Consulting Services

Horizontal wells are used extensively by the oil and gas industry for production from prolific reservoirs. It is also recognized that optimized recovery requires balancing the effect of two natural tendencies of flow into horizontal wells. These are;

Because of friction due to flow along the length of the horizontal section, pressure is higher at the toe of the well compared to its heel. This means that the flow per unit length of the well is higher near the heel, which then leads to faster drainage of reservoir near the heel, and earlier inflow of water and/or gas.

Reservoir permeability heterogeneity causes irregular drainage of the reservoir, which again leads to early production of water/gas through the high permeability parts of the reservoir. Permeability heterogeneity can be due to presence of natural fractures, or, changes in matrix permeability.

Correcting these two effects will lead to more uniform drainage of the reservoir and higher ultimate recovery. Inflow Control Devices (ICD) are tools that are installed within an isolated section of the borehole for flow regulation . Their basic function is to selectively choke and reduce flow. The net effect is higher ultimate oil recovery at lower cost.

While proper use of ICDs is very beneficial for efficient reservoir drainage and economics, its improper use can also be costly by unnecessarily reducing and/or delaying the production of oil, as well as increasing the completion cost. Improperly and indiscriminately placing ICDs throughout the well is expensive and harmful to production. Each well interval requires a different level of choking. Placing the same ICD throughout the well will NOT optimize recovery.

Another important factor is determination of the optimum flow profile in a given horizontal well. All horizontal well segments do not, and should not, flow at the same rate. Attempting to equalize flow along the length of the well is harmful to well productivity and optimized oil recovery.

Proper design of ICDs needs to answer four important questions;

• Which specific well segments require choking. Selection of well intervals that need to be packed off with open hole packers is an important part of ICD design.
• Once the intervals that need choking have been identified, the next step is to determine the optimum level of choking in each interval that will result in uniform reservoir drainage.
• Existing commercially available systems are designed on different engineering principles. Which commercial system is best suited for a specific reservoir condition? The two important considerations in selecting ICDs are system reliability, and ability to provide the desired level of choking.
• How does the modified flow profile meet reservoir production and management objectives

With the above points in mind, we offer two types of services for ICD design.

1. Design software. Our proprietary programs offer the following specific features;

• Special stand-alone design simulator (DCIm.exe) for selection of open hole packer locations, and, the optimum level of choking in each segment of the horizontal well.
• Special stand-alone three phase oil/water/gas simulator (OWGsim.exe) for production forecasting and computation of water/gas break-through time and %oil recovery for various ICD designs
• Performing design computations in formations with non-uniform permeability or flow profile
• Flexibility. Our design software allows changing the vertical location of the well in the reservoir. This provides another level of efficiency for higher production optimization.
• Computation efficiency. It takes only minutes to execute each of the two main simulators. This allows for quick assessment of multiple options and selecting one that best meets reservoir and production objectives.
• User friendliness. The software is designed for ease of use. It takes little time to train technical people to use the software.
• Special customized interfaces. The software can be modified to include designs for specific commercial ICD systems used by the client, and specific features desirable for any reservoir or production environment.

2. ICD design consulting services.

We offer full suite of consulting services related to the design of ICD systems. These include;

• Selection of open hole packer locations based on formation permeability or production profile.
• Computation of optimum choking level for each well interval for best oil recovery
• Recommendation for optimum well location within the pay thickness
• Selection of a commercial system suitable for your well and reservoir
• Computations of oil, gas and water flow rates, average reservoir pressure and recovery factor with time
• Determination of well intervals likely to be the sources for early water or gas break-though
• Determination of the time of water or gas break-through.
• Scenario analysis
• Matching the design with your production and reservoir objectives.

For more information regarding licensing or purchase of this software, or ICD consulting services, please contact us at contact@daneshy.com

In vast majority of wells the produced fluid is a mixture of oil and injected or formation water. Some of this water is useful and needs to be accepted as part of production stream. But the produced mix often includes excessive water that does not contribute to production of oil. The aim of water control is to reduce the excessive production of water.

By and large, the oil and gas industry is not happy with the success records of treatments performed for control of excessive water. Part of the problem is lack of clarity as to where and when water flow can and should be controlled, and, the treatment selections and design considerations that can lead to a successful job.

Our consulting services include the following;

 • Diagnostics; is the produced water excessive and can be controlled?

• Choice of an appropriate system for water control; chemical vs. mechanical

• Selection of appropriate chemicals in chemical water control

• Selection of mechanical systems in mechanical water control

• Recommendation of a placement technique

• Treatment design and pumping schedule

• Identification of candidates suitable for Inflow Control Devices (ICD) installation

• Design of ICD completions

Intelligent completions include integration of several different technologies, including horizontal and multilateral drilling, junction construction, various completion operations in multilateral wells, downhole flow control devices and a production strategy that links all of these together for optimizing the mix of fluids flowing out of the well. Our involvement in Intelligent Wells dates back to early 90s and the first installation of a multilateral well in North Sea, as well as installation of downhole flow regulators also in North Sea. Since then enormous progress has been made in all aspects of the different components of the technology.

Our consulting services include;

• Candidate screening and selection

• Development of an Intelligent Completion strategy suitable for the specific reservoir

• Determination of the number of laterals and their layout within the reservoir

• Matching completion components and capabilities with reservoir requirements

• Identification of completion needs of the multilateral wells

• Leading the formation of multi-disciplinary teams required for successful Intelligent Completion installation

Successful installation of Intelligent Completions is largely dependent on the proper integration of multiple operations and formation of a multi-disciplinary team to mix and match the needs of the system with the internal capabilities of the company, and external available services. Leading and formation of these teams is part of our services in this area.

We approach hydraulic fracturing from a production increase perspective. Better production results require use of latest fracturing tools, technologies and proven practices. With the high cost of fracturing operations can we really afford making fracturing decisions based on out-dated practices?

Our consultation services include all aspects of hydraulic fracturing and production enhancement, from frac candidate selection to frac treatment design, frac job execution, real-time evaluation of frac job data and on-site decision-making, post-job evaluation and trouble shooting, and, production history matching.

Specialized software: We use several specialized proprietary software systems for our fracturing consultations.

Based on many actual field frac data, we have stepped beyond the basics to crack the mysteries surrounding mechanics of fracture initiation, extension, proppant transport, frac height, screen-out, fracture closure, and what brings good production. We offer new techniques for qualitative determination of fracture conductivity. Our technical recommendations are based on the following new technologies;

 • Mechanics of frac initiation and extension in the real world

 • Causes and consequences of shear fracturing and fracture branching

 • Impact of completion design on fracture propagation and production increase

 • Qualitative assessment of fracture conductivity based on analysis of frac pressure data

 • Matching frac design with formation properties for better production

 • Fracture height in industrial treatments

 • Cause and effect analysis of screen-out

 • Interpretation of fracturing pressure data and using it for better on-site decisions

 • Fracture mapping and various diagnostic tools

 • History matching production data and production-based fracture diagnostics

Our fracturing experiences include over 40 years in both Technology and Operations of hydraulic fracturing in US and outside. We have designed and executed numerous fracturing treatments all over the world. We analyze frac job data for trouble-shooting and performance review, and recommend action steps to enhance future production results.

Our various workshops on hydraulic fracturing and production data analysis techniques are well-known for their hands-on approach and high practical content. We routinely teach these courses in US, Canada and elsewhere all over the world. We also teach various courses related to hydraulic fracturing and different aspects of production enhancement in universities in US and outside and have made numerous technical presentations on the subject to worldwide audiences.