Discover a Career

Discover a Career in Geomechanics

Hamed Soroush, Shell International Exploration and Production

By definition, rock mechanics is the Geomechanics: The Oil and geomechanics, it has hence become
theoretical and applied science of Gas Industry’s Missing Link an important and integral part of each
the mechanical behavior of rocks Although systematic application of rock and every field development plan,
in the force fields of their physical mechanics in the oil and gas industry from the early stages of exploration
environment. In practice, so-called is relatively new, it was recognized and to even after field abandonment. With
“rock engineering” is concerned appreciated by many oil companies the recent boom in the development of
with the application of principles of in a short period of time and has unconventional oil and gas resources,
engineering mechanics to the design become a fast-growing field due to the use of geomechanics principles
and construction of structures of any its applicability and effectiveness in has become even more imperative
type either on or in the rock, such as reducing nonproductive time (NPT). due to the sensitivity and complexity
tunnels, mine shafts, underground As the virgin state of stress is of these reservoirs. Geomechanics is
excavations, open pit mines, road cuts, disturbed by different oil and gas playing a critical role in successfully
dams, skyscrapers, waste repositories, activities, the rock’s mechanical maximizing shale gas production by
and oil or gas wells. state changes, too, and consequently helping optimize the use of hydraulic
Though initially developed influences drilling, completions, fracturing technology.
for mining and civil engineering and production performance. These Geomechanical applications in
purposes, geomechanics found its changes can result in serious and the oil and gas industry include pore-
way into the oil and gas industry in unexpected cost and time overruns if pressure prediction; helping ensure
the ’80s in order to improve hydraulic not properly predicted and managed. cap-rock integrity; field problem
fracturing and drilling operations. Dodson et al. (Offshore, Vol. 64, No. 1, diagnosis; formation properties
In the contemporary petroleum 2004) conducted a survey of Gulf of evaluation; in-situ stresses estimation;
industry, geomechanics is defined Mexico wells and reported wellbore drilling performance evaluation;
as the discipline that integrates rock stability issues were the cause of almost wellbore stability; borehole trajectory
mechanics, geophysics, petrophysics, 40% of drilling-related NPT, resulting in optimization; sand production
and geology to quantify the response an annual cost of around USD 8 billion. prediction and control; underbalanced
of the Earth to any changes in As a result of experiencing drilling feasibility; fractured reservoir
state of stress, pore pressure, and significant improvements in drilling characterization; and production
formation temperature. and production operations by utilizing maximization affected by natural
fractures, hydraulic fracturing, fluid and
steam injection, reservoir compaction,
surface subsidence, and casing shear
and collapse. It’s a long list!
Hamed Soroush is an internationally recognized geomechanics expert with Clear knowledge of how to apply
more than 17 years of experience applying principles of rock mechanics within geomechanics appropriately will
the mining, civil, and oil and gas industries. He has conducted or managed more increase exploration and development
than 100 consulting and research projects worldwide and is currently working efficiency in both conventional and
for Shell as a geomechanics advisor in Houston. Before that, Soroush was the unconventional resources.
global geomechanics advisor for Weatherford, based in Dubai, providing project
coordination, support, and training for geomechanics and petroleum engineering Geomechanical Modeling:
applications. He has also worked with numerous other companies in the Middle Turning Impossibilities
East, Asia Pacific, North Sea, and South America regions. Soroush holds a BSc in Into Possibilities
mining engineering, an MSc in rock mechanics, and a PhD in petroleum engineering To conduct any of the aforementioned
from Curtin University of Technology in Australia. He has published three technical studies using rock mechanics, the first
books and many journal and conference papers. Soroush has given several step is to construct a geomechanical
industry short courses and has served as a steering committee member for many Earth model (GEM). A GEM consists
conferences and workshops. He was selected as an SPE Distinguished Lecturer of six core components that need to be
for 2012–13, presenting on the geomechanics of unconventional resources. either calculated or estimated using
field data:

Vol. 9 // No. 3 // 2013 15

 Discover a Career
• Vertical stress, δv (often referred to
as the overburden stress)
• Maximum horizontal stress, δHmax
• M inimum horizontal stress, δHmin
• Stress orientation, Azi δHmax
• Pore pressure, P p
• Rock mechanical properties
Modeling techniques in
geomechanics encompass analytical,
experimental, and numerical methods,
each having their pros and cons.
Generally, numerical models have
higher accuracy over analytical ones
but require additional input data and
more time. Analytical techniques are
in return quicker with less complexity.
Experimental models are based on
physical and mechanical laboratory
tests on rock core samples. It is
usually costly and time consuming
to perform such tests, though they do
provide valuable information about
rock properties.
As a generic workflow, constructing
a 1D geomechanical model starts with
rock mechanical property estimation
using petrophysical logs in conjunction
with core test results. There are
different empirical models to make a
strength profile; however, laboratory
data are required to calibrate
these models.
The second step is building a
continuous overburden profile using
density logs.
Pore-pressure prediction using
logs and available well test data (or
seismic data if available) is the next
step. Minimum horizontal stress can
be calculated using either empirical
equations or fracturing data (LOT
[leak-off tests]/X [extended] LOT
or minifracturing tests) or ideally, a
combination of both. Drilling incidents
such as ballooning and mud losses
can help to constrain the minimum
horizontal stress and fracture gradient.
The last steps are determining
azimuth and magnitude of the
maximum horizontal stress. This
is the most complicated part of
geomechanical modeling, as no direct
way of measuring δHmax is available.
Analyzing wellbore failures such as
breakouts and drilling-induced tensile
16
fractures from image logs is one of the
existing techniques to determine a
reasonable range for δHmax and find its
orientation. Using caliper logs, sonic
logs, and laboratory measurement
of elastic strain recovery are
alternative techniques.
Many field examples have proved
that geomechanical analyses can open
opportunities for drilling into harsh
and challenging environments which
previously looked impossible. In an
example in southeast Asia, where
drilling a vertical well was identified
as impossible due to lack of a safe
operating mud weight window, the well
was made possible by geomechanical
analysis that led to changing the well
trajectory to the safest orientation
in a specific formation and thereby
widening the window.
Geomechanics can also improve
casing design and provide a wider mud
weight window for drillers. There are
examples in Northwest Shelf Australia
where geomechanical modeling
reduced the number of casings,
resulting in significant cost savings for
the operators.
In the context of production from
naturally fractured reservoirs, a
GEM can make a real difference in
maximizing production by identifying
critically stressed fractures which
are, in fact, the productive fractures.
Identifying the orientation of these
fractures enables optimization of
drilling orientation to intersect the
maximum number of them. Field
examples in the Middle East and
southeast Asia have shown notable
increases in production using these
types of studies.
Distinguish Your Career
With Geomechanics
Due to the remarkable contribution
geomechanics has made to the oil
and gas industry in solving a plethora
of problems related to exploration,
drilling, completion, intervention,
production, and injection operations,
geomechanics specialists can be
called petroleum engineering
troubleshooters. Considering all the
benefits geomechanics has brought to
the industry, there has been escalating
appreciation during the last decade
from operating companies toward
using it in their operations. Time
and money savings by big operators
through using geomechanics have
convinced them to either establish a
geomechanics capability in house or
ask for support from external experts.
This increasing demand has created
a huge potential job market for young
professionals interested in building a
career in geomechanics.
Currently, however, the oil and
gas industry suffers from a lack of
enough competent resources in this
field; this is because universities offer
only a limited number of specialized
programs in petroleum geomechanics.
Although few universities offer rock
mechanics courses at the postgraduate
level, they are usually in mining or
civil engineering departments. As a
result, there is a lack of professionals
with academic backgrounds in rock
mechanics specifically related to
the oil and gas industry. It should be
noted that rock mechanics requires
a comprehensive understanding of
mathematics, physics, and mechanics,
and, therefore, having the appropriate
academic background is a critical
factor in pursuing a successful career
in geomechanics.
Generally speaking, people
with engineering backgrounds are
better candidates for becoming
geomechanics specialists. Indeed,
geomechanics can be as lethal as it
is useful if it is used by a person who
does not understand the mechanical
behavior and strength of materials.
Being a software user without
understanding the theories and
concepts hidden behind the screen is
extremely dangerous and can result
in misleading outputs which may
put a project in jeopardy. There are
many cases where companies have
lost faith in geomechanics due to
bogus results generated by so-called
“geomechanics specialists” who
lacked the appropriate background,
credentials, and experience.
 Thus, it is strongly recommended
for students with an interest in
geomechanics to take any and all
rock mechanics-related courses
during their engineering degree,
or, if completing a nonengineering
degree, learn the necessary
mathematics and mechanics.
Combining a relevant academic
background with some industry
experience can lead to an exceptional
career which can give you the
opportunity to choose whether you
want to work in the operating or
consulting sectors.
A geomechanics career is usually
associated with a lot of traveling all
over the world, which makes it very
attractive and exciting. Dealing
with a host of different geomechnics
applications in petroleum engineering
can prevent you from getting stuck in
a rut and keep you busy by providing
opportunities to learn new things and
face new challenges.
will give more serious weight to your
recommendations and request for
funding, he said further, if they are
supported by successful outcomes in
analogous fields.
The third step, according to
MacLeod, is to test the strategies and
technologies using a reservoir simulation
model and assess their potential
economics. It may be necessary to carry
out a field pilot project to demonstrate
technical and economic feasibility.
Ultimately, economics will determine
whether a mature field is revitalized.
There are several key factors in
developing mature oil fields—some
obvious and others less obvious.
Reservoir conditions, oil prices,
development costs, surrounding
pipeline infrastructure, and regulatory
frameworks tend to be the more
obvious factors.
However one less obvious factor
is a government’s taxation schemes.
An example of this would be in the UK.
Tax breaks for the oil exploration and
The nature of geomechanical
studies requires a highly focused
multidisciplinary team approach
and close interaction with other
experts. This provides opportunities
to learn about other interesting
disciplines, which is another attraction
of this field. For instance, when a
geomechanics specialist performs
an analysis for sand production
prediction and management, he
or she must work closely with
completion engineers and production
technologists. This provides the
opportunity for improving one’s
knowledge about completion
technologies, production techniques,
and different sand control tools.
Although the job market in
geomechanics is not very competitive
at the moment due to the scarcity of
high-quality experts, it is still essential
for people in this field to improve their
knowledge and capabilities and update
themselves on state-of-the-art advances
extraction industry introduced by the
UK government during 2012 have had
a significant effect on the UK North
Sea. For example, many small- to mid-
cap operators have purchased mature
oil fields as optimization projects.
Guaranteeing brownfield tax allowances
to operate mature oil fields in the North
Sea helps extend the life of fields, thus
helping to make the most out of potential
energy resources.
Advice for Young Professionals
According to Williams, when first
approaching a mature oil field, it is
necessary to understand and apply the
engineering principles learned while in
college. “Know from first engineering
principles what ‘good’ looks like,” he
said. For a reservoir engineer this would
mean looking at decline analysis from
existing wells and material balance. For
a geologist or petrophysicist, this would
mean understanding and calculating the
hydrocarbons-in-place; then comparing
this with the recovery potential of the
and technologies in order to distinguish
themselves and to stay on top of their
career. Geomechanics specialists are
expected to fully understand related
industry problems and be able to
provide innovative solutions using
their rock mechanics knowledge.
Good knowledge of mathematics and
physics helps you to develop your own
analytical and numerical models and
have full command of what you are
expected to do.
Because geomechanics is a new
science, there are many avenues
open for research and development.
Therefore, creativity and having new
ideas are key to a successful and
evolving career. In addition to all
the attractions and challenges of a
geomechanics career, it remains one
of the exceptional multidisciplinary
fields that give you the facility to move
to other industries like civil and mining
should you feel like making a big
change in your career. TWA
Forum
Continued from page 10
existing wells in that fault block would
be key to understanding the total field
potential. Williams emphasized not
to be afraid to challenge the existing
interpretation and use the full suite of
production history to redefine what is
possible in a mature field.
There is usually new surveillance
data available that was not there when
previous decisions were made. Bondor
stressed learning from the past and
always seeking out the best options that
can be supported by available data.
He likens this approach to operating
a field trial. Having awareness that
different individuals have different
drivers based on their experience
is key, he said. Initial pilots, such as
to prove a new technology, may be
done on the worst well in the field
because operations staff do not want
to negatively impact their production
targets. When pursuing technology
pilots, a new well should be drilled “so
that there are no inherited problems,”
said Bondor. TWA
Vol. 9 // No. 3 // 2013 17