Gazprom Neft developing oil-production technologies for gas cap drive reservoirs
MOSCOW -- As part of its ongoing technology strategy, Gazprom Neft has established a program directed at developing technologies to exploit oil reserves located below a gas cap. Implementation of the projects within this program will, in the long-term, allow some 215 MMt of oil reserves to be brought into development.
Total recoverable oil and gas condensate reserves at Gazprom Neft’s gas cap drive reservoirs exceed 500 MMt, of which only 300 MMt can be developed through the use of current technologies: a further 200 MMt could be extracted through projects under the company’s new technological program. Gas cap drive reservoirs require very accurate and precise tools in their development. Work with such reserves demands, in particular, very effective management of gas influx into oil wells, and a greater oil recovery factor where there is significant gas content. The new program has been developed by employees at the Gazprom Neft Joint Scientific and Research Center and includes 13 technological initiatives directed at interpreting downhole surveys, forecasting the gas input factor, and developing value engineering tools, equipment and algorithms for the effective operation of wells with significant gas content.
Novoportovskoye and Messoyakhskoye fields, selected for pilot operations in the implementation of new production technologies, both contain major gas cap drive reservoirs.
Messoyakhskoye field, specifically, has already seen the implementation of a project for the selection of optimum well construction technologies in gas cap drive reservoirs. Drilling technologies for complex multi-lateral wells have also been tried out at the field (so-called “fishbone” wells), which are expected to be replicated in line with geo-mechanical modelling currently being actively developed by the Gazprom Neft Joint Scientific and Research Center. In order to further enhance oil recovery, Gazprom Neft is also developing new hydraulic fracing technologies, since the possible ingress of gas into oil wells means traditional fracing techniques cannot be applied at such reserves.
