SPE 167647

Challenges in Testing and Completion of Highly Sour HPHT Reservoir in the

State of Kuwait
Y. Al-salali, H. Al-Bader, V. Duggirala, M. Ayyavoo, P. Subban, A.R. Al-ibrahim, A. Rajkhowa, Kuwait Oil Company

Copyright 2013, Society of Petroleum Engineers

This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE Kuwait Oil and Gas Show and Conference held in Mishref, Kuwait, 7-10 October 2013.

This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE program committee following review of information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s). Contents of the paper have not been
reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers and are subject to correction by the author(s). The material does not necessarily reflect any position of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, its
officers, or members. Electronic reproduction, distribution, or storage of any part of this paper without the written consent of the Society of Petroleum Engineers is prohibited. Permission to
reproduce in print is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words; illustrations may not be copied. The abstract must contain conspicuous acknowledgment of SPE copyright.

Abstract

Testing and completing deep reservoir in the state of Kuwait is challenging due to high contrast in formation pressure over the
4,000 feet section (13,500 ft to 17,500 ft). Recently, a new structure located in the North-Western part of Kuwait area was
drilled and tested with deep drilling rig. Formations in this deep structure have very low porosity and permeability with
naturally fractured reservoir. During short term testing, wells produced oil and gas with unexpectedly very high H2S(20%-
35%), the highest H2S content in any reservoir so far discovered in the state of Kuwait. Since the reservoir was rated as HPHT
and sour, it was a challenging experience to test all the wells safely and successfully. Unfavorable conditions such as high
pressure, high temperature, high H2S and CO2 content require special equipment, tools and treatment to test and complete
exploratory wells.

The targeted formations were perforated using deep penetration Tubing Conveyed Perforating (TCP) guns, stimulated with
emulsified/retarded acid, tested with Drill Stem Testing (DST) tools and sampling was done. Meticulous planning and testing
strategies could overcome all challenges and high sour reservoir was successfully tested safely without any incident. The wells
were flowed only for short period due to high sour nature of the reservoir fluid and safety reasons. However, data collected
during short term testing helped in understanding production capability, fluid and reservoir characteristics which is vital for
delineation/development of the new field. Methods developed, data obtained and expertise gained in testing and completing
high sour wells will be useful for the future development of sour gas reservoir.

Aim of this paper is to describe the actual challenges encountered and lessons learned during testing and completion of hostile
environment wells. This paper also aim to present techniques and approach adopted to address the operational risk and HSE
issues during perforation, Coiled Tubing, stimulation, well testing and sampling operations.

Introduction

Exploration of deep reservoirs has become very important to produce high pressure gas and light-oil to meet the country’s gas
requirement.

Jurassic carbonate reservoirs in Kuwait fields are deep, low permeable, High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) and
generally contain sour volatile oil/condensate and gas. Formations of these deep reservoirs are tight and naturally fractured
carbonate reservoirs. Najmah(NJ), Sargelu(SR), Upper Marrat, Middle Marrat and Lower Marrat are the five formations
proved as a hydrocarbon bearing reservoirs. Najmah/Sargelu formations are tighter than Marrat formations.

Najmah Formation consists of Limestone at the top part and Shale to the bottom. Sargelu Formation consists mainly of shale
and limestone. Najmah & Sargelu (NJ-SR) are naturally fractured reservoirs. So, fractures play an important role in production
from NJ-SR formation. Marrat Formation consists mainly of limestone, occasionally with streaks of anhydrite at the top and
with streaks of shale at the bottom of this formation. The core analysis of Middle Marrtat formation shows that dolomitization
plays major role for matrix porosity enhancement which is responsible for good reservoir character.
2 SPE 167647

As part of exploration strategy, a new structure in the North-Western part of Northern Kuwait was drilled to deep Jurassic
formations. This new structure is a NW-SE trending doubly plunging anticline and is intersected by a number of longitudinal
and transverse fault sets. Earlier, a significant discovery of light oil and gas from the new deeper structure was made from an
unsuccessful Paleozoic well through re-entry. After the discovery of light oil and gas, three more exploration/delineation wells
were drilled to confirm the reserve potential of this structure. Some of the wells are located near the crest of the structure
whereas some are1.5 KM away from crest (Figure-01).

During initial short term well testing, all wells in this new structure showed positive indication of oil and gas potential. All
three formations, namely Marrat, Najmah and Sargelu, were tested. Middle Marrat formation has shown positive indication of
Oil and Gas potential whereas NJ-SR did not show much encouraging results.

Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) is present in almost all Jurassic (NJ-SR & Marrat) reservoirs in Kuwait, but the concentration was in
the range of 0.5-10%. H2S concentrations of different fields in Kuwait are indicated at Table-01. But during testing of Marrat
reservoir in this structure unexpectedly high H2S concentration was observed (20-35%).

High H2S and HPHT are the main challenges before us for testing and completing the highly challenging reservoir safely. Well
related production testing operations like Perforation, Coiled Tubing operation, and acid stimulation warrant high HSE
standards and technical precautions.

Objective of this paper is to share our HP, HT and High sour well testing experiences, describes related risks and methodology
adopted to achieve safe and successful well-testing operations.

Well test objectives

The detailed well test objectives are:

1. To complete the operations safely, without harm to personnel and/or damage to the environment.
2. To maximize productivity through perforating and stimulation.
3. To assess the pressures, flow rates and potential of the target formation.
4. To determine reservoir characteristics like permeability and skin from short pressure build up survey.
5. To obtain representative reservoir fluid samples for PVT analysis.

Deep Well Drilling

Deep drilling rig of 3600HP was deployed to drill deeper Jurassic formations (13,500 ft to 17,500 ft) in this new structure.
Recently three wells targeting deep formations were drilled without much complication. Additionally, one ultra-deep well
drilled earlier for exploring Triassic/Paleozoic formation was used successfully to test Jurassic formation in this new structure.
The standard casing setting designed for the drilling and completion of deep wells are:
 30” surface casing upto top of Dammam formation.
 24” Surface casing upto top of Mutriba formation.
 18 ⅝” surface casing upto top of Zubair formation.
 13 1/2” Surface casing upto top of Hith formation.
 10 3/4” Liner casing upto top of Najmah formation.
 7 ⅝” Liner casing upto Upper Marrat formation.
 5” Liner casing upto Minjur formation.

Pore pressure of Najmah /Sargelu formation is 16-18.8 ppg and the Marrat is 14-16 ppg. Because of pore pressure difference
and more fractures in NJ-SR, 7-5/8” liner is usually run to isolate NJ-SR and then the Marrat section drilled in 6-1/2” hole and
5-1/2” liner run for isolation.

17 ppg to 20.5 ppg OBM was used to drill 12-1/4” to 6” hole section (13,500’ to 17,500’). During drilling self flow and
number of gas kicks were observed in almost all wells. To control kicks, mud weight was increased to more than 20 ppg. To
stabilize the loss and gain situation many cement squeeze jobs with intermittent LCM pill were carried out. Sometimes these
unstable down-hole conditions did not allow the record open-hole logs.

For identification of real time presence of fractures in deep reservoir, a coriolis flow meter was installed during drilling.
Coriolis is a flow line sensor which has advanced technology over conventional flow paddle sensor to detect the real time
fracture.
SPE 167647 3

Cement evaluation logs recorded in deeper section showed very poor cementation behind the casing, all along the zones of
interest in most of wells drilled in this new structure. Cement repair was attempted in some of the wells but there was no
improvement. Inspite of this, production test of deeper sections were carryout.

Major Challenges/Concerns

Drilling Mud The deep high pressure naturally fractured formations are drilled with Heavy weight mud (16-20 ppg) which
caused severe formation damage.

Perforation Deep penetration gun suitable for High temperature application is required for perforating heavy walled
casing HPHT wells.

H2S The presence of high H2S concentration upto 35% in the reservoir fluid and the possibility of surface H2S
leaks pose a significant risk to personnel and equipment. Suitable sour service equipment and dedicated H2S
safety equipment are required. Special alloy materials are required to test and complete the high
concentration well safely.

HPHT All deep Jurassic wells are of High Pressure and High Temperature (HPHT) in nature. All testing equipment
like Coiled Tubing, HP pumping units, HP Testing separator should be rated for High pressure application.

Well Killing Bull-heading would require extremely high operating pressures and may not be feasible into a tight
formation. Suitable annulus pressure operated reverse circulating vales are required in the test tool. Heavy
muds in annulus can cause difficulty in operating annulus pressure operated tools due to solids settlement
and it may prevent pressure transmission to the tools.

Hydrates Hydrates can block pipelines and interrupt production. Even if the production is dry, water will condense in
the gas as it de-pressures and cools as it flows to surface. There is therefore a risk of hydrate formation and
any partial or complete blockage would be a serious concern due to the high pressures involved.

Sampling Due to presence of high H2S there is always chance of loss of H2S, mercaptans and other trace elements
caused by reaction with the sample chamber and reduce the chance of collecting a representative sample for
PVT study.

Well Testing Equipment

Sub-surface Equipment:

Simple Drill Stem Testing (DST) technique is being used to test the targeted formations with a packer system. All
tools in DST assembly should be sour resistant and capable to withstand HPHT conditions. The following DST
bottom-hole assembly and tubing string give the ability to carry out safe and successful well test operations:

• Perforating Guns: To maximize the chance of flow, Tubing Conveyed Perforation (TCP) (shoot & drop type)
perforation system in under balanced condition is preferred in Jurassic wells. Over balance perforation (shoot &
pull type) is considered when certain limitations are encountered using tubing conveyed perforating. Deep
penetration gun suitable for High temperature application is required for creating communication between heavy
walled casing and HPHT reservoir.
• Down-hole circulating valve- is activated by annulus pressure rupture disc, to provide a circulation path from
tubing to annulus to allow circulation to be performed during well killing operation.
• Memory Gauges: It is required to record bottom-hole pressure and temperature of tubing and annulus during
production testing. Two gauges are installed for recording tubing side data and one gauge for recording the
annulus data.
• Production Packer and Seal Assembly- It provide a barrier between the reservoir and annulus. Polished Bore
Receptacle (PBR) with seal assembly is used to test zones in 5” liner. Retrievable packer is used to test zones of
interest in 7-5/8” casing.
• Tubing: Premium Connection Tubing run from packer seal assembly to surface.
4 SPE 167647

Surface Equipment:

The surface equipment includes the following items:

• Wellhead/Xmas tree- 15,000 psi sour service wellhead is required to test & complete all deeper formations. The
current standard wellhead consists of annular valves, two master valves, wing valves(two on each side), two
surface safety valves (SSV) and a swab valve.
• 15K Choke Manifold system- This choke manifold has valves, with a dual flow path configuration.
• ESD system- ESD valve is placed between the Xmas tree and the choke manifold. It allows the well to be shut-in
during any flow periods.
• 15K Coiled Tubing Unit (CTU) - All HPHT exploratory wells are tested and completed with packer system.
So, coiled tubing operation is required mainly for well displacement, stimulation and for killing if needed. H2S
service CT equipment confirming to NACE MR-0175 and API standard is used for conducting safe operations. A
check valve assembly should be attached to CT connector at the bottom of the CT to prevent wellbore fluids
from entering the coiled tubing string in the event of treatment fluids are not being pumped.
• Stimulation equipment- Minimum 15K pressure rated fluid pumps should be available for all pumping
operation including well killing and stimulation operations.
• HP Test Separator- The three-phase horizontal test separator is required to separates the fluid into its three main
constituents, gas oil and water. Safety valves and rupture discs are to be mounted directly on the vessel, venting
to relief line.
• Surge tank- The pressure vessel is useful during handling of sour crude’s and when used as a holding vessel or
for calibrating liquid flow meters during the test. Safety valves and rupture discs are mounted directly on the
vessel, venting to the relief line.
• Oil transfer pump- provides a means of pumping fluid to the pit after separation and storage in the surge tank.
• Flare/Relief Lines- Necessary flare and relief lines to be connected to flare pit. Wind direction is taken into
consideration in layout of flare pits, especially in case of potential H2S emissions. High sour wells require two
flare points for safety reason.
• Oil/Gas burner- Oil & Gas produced during Well Testing has to be burned. The burner can minimize the black
smoke by ensuring complete combustion of hydrocarbon produced during well testing operations at Rig Site.
• Sampling Equipment: Service Company has developed specified bottles for sampling in order to collect the
representative sample due to sour nature of fluid. These are known as Inconel bottles which can withstand to 20 k
psi and 200 Deg C. It greatly reduces the loss of H2S, mercaptans and other trace elements caused by reaction
with the sample chamber. Sampling lines are stainless steel line. Additionally, all the tools used for sampling
jobs are H2S rated.

Testing Operation

Deep drilling rigs or work-overs rig are used to perform well testing operation in the zones of interest of the deep reservoirs.
Drill Stem Testing (DST) technique was used to test all exploratory wells with PBR/packer system.

On completing well preparation, the target intervals are perforated in under balance or overbalance condition using wire-line
or tubing conveyed perforation. In both the cases, the gun depth is correlated using a GR/CCL tools. A retrievable DST string
consists of two circulating valves, memory gauges and packer run on a premium connection tubing string upto target zone. The
string will allow communication between tubing and annulus. The isolation between tubing and casing was achieved by setting
retrievable packer on production casing or using seal assembly in Polished Bore Receptacle (PBR).

After perforation, a cleanup flow was performed to determine pre-stimulation flowing parameters. PVT samples were captured
during initial flow period. If there is no flow, then coiled tubing was used to displace existing well fluid with diesel to achieve
drawdown. Coiled tubing was used in all the wells to spot acid as the injectivity from surface could not be established. Break-
down acid of quantity approximately one tubing volume was used to create initial flow from all the deeper formation. Main
acid stimulation was performed to improve the productivity index of the carbonate formation by matrix acid stimulation. On
completion of main acid stimulation the well was cleaned up again. A main flow was performed by flowing well through
different chokes. PVT samples were captured again during main flow period. On completion of main flow period, the well was
shut-in for a short buildup to obtain information on reservoir characteristics like permeability, skin etc. The well was killed by
activating annulus operated circulating valve and then DST string was retrieved to surface. The tested object was isolated with
EZSV. If there was any more object to be tested then further new zone will be tested as per the short term test protocol
otherwise the well was abandoned temporarily. Marrat formation was tested with PBR assembly in 5 inch liner and Najmah-
SPE 167647 5

Sargelu formations were tested with retrievable packer in 7-5/8 inch liner. Well test schematic of Marrat and Najmah/Sargelu
formation is at Fig-02.

Fluid Characterization and Reservoir interpretation:

Fluid samples have been successfully collected as per the procedure discussed above from the tested two wells and PVT
analyses have been carried out.

Basic PVT Properties and H2S content of the fluid at different conditions obtained from the studies carried out are given
below:

Well H2S Content (mole %) BPP (psi) Solution Deg. API

In reservoir fluid In flashed gas In Separated gas @15 psi GOR (scf/stb)
Well AA 14 20 37 2632 2183 46.7

Well CC 25 35 57 2250 1745 44.9

Down-hole gauge data could be successfully acquired and reservoir characteristics could be assessed.

HSE

Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) is fully committed to protect the health and safety of its people and the environment. KOC’s
Health Safety Environment Management System (HSEMS) provides the frame work for managing all aspects of the activities.
The management system is designed to ensure compliance with law, demonstrate that all hazards are adequately managed and
achieve continuous improvement in HSE performance. Safe operating procedures for key operations like perforating,
activation, stimulation, pressure testing, well testing and sampling are exits with KOC. All KOC HSE procedures and safe
practices guidelines for drilling, testing, perforation, stimulation operations are to be followed during testing and completion of
exploratory wells.

All short term testing operations needs to be are carried out with rig. As discussed above, high H2S content was encountered
during production testing of deep reservoirs. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is an extremely toxic gas responsible for numerous
deaths in the oil industry. All sour oil and gas produced during testing was flared to the atmosphere through a burner/flare.
SO2 is the combustion product of H2S, which is likely to present during flaring operations at a drill site. Continuous
monitoring of H2S and SO2 has been done for the safety of the personnel working in site and nearby public.

All applicable safety equipment’s are installed onsite prior to starting job and tested along with operational equipment. Surface
and sub-surface safety equipment installed during well testing are:
1. Surface Safety Valve(SSV)
2. Emergency Shut-Down (ESD) valves
3. Green burner
4. High Pressure pumping equipment
5. Wind sock
6. Fire extinguisher
7. Eye wash
8. Breathing Apparatus

The following gas detection/monitoring and breathing equipment were available in test location during short term testing of a
well in drilling rig.
• Personal H2S Detectors carried by each one individual while on duty.
• Fixed Monitoring system installed in bell nipple, mud return line, rig floor, separator, etc.
• Perimeter area gas deduction system.
• Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus(SCBA) – for 10 min and 30 min duration
To handle any emergency during sour well testing operations skilled safety persons were available with the mask all the time.
The personnel in operations are also trained on H2S handling, SCBA and High Pressure operations. All personnel working on
location are equipped with H2S monitors and it gets activated if the H2S level is 10 ppm and more.

Results
6 SPE 167647

1. Four wells were tested in this new structure. The first well in this structure produced 20% H2S, thought to be the
highest H2S at that time. When we tested another well, found H2S concentration upto 35%, which is the highest H2S
so far discovered in the state of Kuwait. 3 wells produced 20-35% H2S concentration out of four wells tested and one
well produced with 2% H2S.
2. All high H2S concentration wells were tested successfully however flow period and main acid stimulation in the
extreme sour wells were restricted to short duration for safety reason.
3. KOC HSE policies and procedures helped for safe execution of critical well testing and completion operations of high
sour HPHT exploratory wells.

Conclusions

1. By overcoming all the challenges and managing the existing equipment, extreme sour HPHT wells drilled in this new
structure were safely tested without any incident.

2. After the recent discovery of high sour gas, the use of Corrosion Resistant Alloy (CRA) completion equipment,
various alternatives for continuous down-hole injection of corrosion inhibitor and tubing displacement of corrosion
inhibitor from the surface are being studied for taking production from the high sour reservoir safely.

3. To understand long term deliverability and production problem, the high sour wells needs to be conducted extended
production test before building a new production facility. The existing production facilities in Kuwait are designed to
handle maximum upto 5% H2S whereas the new high sour wells are having H2S concentration up-to 35%.

Acknowledgements
The authors wish to acknowledge Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) and Ministry of Oil, Government of Kuwait for granting
permission to publish this paper. The authors also would like to extend their appreciation to Discovery Promotion Team and
Deep Drilling Group for providing valuable input/support.

Nomenclature
API American Petroleum Institute
ESD Emergency Shut-Down
DST Drill Stem Testing
HPHT High Pressure High Temperature
H2S Hydrogen Sulfide
HSE Health Safety Environment
HSEMS Health, Safety and Environment Management System
NACE National Association of Corrosion Engineers
SSV Surface Safety Valve
TCP Tubing Conveyed Perforation

Fig-01: New structure well location

SPE 167647 7

Table-01: High sour fields in Kuwait

Kuwait Fields % H2S

North 1-3%
North East 2-10%

North West 20-35%

West 0.5- 3%

South East 3.5%

Fig-02: Testing schematics Marrat and Najmah/Sargelu Formations

8 SPE 167647

Marrat formation tested with PBR+DST Najmah formation tested with Packer+DST

30" 30"

24" 24"

18-5/8" 18-5/8"

10-3/4" 10-3/4"
13-1/2" 13-1/2"
Tubing Tubing
3-1/2" JFE Bear, L-80 3-1/2" JFE Bear, L-80
7-5/8" 7-5/8"

10-3/4" 10-3/4"
Tested with
Packer & DST

Tested with Najmah/Sargelu

DST& PBR

Cmt top
5 "Liner Top 5 "Liner Top

7-5/8" 7-5/8"

Middle Marrat Middle Marrat

EZSV EZSV
Lower Marrat Lower Marrat

PBTD (L/Collar) PBTD (L/Collar)

5" Liner ,21.4 #;125 CRA, HYD-513; 5" Liner ,21.4 #;125 CRA, HYD-513;
S C H EMATIC NOT TO S CALE S C H EMATIC NOT TO S CALE