. expandable liner installation became blades that provide lower doglegs for
critical to the well’s success. Because opener run to increase the hole size from
8 ½ in. to 9 ½ in. to the planned liner- more compatibility with expandable
there were secondary completion objec- liners.
tives behind this installation, it was also shoe setting depth. Before running the
critical to obtain a TOC back to 17,000 ft. liner, an open-hole caliper log was run to • Directional control in the open hole
obtain formation data and confirm the just past the window exit should be
open-hole size and volume. When consid-
JOB PLANNING ering the installation of an expandable
performed carefully. This helps to
avoid creating unfavorable doglegs
Solid (no slots, holes, screens, etc.) liner to be run through a milled window, that might create problems for run-
expandable tubular technology has extra precaution regarding the window ning and expanding the liner.
proven its reliability in meeting the chal- dressing should be considered. As noted
lenges of a wide range of applications in in a previous paper (Grant 2005), the fol-
the deepwater arena. Engineered system lowing should be considered: HOW THEY WORK
improvements over a number of years In Figure 1, the expandable principle is
have led to enhancements in the launch- • Extra mill runs may be necessary to illustrated. The casing is lowered to set-
er assembly to satisfy longer setting help ensure the window is as clean ting depth with a cone in an expanded
ZONAL ISOLATION AND CEMENTING
ing, the operator pumped cement slurry through the drill pipe. • Liner length, 6,867 ft.
A properly designed spacer system used Figure 4: The new deviated section is ready for perforating, fracturing and other comple-
ahead of a cementing system should tion procedures. Expanding the casing into the unset cement helps ensure a good bond
provide separation of incompatible fluids
of casing to cement and cement sheath to wellbore.
(cement-mud interface) and displace
residual mud when traveling down the package with engineered water-wetting ing an expandable cementing operation,
drill pipe tube and between the liner characteristics as determined by lab the spacer/surfactant system must also
and formation. In conjunction with the testing (Heathman 2000). When perform- provide (1) stability for prolonged peri-
weighted spacer is a surfactant-design
JOB EXECUTION
Weighted-spacer (with surfactant)
volumes used ahead of the cementing
operation consisted of adequate length
in the annulus to account for 1,000 ft.
Because no dart-and-wiper plug was
provided ahead of the cementing opera-
tion, extra spacer volume was used to
effectively displace and provide residual
water-wetting characteristics to pipe and
Figure 5: A temperature simulation based on well conditions and planned pump rates formation. A small volume of weighted
spacer was also used behind the cement
to perform the job was performed for thickening-time tests. The tests were performed
for separations between cement, drill
using a modified schedule to simulate liner expansion. pipe dart and mud displacement.
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS
Solid expandable tubulars offer the
industry an excellent solution for gain-
ing a pipe size for completions when
well conditions necessitate the setting of
additional drilling liner. For operators to
take full advantage of expandable liner
technology, a successful cementing job is An engineering design program shows the final fluids position in the cement program
critical. (Figure 7, above) and the downhole pressure profile (Figure 8, below).
Without a successful cement job, the
expandable installation itself can be
jeopardized by complicating and, in
some cases, preventing remaining well
operations from moving forward. For
this reason, a well-engineered approach
to cementing is vital to obtaining a good
cementing result. The engineering needs
to begin with the drilling of the hole
section and continue through leaving
acceptable hole conditions for the liner
installation and eventual cementing.
• Proper window preparation and hole • Perform engineering simulations using References
cleaning before running expandable cementing software for proper ECD Grant, T. and Bullock, M. 2005. The Evolution of
casing is recommended. management during cementing opera- Solid Expandable Tubular Technology: Lessons
tions. Learned over Five Years, OTC 17442, Offshore
• Determine placement time needed Technology Conference, Houston, Texas, 2–5
based on liner length and expansion • Deliver these designs to the well site May.
cycles required. with a plan for placement using off-
Heathman, J., Arredondo, E., and Olufowoshe,
shore equipment capabilities.
• Perform temperature simulations to A. 2007. Enhanced Cementing Practices Address
determine BHCT and heat-up rate for Unique Issues Found with Solid Expandable
Using these practices has led to excel- Tubular Applications. SPE/IADC 105227, SPE/
thickening time required. lent results, delivering better wellbore IADC Drilling Conference, Amsterdam, The
architecture and opportunities to drill Netherlands, 20–22 February.
• Prepare a schedule for TT test based
deeper wells in deepwater.
on cycles required for motor shut- Heathman, J., Wilson, M., Cantrell, J., and
down (on/off schedule). IADC/SPE 112626, “Optimized Deepwater Gardner, C. 2000. Removing Subjective
Cement Design for Record-Length Expandable Judgement From Surface Wettability Analysis
• Perform proper lab testing based on Liner,” was presented at the 2008 IADC/SPE Aids Displacement. IADC/SPE 59135, IADC/SPE
this modified lab schedule for both TT Drilling Conference, Orlando, Fla, 4-6 March. Drilling Conference, New Orleans, La., 23-25
February.
and compressive strength. Acknowledgements: The authors thank Nexen
Petroleum and Halliburton for permission Sanders, T., Gusevik, R., Nida, R., Griffith, J.
• Perform lab testing to obtain optimum to present this paper. Without the support of 2003. Practices for Providing Zonal Isolation
spacer and surfactant design for syn- our engineering and laboratory staff and the in Conjunction with Expandable Casing Jobs-
thetic-based mud system. operational team, this successful cementing Case Histories. High-Tech Wells Conference and
operation would not have been possible. Exhibition, Galveston, Texas, 11–13 February.