Cascaded bottom hole pressure control in managed pressure drilling

Abstract With the many challenges associated with Deepwater Drilling, Managed Pressure Drilling has proven to be a very useful tool to mitigate many hurdles. Client approached Managed Pressure Drilling technology to drill Myanmar's first MPD well on a Deepwater exploration well. The well was drilled with a Below Tension Ring-Slim Rotating Control Device (BTR-S RCD) and Automated MPD Choke System installed on semi-submersible rig, Noble Clyde Boudreaux (NCB). The paper will detail MPD objectives, application and well challenges, in conjunction with pore pressure prediction to manage the bottom hole pressure to drill to well total depth safely and efficiently. This exploration well was drilled from a water depth of 590m from a Semisubmersible rig required MPD application for its exploratory drilling due to uncertainties of drilling window which contained a sharp pressure ramp, with a history of well bore ballooning there was high potential to encounter gas in the riser. The Deepwater MPD package integrated with the rig system, offered a safer approach to overcome the challenges by enhanced influx monitoring and applying surface back pressure (SBP) to adjust bottom hole pressures as required. Additionally, modified pore pressure hunting method was incorporated to the drilling operation to allow more accurate pore pressure prediction, which was then applied to determine the required SBP in order to maintain the desired minimum overbalance while drilling ahead. The closed loop MPD circulating system allowed to divert returns from the well, through MPD flow spool into MPD distribution manifold and MPD automated choke manifold system to the shakers and rig mud gas separator (MGS). The automated MPD system allows control and adjustments of surface back pressure to control bottom hole pressure. MPD technology was applied with minimal overbalance on drilling and connections while monitoring on background gases. A refined pore pressure hunting method was introduced with manipulation of applied surface back pressure to define this exploration well pore pressure and drilling window. The applied MPD Deepwater technique proved for cost efficiency and rig days to allow two deeper casing setting depths and eliminating requirement to run contingency liners. MPD system and equipment is proving to be a requirement for Deepwater drilling for optimizing drilling efficiency. This paper will also capture detailed lesson learned from the operations as part of continuous learning for improvement on Deepwater MPD drilling.

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Case Study and Analysis of Bottom Hole Pressure Management During Drillstring Connections Made in a Managed Pressure Drilling Operation in Indonesia

10.29118/ipa.0.14.e.253 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Mirza, Joydi Zein,

Keyword(s):

Pressure Management ◽

Hole Pressure ◽

Drilling Operation ◽

Bottom Hole Pressure ◽

Bottom Hole ◽

Managed Pressure Drilling ◽

Made In

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MPD During the Global Pandemic in the Gulf of Mexico - How Virtual Meetings, Planning, and Communication Facilitated a Safe and Successful Implementation of CBHP MPD

10.2118/206392-ms ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Nathan Tuckwell ◽

Akram Nabiyev ◽

Martyn Parker ◽

Isabel Poletzky

Keyword(s):

Gulf Of Mexico ◽

Pressure Control ◽

Successful Implementation ◽

Precise Control ◽

Hole Pressure ◽

Bottom Hole Pressure ◽

Bottom Hole ◽

Global Pandemic ◽

Operational Window ◽

Integrity Tests

Abstract This paper details how a major international operator was able to work directly with a Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD) service provider during the global pandemic to mobilize to a deep water Tension Leg Platform (TLP) in the Gulf of Mexico in fewer than four weeks from notification to being operationally ready. Apart from the time crunch, the challenging part was achieving it virtually without face-to-face meetings or rig visit. The legacy hydraulically controlled MPD system used on the previous well had proven to be very challenging. It could not provide the desired precise control to maintain the annular pressures within the operational window, thus necessitating a change. Furthermore, the deck space limitations had significantly restricted the equipment that could be used to gain accurate pressure control. Despite COVID, all the planning stages were performed, albeit virtually, and a compact modular electric servo choke MPD system was deployed, installed, and commissioned within four weeks from the initial discussions. The new MPD system, which replaced the legacy system, was successfully utilized on this project executing the constant bottom hole pressure (CBHP) MPD variations. It achieved bottom hole pressure (BHP) control within a 0.1 - 0.2 ppg operational window. This paper will discuss how, operationally, this 1-man per shift MPD crew communicated with the rig and operator personnel, delivered accurate pressure control on connections, performed dynamic formation integrity tests (FITs), delivering flawless execution, and meeting the client's expectations. Global pandemic made big changes in our work, learning and interact with people with social distancing.

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Managed Pressure Drilling and Underbalanced Drilling Compounded Role in Solving the Exploration and Appraisal Challenges of Biogenetic Gas Resources in the United Arab Emirates -Case Study

10.2118/207938-ms ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ahmed Al Mutawa ◽

Ibrahim Hamdy ◽

Eias Daban Al Shamisi ◽

Bassem El Yossef ◽

Mohamed Sameer Amin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

United Arab Emirates ◽

Drilling Fluid ◽

Productivity Index ◽

Biogenic Gas ◽

Hole Pressure ◽

Bottom Hole Pressure ◽

Underbalanced Drilling ◽

Bottom Hole ◽

Novel Approach ◽

Managed Pressure Drilling

Abstract Biogenic gas resources have gathered importance recently due to its widespread availability, occurrence at geologically predictable circumstances, and existence at shallow depths. It is estimated that biogenic gas forms more than 20% of the global discovered reserves. However, the exploration and development of these unconventional resources come with numerous drilling and reservoir challenges. This paper showcases a novel approach used in the United Arab Emirates to overcome these challenges using managed pressure and underbalanced drilling. To tackle both reservoir and drilling challenges, a hybrid solution combining Underbalanced (UBD) and Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD) was applied. UBD was used to characterize the reservoir in terms of pressure and productivity index to ultimately enhance productivity by eliminating formation damage. MPD was used next to continue drilling through the problematic zone which had high instability due to the presence of highly sensitive salt, in addition to the presence of high pressure and loss zones. The fit for purpose hybrid application design allowed the operator to immediately switch between UBD and MPD conditions, as the well required with the same equipment. Three of the four targeted formations were in the 8 ½″ hole section, UBD was selected to drill the first reservoir formation which allowed pore pressure verification and avoided using excessive mud weight that was the culprit of many challenges like slow ROP, drilling fluid losses, bit balling, and fracking the formations. UBD has proved that mud weight can be reduced by 20%-30% comparing to conventional drilling. The second formation was a salt formation that has caused previously hole collapse and losses-kicks problems as heavy mud used to drill this salty formation. MPD used successfully drill this section by constant bottom hole pressure and lower mud weight as it was found from analyzing offset wells reports that hole collapse occurred at connections and pump off events. Constant Bottom Hole Pressure (CBHP) also eliminated tight spots and excessive reaming resulting in optimized drilling. The third formation used MPD as well to minimize overbalance pressure over previous sections while the fourth formation was drilled by UBD as it had a separate 6″ hole section as it formed an independent reservoir. The combined MPD and UBD approach eliminated most the NPT encountered in offset wells, enhanced Rate of Penetration (ROP) by 200% to 300% and slashed the well drilling time by 27 days.

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