Introduction to Reservoir

Engineering

Hernan de Caso
November 2014

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 Reservoir Engineering objective

…to provide the facts, information and knowledge

necessary to control operations to obtain the
maximum possible recovery from a reservoir at
the least possible cost

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 Multidisciplinary approach

Geolog
Geophysics
y
(Maps) (Seismic)

Petrophysics Saturation
function
Reservoir
Fluid Production
Engineeri
property ng history

Drive
Well Testing
mechanism

Reservoir Model

Reservoir Development Plan

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Prediction of Reservoir Performance
 The Reservoir
Seismic View

Simplified View

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 Information from wells drilled through the
reservoir
LOGS: Well/Multi-well Analysis
-porosity
-lithology (what type of
rocks)
-oil, gas and water
saturations
-pressure

CORE:
-porosity and permeability
-Lithology
-calibrate log analysis

WELL TEST:
-permeability
-productivity
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-fluid samples for analysis
 Logging a Well

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 Well Test – Flaring in the Desert

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 Well Test – Flaring offshore

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 Reservoir Characterisation

TYPES OF RESERVOIR FLUID:

-Oil
-Oil with gas cap
-Gas
-Gas condensate

WHERE THE FLUID RESIDES:

-within the rock pores

-within fractures in the rock

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 How fluids flow through reservoir rock
pore space

FLUID FLOW IS PROPORTIONAL TO:

 PRESSURE DIFFERENCE High Low

pressur pressur
 PERMEABILITY of the rock to the fluide e

and INVERSELY PROPORTIONAL TO:

 Fluid VISCOSITY

- this is DARCY’S LAW

Flow direction

“Qoil = K A DeltaP / Mu L ”

oil, gas and water all potentially compete for a share

of the flow

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 Understanding Pressure
Pressures in rocks generally follow the normal
hydrostatic gradient with depth

Sea-level 14.7 psi atmospheric

pressure
1000 ft 450 psi deep dive
record

13,000 ft 5500 psi wreck of

Titanic

But pressures in some deep reservoirs can exceed

15,000 psi due to their burial history

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 The effect of pressure on oil & gas

dropping pressure

reservoir
pressure drops
below BUBBLE Atmospheri
POINT
reservoir c pressure
pressure or
Original falls to STOCKTAN
reservoi BUBBLE GAS K
r POINT conditions
pressur
e

OIL

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 The effect of pressure on gas
condensate
dropping pressure

reservoir
pressure
Original drops below
reservoi DEW POINT
r
pressur Atmospheri
e c pressure
or
STOCKTAN
K
GAS conditions

OIL
condensate

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 Understanding Permeability

 Absolute permeability is a property of the reservoir

rock

 Permeability a measure of the ability of fluids to flow

through the pore spaces in the rock.

 The permeability of a rock to a fluid is reduced when

other fluids are also present in the pore-space. This
is called relative permeability.

 When oil is displaced by water a residual oil

saturation is left behind (typically 20-35% )
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 Original filling of oil reservoir

Pores filled
Water-filled pores with oil and
residual water
Pressure drop

by gravity over geological time

rock water oil gas

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 Pressure depletion in oil reservoir
Dropping pressure
causes gas to break out
Oil & dissolved of solution in the
gas initially reservoir. Gas moves to
produced wells faster. Proportion
of gas produced
increases. Reservoir
Pressure drop depletes leaving
Pressure drop
significant oil behind.

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 Water-oil Displacement in oil reservoir

Gas stays in
Injected water solution, oil
prevents saturation reduced
pressure falling to residual, % of
water produced
Pressure drop increases
Pressure drop

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 Ways of recovering oil and gas from
the reservoir
By: PRESSURE Normal for
DEPLETION GAS but poor
for OIL (5-
PRIMARY Development wells are 12%
RECOVERY all producers recovery)

By: FLUID Good for OIL

DISPLACEMENT (30-40%
SECONDARY recovery)
RECOVERY Some development wells
inject water or gas into the
reservoir
By: DISPLACEMENT Improves OIL
TERTIARY USING SPECIAL recovery but
RECOVERY FLUIDS expensive to
(Enhanced carry out
Recovery) injection of surfactants,
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dioxide or steam
protected
 Oil Recovery

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 Why do we need a
Reservoir Development Plan?

 To generate number of wells, recoverable

reserves values and production profiles for
economic analysis of the development
project

 To satisfy government regulatory bodies (and

licence partners) that the field will be
developed efficiently

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 Workflow towards a Reservoir
Data
analysis
Development Plan
REINTERPRE
T SEISMIC
Modelling Prediction
Data LOG
acquisition ANALYSI
S BUILD
GENERATE
STATIC
CORE DEVELOPMEN
GEOLOGIC
ANALYSI T PLAN &
AL MODEL
S PRODUCTION
DRILL PROFILE
APPRAISA BUILD ESTIMATES
WELL
L WELLS (DYNAMIC)
TEST
ANALYSIS RESERVOI ECONOMIC
R EVALUATIO
RESERVOI SIMULATI N
R FLUID ON MODEL
(PVT)
ANALYSIS DEVELOPMENT
DRILLING &
THE SUB-SURFACE TEAM PROCESSING
ASSUMPTIONS
GEOPHYSICIS GEOLOGIS PETROPHYSICIS RESERVOIR
T T T ENGINEER iterate
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 Sub disciplines in Reservoir engineering

Reservoir engineers often specialize in two

areas:
Surveillance Simulation
(or engineering
Production)
engineering
Monitoring and
optimization of Determine optimal
production and development plans
injection rates

Use: Analytical
Use: Numerical
and empirical
tools
tools

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 Reservoir Simulation Models

Computer simulation of pressure and fluid saturation

changes with time in a reservoir

Used for predicting future production performance

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 Reservoir models are simplifications

each cell may be

hundreds of feet
long

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 Uncertainty

Kensington Gardens River Thames

Well 1 Well 2

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 Uncertainty

Kensington Gardens River Thames

Well 1 Gardens
Kensington RiverWell 2
Thames

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 Uncertainty

Kensington Gardens River Thames

Well 1 Gardens
Kensington RiverWell 2
Thames

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 Uncertainty

Kensington Gardens River Thames

Well 1 Gardens
Kensington RiverWell 2
Thames

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 Uncertainty

Kensington Gardens River Thames

Well 1 Gardens
Kensington RiverWell 2
Thames

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 Understanding the Reservoir with time
PROJECT
SANCTION
DRILL
DRILL DRILL DEVELOP- END OF
DISCOVERY APPRAISAL MENT WELLS FIELD LIFE
WELL WELLS
START OF
PRODUCT-
ION
Increasing understanding of fluids in
place, limited understanding of Increasing understanding of reservoir
recovery factor dynamics and recovery factor

unacceptably large
risks can be avoided
by STAGED
UNCERTAINTY OF RESERVES DEVELOPMENT
ESTIMATE

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 Introduction to Reservoir
Engineering

Thank You

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