Electrical Heating Can Optimize Production in Heavy-Oil Fields With Intelligent Multilaterals

Abstract

This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Chris Carpenter, contains highlights of paper IPTC 20134, “Production Optimization Through Intelligent Multilateral Wells in Heavy-Oil Fields by Electrical Heating,” by Cenk Temizel, SPE, Saudi Aramco; Celal Hakan Canbaz, Ege University; and Fatma Bahar Hosgor, Petroleum Software, et al. The paper has not been peer reviewed. Copyright 2020 International Petroleum Technology Conference. Reproduced by permission. Electrical resistive heating provides key advantages over other thermal methods in the recovery of heavy-oil resources. However, the recovery efficiency with electrical heating is relatively lower compared with more-conventional methods such as cyclic steam stimulation, steamflooding, and steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) because it does not introduce a (pressure) drive mechanism and the radius of effect is relatively small, which may result in marginal economics. In this study, the application of electrical resistance heating on multilateral wells is studied in order to illustrate the enhanced physical and economic benefits of the method in such a setting. Smart Tools in Multilateral Wells Placement of a multilateral well is a decision that must be considered carefully. The easiest method of determining whether the approach is the right one for a field is to analogize multilateral wells with the traditional single-bore wells that penetrate to the same formation area. The multilayered well has less drilling depth and reduced rig time compared with the conventional wells. Thus, multilaterals are an advantageous completion design in locations such as offshore platforms or harsh-weather areas. However, multilateral well-completion design is challenging because of its increased complexity. Most smart wells include hydraulic-control systems to satisfy a simpler, more-reliable operation. Current wellhead-control systems allow a limited number of penetrations. The indications are that smart tools controlled with electrical systems will be an emerging focal point of the industry. The cost of a multilateral well is higher because of the equipment used and operational complexity. It also includes a higher risk compared with the risk of a conventional well. Any problem that results in abandoning the well will bring a major economic loss equal to the cost of several conventional wells.