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Phillips 2007
Phillips 2007
Introduction
The Williston Basin encompasses portions of Montana, North
and South Dakota, and Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada.
The oil-bearing Middle Bakken formation in the Williston
Basin has attained a large degree of visibility in recent years.
The first oil production occurred in the Bakken in 1953, with However, if the fractures are transverse (Figure 3) the
the first horizontal Bakken well being completed in September produced oil and gas must travel hundreds of feet within the
1987 by Meridian Oil Inc. 1 All wells discussed in this paper proppant pack, and flow convergence around the
are horizontal completions in several fields in western North circumference of the well imposes very high pressure losses
Dakota, particularly the Beaver Lodge (BLMU), Blue Buttes near wellbore. With transverse fractures, proppant
(BBMU) and Tioga (TMU) areas. A map of these fields is characteristics are key, and most transverse fractures will be
given in Figure 1. conductivity-limited.
consisted of friction-reduced water for those portions of the lateral. Friction-reduced water was used for the majority of
treatment with low sand concentrations, and a 20 lb/Mgal the job, and a 20 lb/Mgal linear gel was used for sand
linear gel for the higher-concentration stages. There were concentrations greater than 1.5 ppg. These designs were fairly
several reasons for this change. First, a reduction in the conservative and were pumped at lower rates, generally
treating fluid viscosity was intended to generate more fracture around 85 bpm. An example of this treatment design is given
length and create a larger contact area between the fracture in Figure 5.
face and the reservoir. Second, it was anticipated that a
reduction in gel loading would reduce formation damage and Based on the pressure response during treatment for the jobs
the corresponding loss in conductivity. pumped according to this general schedule, very little
diversion was seen. The desire for more diversion led to
The overall fluid volume was drastically increased as well. further job modifications. The first of these was the
Typical crosslinked fracture treatments consisted of 3,000- elimination of the linear gel stages. The friction-reduced
6,000 bbl of crosslinked fluid. The authors felt that this water exhibited no problems with proppant transport at these
volume, coupled with the high fluid viscosity, was not rates and concentrations, and the elimination of linear gel
sufficient to create the fracture/reservoir contact area required resulted in a reduction in overall job costs as well as a
for optimal production in this naturally fissured formation. A reduction of polymer placed in the formation.
typical low-viscosity treatment consists of 10,000-18,000 bbl
of fluid, depending on wellbore design and the ability to place Additional changes included higher sand concentrations and
water tanks on location. an elimination of sweeps between the majority of the sand
stages. Sand concentrations are stepped up gradually with no
Several modifications were also made to the proppant sweeps in between each step. Each of these “step-ramps”
schedule. Among these, the biggest change was the culminates in a brief stage of significantly higher
elimination of 20/40 ceramic proppants in favor of 40/70 mesh concentration, followed by a flush. This high-concentration
white sand. Without clear evidence of the fracture geometry, sand slug is intended to achieve diversion into other portions
it was decided to reduce proppant costs and place the less of the lateral. An increase in treating rate was also
expensive sand. Although the authors are aware that some implemented in these treatments. An example of the modified
Bakken treatments have broken into offset wells over 2000 design is shown in Figure 6.
feet away in the transverse direction4, there is no conclusive
information on fracture geometry in this part of the field. In Two refracture treatments have also pumped to date utilizing
the absence of data regarding fracture geometry, 40/70 mesh the modified treatment design. These treatments were
white sand was used, which allowed a reduction in proppant performed in wells initially stimulated with a crosslinked
cost and thus overall job expense. gel/ceramic proppant combination. These treatments were
smaller in total volume due to the shorter lateral length. For
The maximum proppant concentration was also decreased. the two refracture treatments the average job size was
Crosslinked jobs were designed for 300,000-700,000 lb of approximately 7,200 bbl of fluid placed in a 3,400’ lateral
lightweight ceramic proppant at a maximum proppant section. Both laterals were completed with pre-perforated,
concentration up to 6 ppg in order to create high-conductivity uncemented liners, and the possibility of using perforation
fractures, with some 10 ppg stages for diversion. The newer balls or bioballs to assist in achieving diversion was explored;
low-viscosity treatment designs use 300,000 to 500,000 lb of however, this was ultimately dismissed due to operational
sand at a maximum concentration of 2-5 ppg. As in previous concerns.
designs, the higher concentrations are used primarily for
diversion. Results
Nine wells examined for the purposes of this study were
The third important modification was an increase in treatment stimulated using a crosslinked fluid with ceramic proppant.
rate. Crosslinked gel jobs were pumped at an average rate of One of these wellbores was a dual-lateral design, while the
59 bpm and a maximum rate of approximately 75 bpm. New remaining wellbores were single laterals. All of these fracture
designs are pumped at an average rate of 103 bpm and achieve treatments took place between April 2005 and June 2006.
maximum rates of up to 120 bpm. This higher rate is needed Five wells were examined using the low-viscosity fracturing
not only for proppant transport, but to stimulate as much of the design; one of these wells used lightweight ceramic proppant
lateral as possible. Some recent wellbores contain over 9,000’ due to availability, while the remaining wells used sand.
of openhole section, and with lower treating rates it is likely Three of these wellbores were dual-lateral designs. These
that significant portions of this would go untreated. treatments took place between July and October 2006.
Two basic job designs have been utilized during this program. Table 1 summarizes job costs and average post-frac
The first used low-concentration sand slugs with sweep stages production rates for these wells. In cases of wellbores with
between each sand-laden stage. These designs were used dual laterals, both the total job cost and production rates were
early in the project to determine how the formation would split to give a total cost and production per lateral. Wells
react to the higher treating rates and low-viscosity fluid. It designated XL were treated with crosslinked fluids, while
was also hoped that the sand slugs would help to achieve wells designated LV were treated with low-viscosity fluid
diversion and to allow treatment of larger portions of the systems. Production comparisons were based on 30-day
4 SPE 108045
averages. While the use of 30-day averages does not give a characteristics will likely include microseismic or tiltmeter
complete picture of ultimate recovery, in the absence of long- fracture mapping, the use of radioactive tracers, and the
term production data, 30-day averages were used to facilitate application of production and temperature logging to identify
an equitable comparison between treatment groups. Figure 6 fluid entry points and fracture geometry.
gives a comparison of 30-day production data for both groups.
Additional means of achieving diversion will be examined.
Production data shows a 30% increase in initial average These could include mechanical means such as the use of
production for the wells stimulated with the low-viscosity coiled tubing and other pinpoint stimulation methods.
fluids. Average production per lateral increased from Treatment designs could also be modified further in terms of
approximately 128 BOPD to 170 BOPD with the new designs. rate and maximum proppant concentration.
The best-performing low-viscosity well (LV2) exhibited
slightly better performance per lateral than the best- The use of white sand will continue to be examined. In the
performing crosslinked well (XL1) at a slight reduction in job absence of information regarding fracture geometry, it is
cost per lateral. It must be noted that the LV2 used difficult to justify the use of high-conductivity proppants.
lightweight ceramic proppant instead of sand. However, since the production from the only new well that
received ceramic proppant (LV2) is the best in the group,
However, the small sample size coupled with the large scatter further field tests using low-viscosity fluids in conjunction
in production data means that the production increase is within with ceramic proppants may be warranted. Additional
the statistical variation of the data set. It is therefore difficult evidence showing the creation of transverse hydraulic
to draw definite conclusions regarding the production increase fractures would also be a cause for further examining the use
resulting from low-viscosity treatments. of ceramic proppants.
Total average costs per lateral were approximately $410,000 As stimulation experience grows in the Bakken formation and
for crosslinked treatments and $241,000 for the new treatment wellbore design becomes more standardized, an optimized
designs. When the initial production is compared to the stimulation plan will be developed. The application of a
treatment costs, the resulting treatment costs are standardized fracture treatment allows for the effect of a single
approximately $3,200 per initial BOPD for crosslinked fracs variable to be measured. Examples of future job
and $1,400 per initial BOPD for low-viscosity treatments. modifications include the elimination of sand to judge the
While this data too cannot be used to draw definite effectiveness of a “waterfrac” treatment and the use of
conclusions, it is an encouraging sign that low-viscosity significantly greater fluid volumes to determine the correlation
treatments can achieve results comparable to crosslinked between fluid pumped and production.
treatments at a lower cost.
Conclusions
Refracture treatments have also exhibited good responses to Based on initial production data, low-viscosity fracturing
low-viscosity treatments. Table 2 compares production rates treatments in the Middle Bakken have increased production
following each stimulation treatment in the two wells while significantly lowering stimulation costs. Based on 30-
examined. The “Post-Frac 1” average refers to the average day averages, a production increase of approximately 30% has
following the initial crosslinked fracture treatment. “Pre-Frac been observed in the wells that were treated with low-viscosity
2” gives the 30-day average immediately prior to the fluids, while stimulation costs have decreased by 40%. Future
refracture treatment, while “Post-Frac 2” is the 30-day average treatments will focus on increasing hydraulic fracture
following the low-viscosity refracture stimulation. coverage along the wellbore, optimizing treatment volumes
and pump rates, understanding fracture geometry, and
The XL1 refracture treatment resulted in a doubling of the pre- optimizing proppant selection.
frac production rate. The XL6 refracture treatment resulted in
a nearly five-fold production increase, and surpassed the initial Acknowledgements
production rate of the well following the initial crosslinked
fracture treatment. The average total cost of these refracture The authors would like to thank Hess Corporation and
treatments was $165,000, compared with an average cost of Pinnacle Technologies for permission to publish this paper.
$408,500 for the initial crosslinked treatments.
Unit Conversions
Future Work °API 141.5/ (131.5 + °API) = g/cm3
bbl * 1.589 873 E - 01 = m3
The optimization of treatment design in the Bakken is ft * 3.048 E - 01 =m
ongoing. With the advent of longer openhole sections, a °F (°F – 32)/1.8 = °C
means of consistently achieving stimulation along the entire gal * 3.785 412 E - 03 = m3
wellbore will likely become even more crucial. lbm * 4.535 924 E - 01 = kg
md * 9.869 233 E - 04 = µm2
An important factor in the quest to achieve diversion is the psi * 6.894 757 E +00 = kPa
necessity of understanding the fracture characteristics that are
currently being obtained. Methods to determine these
SPE 108045 5
References
120.0 4.000
6000
90.0
4500 3.000
60.0
3000 2.000
30.0
1.000
1500
0.0
0.000
0 0.0 40.0 80.0 120.0 160.0 200.0
Time (min)
80.0 80.0
8.00 6000
60.0 60.0
6.00 4500
40.0 40.0
4.00 3000
20.0 20.0
2.00 1500
0.0 0.0
0.00 0.0 36.0 72.0 108.0 144.0 180.0 0
Time (min)
Well Name 30-Day Average (Post-Frac 1) 30-Day Average (Pre-Frac 2) 30-Day Average (Post-Frac 2)
XL1 343 74 147
XL6 152 35 173