Intelligent completions: A decade of innovation revolutionizes the industry
Cost and the degree of integration will determine whether an intelligent completion should be chosen over a standardized, less-expensive solution.
INTELLIGENT WELL COMPLETIONIntelligent completions: A decade of innovation revolutionizes the industryIt’s an old choice: Do you want standardized, less expensive solutions, or do you want custom innovation? It depends, in part, on what you’re willing to pay, and exactly to what degree you intend to integrate.Michael Konopczynski and Vicky Jackson Nielsen, WellDynamics, Houston This year marks the tenth anniversary of the first installation of a hybrid electro-hydraulic well completion technology that integrated real-time pressure and temperature sensing, using permanent downhole gauges, with downhole, remotely-operated, flow-control devices. The proprietary system, called SCRAMS, was capable of multiplexing an almost unlimited number of zones. The well was operated by Saga in Snorre field in the North Sea. How has the market received this technology? What are the ever-expanding applications for the technology? It is appropriate to contemplate how the technology might meet operators’ demands for a more commoditized�yet more customized�system that delivers everything they want, rapidly, with a low price tag. Four months after its installation, the prototype failed�but four months was long enough to demonstrate the feasibility of the system and its potential to deliver significant value. During the next six years, the ensuing applications of intelligent well technology�completions providing downhole flow control, with or without downhole sensing�followed the adoption patterns of most new technologies. The game-changer came when a number of major projects in diverse geographical locations, such as the North Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the Asia Pacific region, revealed high-value benefits that caused operators to re-evaluate their impressions of intelligent completion. The technology began to build an impressive track record, and the intelligent well market took hold. EVOLUTION OF TECHNOLOGY For the last four years, operators have gradually moved from testing the technology to demonstrate functionality and reliability, to implementing it in field developments to enhance reservoir management. Two key factors have catalyzed adoption of the technology: 1. Demonstrable and statistically significant improvements in the reliability of intelligent completions. Equipment suppliers have driven these improvements by drawing on the growing accumulation of in-well experience. This allowed rigorous engineering, manufacturing and quality control programs to meet the demands of a growing number of well environments. 2. Continuous expansion of the capabilities of intelligent completions equipment. As the reliability of this equipment increases and its market viability becomes clear, early suppliers of the technology have seen an increase in the number of competitors. Strengthening competition, as well as the demands of users who have experienced the benefits of the technology, has driven a rapid pace of innovation. Today, the intelligent well system of choice incorporates hydraulically actuated, multi-position, downhole flow control valves with one or more electronic pressure and temperature sensors. These systems provide a basic level of near-reservoir, real-time data combined with variable flow control for each zone. Fiber optic technologies, often distributed temperature sensing, may be combined with flow control, though these are more often used in stand-alone applications. And even the first electro-hydraulic intelligent completion product continues to be used in some locations, although the level of complexity and the design elements for increased reliability have made these systems, as well as all-electric systems, too costly for most markets. DRIVERS FOR GROWTH Perhaps the trend having the biggest influence on intelligent well technology is the expanding range of applications. Dump-flood control, auto-gas lift, thermal enhanced recovery, high-pressure/high-temperature wells, and multi-zone massive frac stimulation are some of the applications pushing the boundaries. Historically, intelligent completions were used to provide minimum-intervention solutions for single wells�but the real value of the technology will be seen when operators include it as part of their strategy to optimize production from an entire field, as they create a “digital oilfield.” Long a vision of the upstream industry, the digital oilfield integrates all the surface and downhole field data in a collaborative environment to help operators make better decisions�and act on those decisions in time to impact production. Operators are now taking steps to integrate real-time data with predictive models to monitor, measure, model and, ultimately, optimize an asset. A collaborative decision-making environment provides several benefits to manage, plan and execute proactive production and injection optimization strategies. Resolving conflicting objectives becomes easier, such as increasing net oil production while containing water production. Such an environment also supports management of complex recovery methods, like chemical flooding, miscible EOR and thermal recovery. INTELLIGENT COMPLETION TECHNOLOGY: A COMMODITY? Today, intelligent completion systems are routinely used by most of the world’s major oil companies; in fact, with increased numbers of projects relying on intelligent completions, some operators view them almost as commodities. No longer as concerned with equipment reliability, and convinced of the technology’s value, operators are now focusing on speedier delivery and lower prices�yet at the same time requiring greater levels of customization and sophistication, expecting one-of-a-kind systems that can still be delivered quickly, at a low cost. This scenario leaves suppliers with a new conundrum: How to balance satisfying a market that demands customization, with commodity-level delivery and prices, while still delivering high-quality, innovative products that can support the industry in the future. The answer requires suppliers and users to consider:
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