PRODUCTION ENGINEERING

Well Completion
Perforating
Sand Control
Inflow/Outflow Performance
Artificial Lift
Formation Damage/Well
Stimulation
Oil & Gas Processing
Production Problems
 Production Engineer
Mission Statement

“Handle the management of oil and gas

production operations with key
objectives to maximize profitability
by increasing revenue and/or
lowering operating expenses”
 Task of Production Engineer
• Plan future methods and policies for producing
fields
• Prepare short and medium term production
forecast
• Evaluate well performance
• Study various aspects of production to improve
efficiency
• Prepare production testing, well intervention,
workover program
• Ensure adequate and reliable data are kept
• Interface with working interest partners,
service companies and regulatory agencies
 Well Completion
The activities and methods
necessary to prepare a well for
the production of oil and gas
from the reservoir to the surface
or for the injection/disposal of
fluids from the surface to the
reservoir
 Completion Types
• Open Hole Completion (bare foot)
• Cased Hole Completion
– Slotted liner/Screen Completion
– Perforated Completion
Factors Influencing Completion Design
• Production Fluids
• Production Rates
• Multiple Reservoirs
• Sand Control
• Artificial Lifting
• Safety
• Maintenance
• Cost
 Open Hole Completion
• Producing interval open to the wellbore
• Maximum wellbore diameter
• Cheap, simple and suitable for
consolidated formations
• Deepening of well easily accomplished
• Easily converted to other completion
types
• Selectivity of producing intervals is
difficult
 Slotted Liner/Screen

• Prevent the hole from collapsing

• Selectivity of producing intervals
is not possible
• More expensive than open hole
completion
• Suitable for long horizontal well
 Cased Hole Completion

• Production casing/liner/tubing is
cemented through the producing
intervals
• Formation can be selectively
produced or stimulated
• More expensive than open hole
completion
Slimhole/Monobore Completion

Fullbore access to the production

zone is possible through the
completion tubing. It allows hole
sizes to be decreased with no
loss of production compared to
traditional or conventional
completions
Slimhole/Monobore Completion
• Reduced well cost/wastes
• Useful for deeper well where many
casing strings needed
• Suitable to several reservoirs where
the reservoirs are produced and
abandoned from the bottom up or
production can be commingled
• Limit potential reuse of the tubing
string
Slimhole/Monobore Completion

• Lack of contingency in hole sizes

• Limit potential reuse of the tubing
string
• Limit information obtained if the hole
size prevents logging requirement
• May not suitable for well requiring
selectivity of producing zones
 Production Strings
• Provide safe conduit for fluids flow
from reservoir to surface
• Consist of Tubing and completion
accessories such as production
packers, landing nipples, downhole
flow control equipments, etc.
 Tubing
• Small-diameter steel pipe (0.75 to 4.5 in.
diameter that is suspended in a
completed well
• Conduct the produced fluids from
reservoir to surface or vice versa
• Suspend pump on the bottom of a
pumping well
• Permit placing of treatment fluids and
chemicals in the well
• Protect casing from corrosion and
thermal stress
 Tubing
• Tubing is defined by size, grade, weight,
and end finishing (connection)
• Selection of tubing must consider fluids,
size, corrosion, and operations required
• API has developed specifications that meet
the major needs of the oil and gas industry
(API Spec. 5CT, API Bull. 5A2, 5C2, 5C3)
• In general, API tubulars are adequate for
different pressure of less than 5000 psi
and temperature of less than 300 F
 Production Packers
• Subsurface tools used to provide
a seal between the tubing and the
casing of a well to prevent the
vertical movement of fluids past
the sealing point
• Consist of sealing element,
holding or setting device, and
fluid passage
• Generally be classified as
permanent or retrievable type
 Reasons to use Packers
• Improve safety by providing a barrier to
flow through annulus
• Keep well fluids and pressure isolated from
casing
• Improve flow conditions and prevent heading
• Separate zones in the same wellbore
• Place kill fluids or treating fluids in the
annulus
• Pack off perforation rather than use
squeeze cementing
• Isolate a casing leak or leaking liner lap
 Reasons to use Packers (cont’d)
• Keep gas lift or hydraulic power fluid
injection pressure isolated from the
formation
• Anchor the tubing
• Install casing pump
• Minimize heat losses by allowing the use of
an empty annulus or thermal insulator
• Facilitate temporary well services operations
(e.g., stimulations, squeezes)
 Packer Setting Mechanism
• Mechanical setting methods include
rotation of the tubing string,
reciprocation of the tubing string, or the
application of tension or set-down weight.
• Hydraulic packers are set by applying
hydraulic pressure through the tubing
string, but once set they hold the set
position mechanically. The tubing is
usually in tension.
 Retrievable Packers
• Run on tubing
• After setting, they can be released and
recovered from the well on the tubing
• With mechanical packers, the tubing is
usually set in compression
• Usually used for complex multi-zone and
multi-string completions
• Tend to have a restricted bore, compared to
other packers designed
• Used under nonsevere conditions
 Permanent Packers
• Independent of the tubing and may be run on
tubing or on wireline
• Tubing can be released from the packer and
can be pulled, leaving the packer set in the
casing
• Packer may be considered as an integral part
of casing
• Cannot be recovered as such, but can be
destructively removed (e.g., by milling)
• Can be set using an electrical wireline setting
tool, hydraulic setting tool or mechanical
setting
Typically Use of Permanent Packer
• Formation, treating, or differential
pressures will be high
• High bottomhole temperature exist
• Desirable to pull the tubing without
unseating the packer
• Tubing operating stress variations would not
be accommodated with a retrievable packer
• Retrievable packer would have an inadequate
bore
Consideration of Packer Selection
• Retrievability
• Packer mechanics
• Sealing element
• Corrosive well fluids
• Through-tubing operations
• Fishing characteristics
• Matching of surface and downhole
equipment
• Price
 Landing Nipples
• Short tubular nipples with tubular
threads that are part of tubing string.
These nipples have an internal profile to
serve as a position/landing location for all
kinds of subsurface flow control
equipment
• They contain locating recess, locking
recess, and pack-off section
• Two basic types: selective and
nonselective (or no-go) landing nipples
 Uses of Nipples and Devices
• Facilitate pressure testing of the
bottomhole assembly and tubing
couplings, and the setting of hydraulic
packers
• Land and seal off a bottomhole pump
• Isolate the tubing if it is to be run dry
for high drawdown perforating
• Land wireline retrievable flow controls,
such as plugs, tubing safety valves,
bottomhole chokes
 Uses of Nipples and Devices
• Plug the well if the tree must be removed
• Plug the tailpipe below packer in order to
pull the tubing without killing the well
• Temporarily plug the well while the rig is
moved on or off the well
• Install a standing valve for intermitten
gas lift
• Land bottomhole pressure gauges
Sliding Side Door (Sliding Sleeve)
• Device on the tubing string that is
manipulated by a wireline tool to open
or close ports between the tubing and
annulus
• It contains tubing nipple with ports,
sliding inner sleeve, landing and
locking recess for a mandrel, and
sealing section
 Side Pocket Mandrels
• Special eccentric nipple that can
accommodate a valve in parallel to the
tubing to control access to the annulus
• Usually use for installing wireline
retrievable gas lift valves or injection
valves
• It can also be used to install a pressure
and temperature sensor that can transmit
data to surface via a cable attached to
the outside of the tubing
Blast Joints and Flow Couplings
• Special joints having special tubing ID and
collar OD dimensions
• Usually manufactured from special heat-
treated steel
• Blast joints are used to increase the
abrasion resistance of the tubing string
against the jetting action of producing
formation
• Flow couplings are used to reduce erosion
caused by the turbulent flow through
restricted area
 Subsurface Safety Valves
• Device that are used to shut in a well at
some point below the surface to prevent
oil and gas from reaching the surface
when the surface safety controls are not
working due to fire, explosion, collision, or
mechanical failures
• They can be categorized into tubing
retrievable and wireline retrievable types
• The valves can be remote (surface) or
direct (downhole) control
Subsurface Safety Valves (cont’d)
• Installation depth of the subsurface
safety valve is dictated by parameter
such as
– Deepest pile of an offshore platform
– Kick-off point in surrounding deviated well
– Estimated cratering depth when blowout
– Wax formation depth
– Hydrate formation depth