FACTORS INFLUENCI N G
WELL COMPLETION
DESIGN
FACTORS INFLUENCING WELL
COMPLETION DESIGN
The ideal completion is the lowest cost completion (considering initial
and operating costs) that meets or nearly meets the demands placed
upon it for most of its life .
To intelligently design a well completion, a reasonable estimate of the
producing characteristics during the life of the well must be made .
Both reservoir and mechanical considerations must be evaluated.
Reservoir Considerations
Reservoir considerations involve the
location of various fluids in the formations
penetrated by the wellbore,
The flow of these fluids through the reservoir
rock,
The characteristics of the rock itself.
Reservoir Considerations
Producing rate to provide maximum economic recovery is often the
starting point for well completion design. Among other factors
producing rate should determine the size of the producing conduit .
Multiple reservoirs penetrated by a well pose the problem of multiple
completions in one drilled hole . Possibilities include multiple
completions inside casing separated by' packers, or several strings of
smaller casing cemented in one borehole to provide in effect separate
wells. Other possibilities include commingling of hydrocarbons from
separate reservoirs downhole, or drilling several boreholes from one
surface location.
Reservoir drive mechanism may determine whether or not the
completion interval will have to be adjusted as gas-oil or water-oil
contacts move. A water drive situation may indicate water production
Problems. Dissolved gas and gas drive reservoirs usually mean
declining productivity index and increasing gas-oil ratio .
Reservoir Considerations
Reservoir Considerations
Reservoir Considerations
Reservoir Considerations
Secondary recovery needs may require a completion method
conducive to selective injection or production. Water flooding may
increase volumes of fluid to be handled. High temperature recovery
processes may require special casing and casing cementing
materials .
Stimulation may require special perforating patterns to permit zone
isolation, perhaps adaptability to high injection rates, and a well
hookup such that after the treatment the zone can be returned to
production without contact with killing fluids .
Sand control problems alone may dictate the type of completion
method and maximum production rates. On the other hand, reservoir
fluid control problems may dictate that a less than desirable type of
sand control be used. Sand problem zones always indictate a payoff
from careful well completion practices.
Reservoir Considerations
Reservoir Considerations
Reservoir Considerations
Workover frequency, probably high where several reservoirs must be
drained through one wellbore, often dictate a completion conducive to
wire line or through-tubing type recompletion systems.
Artificial lift Artificial lift techniques include sucker rod pumping,
electrical submersible pumps, gas lift, and other types of hydraulic lift.
Each method of artificial lift requires unique downhole and surface
equipment that must be considered during the design of the well
completion.
Mechanical Considerations
The technical configuration is often the key to being able to deplete
the reservoir effectively, monitor downhole performance, and modify
the well situation when necessary.
The mechanical configuration of the well is the key to being able to do
what ought to be done in the well from the standpoint of controlling the
flow of reservoir fluids, oil, gas, and water.
Formation damage is related to the well hookup, both minimizing
damage initially and relieving the effects of damage later.
Mechanical Considerations
Basic philosophy is to design to specific well conditions, field
conditions, and area conditions.
1 . Maximize profit considering the time value of money. Economics
are sometimes best served by delaying expenditures, particularly in
wells where servicing is frequent. The isolated well is the one you can
afford to provide with maximum flexibility for the future.
2. Keep the installation simple, both from equipment and procedural
standpoints-consider level of operator skill available.
3 . Overall reliability depends on reliability of individual components
and the number of components. Design out maintenance, limit moving
parts, avoid debris traps. As complexity increases, provide alternatives.
4. Anticipate all operating conditions, and associated pressure and
temperature forces.
5. Safety must be designed into the well. In offshore, populated, or
isolated areas, automatic shut-in systems and well pressure control
methods must be considered.
Mechanical Considerations
Basic decisions to be reached in designing the well completion are:
(a) the method of completion,
(b) the number of completions within the wellbore,
(c) the casing-tubing configuration,
(d) the diameter of the production conduit, and
(e) the completion interval.
