WELL TESTING PROCEDURE

INTRODUCTION

Well Testing can be defined as a measurement of the production from a well in a

given length of time.

For an Oil well, production usually consists of Oil, Water, and gas; and for a gas well
production consists of gas, water, and usually some condensate. The routine well
test provides a means of determining production characteristics; the productive
potential and gas-oil ratio.

AIM OF INITIAL TESTS

The usual aim of the initial Well test is to

- Determine the nature of the produced fluids

- Determine the well productivity
- Inflow performance response (IPR) for Oil wells.
- Deliverability curve and absolute open flow potential for gas wells.
- Evaluate the characteristics of the producing formation.
- Static Pressure
- Formation capacity, permeability
- Formation damage (skin)
- Reservoir heterogeneits, limits etc.

PARAMETERS TO BE MEASURED.

The following parameters are to be measured during the testing to achieve the aim of
Well Testing.

- Flow Rate of fluid produced, Oil, Gas, Water.

- Pressure and Temperature of:
 Bottom hole (producing interval)
 Well Head
 Separator and other surface installation
- Gas Gravity, Oil Gravity. Oil Shrinkage factor and BSW.

WELL TESTING PROCEDURE – SEQUENCE OF OPERATION

A typical Well Testing program (whatever the aim of the test) would follow the
sequence outlined below:
PRESSURE TEST OF THE SURFACE EQUIPMENT.

After rig-up of test equipment and flow-lines, it is essential to pressure test to ensure
there would be no leak during the test proper. Ideally pressure test is done before
the well is perforated.

In the field surface test equipment are tested to their working pressure using water.

For a 10,000 psi WP Test Equipment the test regime would be:
Test – Tree or Flow Head - 10,000 psi

CHOKE MANIFOLD - 10,000 psi (upstream valve)

- 5,000 psi (down stream valve)
Indirect Heater valve - 1,500 psi
Separator Inlet valve - 1,500 psi
Oil, Gas Manifold valve 1,000 psi

After pressure testing, the well is perforated – TCP or wireline conveyed. The next
stage is Well clean –up. When the well is perforated under balance (TCP), the initial
flow is against closed choke manifold valve to confirm positive perforation. A build up
of pressure close to the under balance will be recorded at the Choke Manifold. After
this, proceed to proper clean-up.

INITIAL CLEAN-UP

 Flow the well for 5 minutes and then shut in for 1 hour at Choke
Manifold. This initial flow is to remove any super charge effect (over
burden on the formation). The 1 hour shut-in is to record initial
Reservoir pressure and temperature. Assumption here is that down
hole memory gauges were ran in gauge carrier.
 Flow the well clean on various choke sizes 16/64, 20/64, 24/64, 28/64.

The purpose of clean up is to eliminate all foreign fluids such as mud, filtrate,
completion fluid etc.

The following criteria should be used to estimate if the well is producing clear hydro
carbon and if clean up may be ended.

- BSW – should be less than 5%

- Well head pressure – should be stable
- Down hole pressure – should be stable (when surface read-out is available).
- PH measurement – should be neutral – (after acid job)
- Minimum amount of fluids to be produced – Produce at least one string
content

NOTE: In general Oil wells cleans-out faster than gas wells.

On gas wells watch out for sand production.
PROPER TEST

After proper clean-up shut in well for 6 hrs, for first Build-up. If surface read-out is
available – shut in long enough for stable downhole pressure. Note high permeability
wells build – up fast. Build – up duration can be reduced. Conversely low
permeability reservoir build-up slowly. Build-up duration can be reduced drastically
with down hole shut in valve.
Flow the well through the separator and measure fluid flow rate on one or successive
flow rates.

For high productivity wells, the BACK PRESSURE TEST is the most common
procedure. In this procedure, the well is flowed on choke sizes from the smallest size
to the biggest choke without shut in between each choke size.

For low productivity formations the recommended testing procedure is the

ISOCHRONAL TEST OR MODIFIED ISOCHRONAL TEST.

SAMPLING:

Well Testing is not complete without taking surface sample for PVT analysis
especially for exploration wells and development wells when there is no (previous)
PVT data.

For sampling – Flow the well on the smallest choke size compatible with formation
productivity e.g. 16/64. When flow rate is stable, take 3 oil and 3 gas sample for PVT
analysis. When sand production is suspected, an initial set of surface samples
should be taken after clean-up before producing the well on large choke sizes. Once
sand production is noticed, the well test had to be terminated; this is why it is
recommended to take initial sample as there may be no other opportunity to sample
again.

FINAL BUILD-UP

After sampling, shut in-well for final build-up.

DURATION OF FINAL BUILD-UP

If surface – read-out is available, the gauge engineer will advice when sufficient data
has been acquired for full pressure transient analysis.

If no surface – read-out, then shut in the well for 1 ½ times the production time.

After build-up, proceed to well killing.

 INJECTION WELL TESTING

Injection well testing is carried out to optimize the waterflood performance. In other
words it is to allow maximum pressure differential between the injector and the
producer within formation fracture pressure restraint.

Injection rate is proportional to pressure differential, consequently higher injection

rates should result in quicker responses and higher production rates at the producer.

However, the maximum pressure differential should be obtained below formation

fracture pressure. Injection above formation fracture pressure results in poor sweep
efficiency, hence it is necessary to determine and operate below this pressure for
maximum efficiency.

Injection –well testing is also carried out to detect near wellbore formation damage.
Near wellbore “skin” results in reduced injectivity because of the large pressure drop
necessary to overcome formation damage, Formation damage is detected by an
abnormal decline in injection rate at constant injection pressure.

Another reason for injection –well testing is to provide continuos monitoring to insure
the proper vertical distribution of water into the pay. Distribution of injected water can
be determined by temperature surveys and radioactive tracer profiles.

PROCEDURE

The procedure for the initial test on injection –well will include:

- Determination of maximum [safe] injection pressure

The surface equipment will include

- Meter to measure surface injection rate accurately
- Surface pump pressure to be measured accurately
- Downhole pressure gauge [in gauge carrier] to measure the fall-off test i.e. after
surface pomp has been stopped.
Typically, a temperature gauge is logged across the perforation [ the first pass going
down is the most useful]. It is possible to identify the perforations that are opened or
plugged from the temperature gradient plot.

After the temperature log, a pressure gauge is run and positioned across the
perforation. Pumping into the well at 3 or 4 different rates [step-rate test] carries out
the test. The steady surface pump rate and pressure are recorded.

The sand face injection pressure would be recorded by the downhole pressure
gauge. The ideal is not to exceed the formation fracture pressure, however this may
not be known before hand and this would be determined from the initial test.

Formation fracture pressure is exceeded during step-rate tests and well stimulation.
However, since the time while formation fracture pressure is exceeded is short, the
fracture should heal when the injection pressure is returned to below formation
fracture pressure and no permanent harm would be done to the reservoir.

Pressures beyond the fracture points would lie on straight line and usually 3 such
points are sufficient to define a straight line will verify that the fracture point has been
found.
Once this point has been found, future maximum injection pressure should be below
it with a factor of safety of about 200 psi.

From experience, the success of injection-well test is determined by ability to

maintain a steady pump rate at each step long enough to determine volume flow rate
and injection pressure accurately.

PRODUCER – WELL TESTING

Oil well and Gas well testing come under Producer-wells testing.

The procedure enumerated under general well testing procedure above is sufficient
for a typical Oil well testing.

For a Gas well there

Objectives of Gas well testing.

Gas wells are tested to determine their ability to produce gas under various
conditions of surface or sandface and reservoir pressure.

Depending on the capacity of the gas reservoir, three methods are available for
testing a gas well or conducting a deliverability test.

These are;

- Back pressure test

- Isochronal test
- Modified Isochronal test

Backpressure test consists of a succession of four stabilised flow rates of same

duration.
At the end of each flow period, the rate is changed immediately without closing the
well.

Typical Procedure in Back pressure test include:

- Clean –up - From few hours to 24 hours

- Initial Shut-in -Twice the duration of the clean-up

- Flowing -Four different flow rates .Stabilisation should be

reached on each choke. Typically 4 – 6 hrs on each choke size.

- Final shut-in -One and half times of flowing period when surface read out is not available.

From experience it is recommended that ;

- The drawdown for the lower flow rate must be at least 5% of the shut-in wellhead pressure.
- The drawdown for the higher flow rate must not exceed 25% of the shut-in wellhead pressure.
- The four flow period should be of equal duration.
Back pressure test is ideal for high productivity gas wells [AOF over 50 mmscfd ]

ISOCHRONAL TEST

Isochronal test is used for low productivity formations where stabilization time could
be too long for using Backpressure test method.

The recommended testing procedure in isochronal test consists of flowing the well at four
different flow rates for period of equal duration. Between two flowing periods the well is shut-in for
sufficient time to reach static conditions.

The last flowing period is extended to a time long enough to reach the stabilized flowing conditions.

The following sequence is recommended

- Cleaning up -From a few to 24 hours

- Initial shut-in - Twice the duration of the cleaning up period.

- Isochronal testing sequence
- Four flow rates if equal duration with shut-in
Periods two consecutive flow rates. During
Shut in, the static pressure condition is
Assumed to be reached when pressure variation
Is less than 0.1% in 30 minutes.

- Flowing - From 4 hours to 6 hours on each choke size.

- Shut-in - From 6 to 12 hours.

The last flow rate is conducted for a period long enough to reach stabilized conditions.

- Final shut – in - One to three days for pressure build up survey.

MODIFIED ISOCHRONAL TEST

In practice, the “true isochronal test” is often replaced by the MODIFIED

ISOCHRONAL TEST, in which the duration of the shut-in period is equal to the
duration of the flowing period.