MRC Wells Performance Update: Shaybah Field, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

AbstractThis paper is an update of previous SPE technical papers1,2 highlighting the results of 25 Maximum Reservoir Contact (MRC) wells drilled in the Shaybah Field either as new wells or part of a workover strategy to convert existing weak 1-km single lateral wells to MRC wells with reservoir contacts ranging from 5 to 9 km.Shaybah field, a low permeability reservoir overlain by a huge gas cap was initially developed in 1996 with 1-km single lateral horizontal wells to effectively drain the hydrocarbon while reducing gas coning. A step development approach by increasing the reservoir contact to improve well productivity and performance was the basis for the MRC concept. Results to date from 25 MRC wells have indicated a four-fold increase in well productivities and a three-fold decrease in unit development cost when compared to the one-km single lateral wells. A useful by-product of MRC drilling is the enhancement achieved in reservoir characterization.In addition to MRC wells, smart technologies such as downhole flow control systems (smart completions), expandable liners, and production equalizers were deployed in Shaybah Field. These technologies have shown major improvements to well performance and recovery. Smart controls assisted in optimizing production from each lateral in a multi-lateral well in the event of premature gas or water coning. In addition, downhole smart completions improved well productivity in multi-lateral wells through an improved well cleanup process. Production equalizers when deployed in high GOR wells reduced gas coning and improved well productivity. To date over 21 expandable liners have been deployed as enablers to a workover strategy to convert single lateral wells to Multi-lateral/MRC wells thereby providing the platform for installation of downhole flow control systems.