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New technology makes an impact on a water flood in the old East Texas Oil Field
April, 22 2015
Introduction to the East Texas Oil Field
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Discovered September 3, 1930
Produced 5.4 BSTB of 390 API oil of estimated OOIP of 6.8 to 7.5 BSTB
Upper Cretaceous Woodbine Group is truncated to East against the Sabine Uplift by the Austin Chalk.
– Fluvial dominated deltaic deposits
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In excess of 31,000 wells have been drilled; the bulk of which have been P&Aed
The field has not been unitized
Zone implemented water flood in areas of limited natural aquifer support
Zone’s operates a patterned water flood:
– 2,600 gross acres; 100 producers, 23 injectors 2
Challenge
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Zone acquired leases in 2010
– Found the data to be old and disparate
– The field was never unitized; different operators collected and retained different data by lease
– No database
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Performed a data gathering exercise
– Logs to develop sequence stratigraphic framework
– Historical well performance
– Historical well records
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Initial approach
– Daily production captured in Excel
• Minimal automation
• Manual data entry and well allocations
• Manual tracking of water injection •
Challenge
– How to expand as flood implemented
– Needed an integrated, efficient database with wizards for allocation and performance analysis 3
Initial approach capturing data in Excel
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Business Proposition
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Cost of initial implementation
– Approximately the same as ½ year’s salary for a production technologist
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Maintenance cost after initial investment
Opportunity to add custom features as justified
Efficiencies
– Data entered directly in field office
• Previously faxed from field to Houston
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Time efficiencies
– Data transparency between field office and Houston
– Houston able to immediately QC and provide feedback to field office
– Significant time savings in Houston
• Well and lease allocation
• Charting and trending
• Flood response
• Production and injection reporting internally and externally
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Solution design
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OVS proposed to implement a solution around it’s production optimization framework
– OVS and Zone defined implementation design
• Create an expandable operational and production database
– Move from Excel to a relational database
– Have access to automatic charting and reporting tools
• Configuration tool to define leases, ownership, tanks, wells, flood patterns, flood projects • Capture tank straps, injection well performance, producing well tests, well downtime and event management, facility meters
• Automate, within limits, daily measurements and alert field foreman if something required investigation
• Implement downtime reporting
• Perform lease and well allocations
• Implement a well surveillance tool
• Implement a water flood polygon and water flood project surveillance tool
• Create surveillance dashboard
• Implement as a flexible framework for future expansion of workflows; for example regulatory reporting, reservoir analysis, decline analysis and reserves forecasting
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Operator daily capture screen
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Results
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OVS delivered a fit‐for‐purpose SQL database
– Performed configuration load and Excel data load
– Gave us the capability to attach to third party data repositories
• Drilling and well schematic repository
– Configured lease and well allocation workflow
– Tool for field office data entry and quality control
• Huge efficiency savings
• Downtime monitoring
– Surveillance charting for wells, water flood patterns, projects and leases
– Dynamic dashboard and automatic daily reporting and trending
– Report creation for Texas RRC
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Operator data capture
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Lease allocation wizard and project configuration panel
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Well review panels
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Tank production
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Equipment daily production
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Report capabilities
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Success and benefits
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Very affordable and quick implementation
Embraced throughout organization:
– Field, office and executive management
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Operational efficiencies
– No previous way to monitor daily production or flood performance
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Well and water flood pattern dynamic surveillance
Created platform for additional workflows
Removed requirement for production technician on staff
– Significant cost reduction for company
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