Abstract

Abstract The Captain Field is approximately 90 miles north-east of Aberdeen, Scotland in the UK Continental Shelf Block 13122a (Fig. 1). The field was discovered in 1977 and it was clear then that economic extraction of the viscous, low GOR and low API crude from a shallow, unconsolidated sandstone reservoir at a depth of 3000 ft and with a large a real extent (7 mile by 3.3 mile) would not be easy. The Captain Field overview presentation will focus on how the dedicated, multidiscipline team brought the asset to commercial reality as quickly as possible through a parallel appraisal and engineering programme. Also, the appraisal programme was tasked with proving the horizontal drilling, completion, artificial lift and reservoir performance technology through the use of extended well tests (EWT). Contractor qualification and concept selection began while appraisal drilling and testing were being carried out. Information gained from the appraisal programme was fed directly into the Front end Engineering Design (FEED) which was carried forward with three development concepts. Detailed bids from the three FEED contractors were used to select the optimum economic development concept and plan. From inception, the team was empowered to drive the project forward and quickly developed a set of principles that has driven its success. These principles include a shared vision, innovation, dedication, open communication, quality, standardisation, teamwork and trust. Introduction The Captain Field was discovered in 1977 and it was clear then that economical extraction of the low mobility viscous, low GOR crude oil, from a shallow field (3000 feet) with a large a real extent and unconsolidated sand would not be easy (Fig. 2). The discovery well (13122a-1) drilled in 1977, contained viscous oil with little gas and did not have sufficient reservoir pressure to allow production without artificial lift. The appraisal well 13122a-2 was drilled in 1989 and tested 740 BOPD with an electric submersible pump(ESP). In 1990, a well (13122a-8) was drilled with 1000 ft Presented. horizontal section and produced 6500 BOPD, again using an ESP. The gap between the 1977 discovery well and follow-up drilling was extensive because the technical challenges were immense. Operating Under A Business Umbrella To meet these challenges and to bring Captain to commercial reality, a multi-discipline team was formed in January 1992 (Fig 3) as part of Texaco's U.K. Upstream reorganisation which implemented sweeping changes in the way projects were to be developed. Multidiscipline and cross-functional teams were formed in a new "Asset Development" department to address problems, such as Captain. Their charter was to map issues accurately and to develop solutions that could be implemented in a variety of settings, and then advocate the adoption of these solutions as quickly as possible, with the goal to add significant value to the Company

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