Concept of Well Engineering: Understand better about well design and the engineering concepts associated in the process. To differentiate between product design & well design. Design criteria and other considerations in performing well design and planning. ➢ Objectives: Clear knowledge in selecting the required objectives for drilling a well, considering all the current and future requirements. ➢ Preliminary design: This is to develop the basic well structure / configurations and to get a concurrence from all the teams involved in the program. ➢ Basis of Design: This becomes the design basis for the well, which considers all the data available and applying the engineering concepts to arrive at an acceptable firm design. ➢ Well Design: The detailed engineering check done for an individual well involving all the participants in the program.
o Casing design – The well structure as agreed, will be checked for
various load conditions, selecting the casing seats considering the formation depths. o Mud design – The formation parameters are evaluated and a selection of the right mud system which will enable to achieve the well objectives. This is done is association with the mud engineering service company. o Drill string design / Bit selection – To achieve good economics, the BHA design and the bit selection play a crucial role in maximizing the ROP. o Cementing design – The casings run, are supported by the cement, which bonds with the cement and formation. The strength requirement to achieve this, the placement methods and selection of accessories are done in association with the cementing services company. o Formation evaluation – Depending on the type of well the evaluation requirements are considered to get the formation data, which is a primary objective. The evaluation requirements are often given by the G&G department. o Testing – The zones of interest are subjected to various test to rigorously evaluate the capability of the sands to produce hydrocarbons. Further to this the reservoir production models are developed. o Completion – A well fit for putting into production is to be installed with equipment, for effectively bringing the hydrocarbons to the surface. The design is done based on the various evaluated factors and considering the future production options. o Well control – While drilling there is always a certain amount of uncertainty and mistakes, which are overlooked causing pressure problems in the wellbore. This will stop the drilling process till the risk is completely removed. o Production – On completing the well, which is ready for producing hydrocarbons is handed over to the production department. Since the well is maintained by the production department for a longer duration, the inputs from them are very carefully considered in the design. o Operational considerations – Though the design is done nicely, the operational considerations are crucial as the suitability to all the service contractors is to be checked. The interfaces between the various service companies are to be included in the design process to avoid NPT. o Deepwater / HPHT – These are special conditions where the environment is very hostile and operating conditions are to be evaluated to ensure proper safety. The cost becomes extremely high due to these parameters. o Technologies – In the recent times, the technological development in the O&G industry is increasing to a greater extent and so the use of the newer technologies improves the safety / efficiency. So, the new technologies are to be considered in the design. ➢ Operations support – While the operations are on, the well engineering team monitors the progress and offers constant support to the operations team for improvement / operational problems with rest to the design done. ➢ Well handover – The well which is drilled successfully to the target depth is handed over to the Petroleum Engineering team for running completions. ➢ Workover needs – The design should always consider workover and reentry needs, which can possibly occur in the life of the well. A few equipment are included in the well design to assist this. Pre-requisites: The below concepts form the basics in well engineering and a clear understanding is required to effectively grasp the well design. 1. Various pressure concepts, density, forces (Tensile and Compression), 2. U-tube Principles 3. Basic rig systems and rig equipment 4. Pore pressure, fracture pressure, pressure gradients etc.