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The AAPG/Datapages Combined Publications Database
Wyoming Geological Association
Abstract
The Importance of Completion Design
Abstract
As the world’s oil and gas reserves are sought out and depleted, the search turns to more difficult targets. Many of the reserves that are now actively being exploited lie in tight reservoirs. Reaching these reserves demands better completion design than has been used in the past.
The completions continue to increase in cost, complexity, and risk. Early completions were natural. Little attention was paid to completion fluids, reservoir mineralogy, rock-fluid interactions, natural fracture systems, stimulation, and geological setting. The use of acid to clean up completions is one of the oldest completion enhancements. In the early 1960’s, the sand-oil squeeze successfully enhanced production from tight, water-sensitive formations. In the 1970’s the massive hydraulic fracture treatment unlocked gas reserves in tight reservoirs. In the 1980’s foams found applications in completions. By the 1990’s, horizontal wells greatly modified the reservoir’s exposure to the wellbore, and the completion had to cope with prevention and treatment of formation damage. During all of this time developments in tool technology increased the options and complexities of mechanical wellbore configurations.
With the cost of completions rising more quickly than any other segment of oil and gas development, questions arise as to the effectiveness of completion design and execution. Some operators dismiss many of the completion techniques as a fanciful sport of the wealthy. Others diligently try to glean additional information about the local reservoir and optimize every aspect of the completion to increase production rates, return on investments, and ultimate reserves.
Just how important is the completion design? What do we get for the time and money we invest in completions? Should we continue to increase our efforts in this segment of the industry, or should we simplify completions and spend money in more profitable ventures? This study looks at the effect of completions from the perspective of forensics or even an autopsy in a very mature tight oil sandstone.
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