How Rethinking the Drilling System from the Drillbit to the Drillstring and the Drilling Fluid Addressed a Threatening Casing Wear and Turned a Difficult 6-in. Section into a Perfect 6-in. Sidetrack
Sébastien Labrousse;
Hakan Guner;
Carlos Kauffmann;
Alberto Caycedo;
Jørn Opsahl;
Rawad Atallah;
Tore Andreas Hatleseth;
Rune Moldekleiv;
Magnar Nokland;
Ørjan Andreassen;
Benjamin Nyborg
Paper presented at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition & Conference, Abu Dhabi, UAE, November 2019.
Paper Number: SPE-197959-MS
https://doi.org/10.2118/197959-MS
Published: November 11 2019
Abstract
The purpose of the paper is to present how an integrated solution was designed to turn a challenging 6-in. section into a successful 6-in. production sidetrack in Norway. A threatening casing wear issue caused by the combination of slow progress and localized dogleg was addressed successfully with a complete redesign of the drilling system.
A 6-in. pilot section suffered slow progress due to low rate of penetration and tool failures. A significant amount of metal swarf was recovered while drilling. A casing wear log quantified the wear in the 9 7/8-in. casing, and this led to questioning the feasibility of the planned 6-in. production sidetrack. Operator, rig contractor and integrated services provider worked together to find a solution.
Firstly, a detailed study of the wear was performed. A wear log was run, and the casing wear was quantified. Casing wear simulations were then calibrated based on wear logs and it appeared feasible to drill the 6-in. sidetrack if a minimum rate of penetration and a maximum number of revolutions were respected.
Secondly, the drilling system was optimized to ensure faster progress. This was done thanks to the lessons learned from the pilot section. The mud system was changed, and a lower density was used to increase the rate of penetration. The drillbit was optimized based on the limited wear seen in the bits used in the pilot section. As it was more aggressive, the perceived risk of downhole tool failure was mitigated with the use of an anti-stall tool.
Finally, to reduce the incremental wear from the sidetrack operation, casing protectors and lubricants were run. In addition, the planned drillpipe was changed to a lighter drillpipe to reduce the sideforces.
The new system resulted in a successful drilling and section TD was reached ahead of the estimated perfect time.
This paper provides a detailed example of how a casing wear issue was addressed. The drivers we extract from this case are useful for the planning of future operations, especially in extended-reach wells.
