Using Wired Drill Pipe, High-Speed Downhole Data, and Closed Loop Drilling Automation Technology to Drive Performance Improvement Across Multiple Wells in the Bakken

Abstract

Abstract Many operators have developed optimization processes to reduce well delivery time and cost. These optimization processes typically include three basic performance improvement cycles: The first, the Real-time cycle, involves the management of drilling parameters to safely maximize penetration rate and drill bit run length with the drilling system currently in the hole. This cycle moves at a fast pace.The second, the Run-to-Run cycle, involves recognizing and reacting to the drilling system configuration needs based on performance during the run. These adjustments can only be applied to the following bit run or the same interval on a future well. This cycle moves at a slower pace than the first.The third, the Well-to-Well cycle, uses a detailed post-well analysis of performance trends and massive amounts of digital data collected over multiple wells to identify root causes of performance limiters. This knowledge is then applied to the drilling system re-design. This cycle is the slowest of the three. To accelerate learning, the operator deployed a real-time, closed loop, downhole automation system (DHAS) in conjunction with wired drill pipe in the 8 ¾ in. hole section. The operator also used downhole memory tools in the 5 7/8 in. lateral section to collect downhole drilling parameters and vibration data. Our optimization process drew upon key elements from lean manufacturing concepts. It followed a Plan, Do, Check, Adjust (PDCA) loop, with the DHAS and the data provided by it impacting each of the three concurrently moving performance improvement cycles. The pilot test of the DHAS in the Bakken continued for 16 wells on four different surface locations, or pads. Thirteen out of sixteen 8 ¾ in. hole intervals drilled with this system exhibited top quartile performance from a rig that had not drilled a top quartile well for over 2 years. As many as 45 hours of invisible lost time were removed from on-bottom drilling in a single hole section, compared to average performance in the same interval for the last three pads drilled with this same rig. Additionally, the operator identified previously unrecognized rate of penetration (ROP) limiters over the course of the project. The key limiter for the 8 ¾ in. vertical interval was a directional dropping tendency of the bottomhole assembly (BHA) which also limited the ability to mitigate the second key limiter, drill bit vibration. Off-bottom practices (e.g., reaming) limited performance for the curve interval. The key limiter for the lateral turned out to be tool failures, resulting from vibration events occurring during on-bottom and off-bottom transitions. The drilling team also learned how each of the performance improvement cycles is affected by the DHAS.