Artificial Lift: 25 Years of Change Tracked in the Pages of JPT

Abstract

Nodding donkeys. Thirsty birds. Rocking horses. All are playful nicknames for the oil and gas icon known as a pumpjack. To the uninformed, the pumpjack is a thing-a-ma-jig that has something to do with oil, probably “fracking” because that’s what drilling rigs do, right? But as an industry-educated and well-informed reader of JPT, you know this is inaccurate. By whatever name you call it, you know that the pumpjack is the visible manifestation of an invisible physics equation, a mechanism buried deep underground that lifts reservoir fluids to the surface. You also know it is one type of artificial lift available in a stable of systems with equally curious and technical names like progressive cavity, plunger, jet, gas lift, and electrical submersible pump (ESP). While there is no global repository of artificial lift statistics, industry observers estimate that 90 to 95% of the world’s producing wells use artificial lift, as noted in a 2013 JPT story on the challenges and opportunities for artificial lift. Artificial lift, as applied in oil and gas production, has existed for over 100 years. A 2014 JPT story laid out a brief history of the practice, sharing how the walking beam principle dates back to at least 476 CE when used in Egypt, and evidence of the use of sucker rods to lift fluids has been excavated from the homes of wealthier families in the early days of the Roman Empire. Even as we leap forward to the modern-day application of artificial lift systems, many techniques and technologies resemble their original designs. How these systems are applied has changed, especially in the past decade-plus with the emergence of shale. As highlighted in a JPT story on the past 25 years of technology advances, the industry underwent a robust era of technology development in its rush to crack the shale development riddle. Since 1999, the industry also delivered a 36% increase in global supplies, as noted in this JPT story celebrating this industry’s biggest innovations. 1999 represents an interesting turning point in the industry’s technological journey. Also, it is the last time JPT editors took the opportunity to celebrate the publication as it turned 50 years old that year. What follows are a few highlights from JPT’s coverage of advances and changes made in artificial lift applications and practices over the past quarter century.