What's new in production

 Vol. 233 No. 12

HPHT: In a range of 10,000–15,000 psi, or a pore pressure of at least 0.8 psi/ft, temperatures of at least 300°F up to 350°F.

Extreme HPHT: 15,000–20,000 psi, 350–400°F.

Ultra-HPHT: Greater than 20,000 psi and 400°F.

The surprising thing is that the oil and gas industry would even need to bother defining anything beyond regular ol’ high-pressure/high-temperature. Pressures and temperatures of 10,000 psi and 300°F are awe-inspiring, flabbergasting conditions for anything. And yet, that’s where operators are headed.

Speeding up the evolution. As oil companies are spurred by sustained high prices to continue into the harder-to reach, resource-rich provinces, there is a growing awareness that current technology won’t be sufficient to keep production going in the long term, from fields where extreme pressures and temperatures are the rule. This increasing realization has inspired an enormous effort from the industry to develop the tools and methods to work in conditions of 15,000 psi and 300°F, and well beyond.

Reservoir engineers estimate that some 10–20 billion bbl of oil lie beyond the technological barriers of 15,000 psi of pressure and 275°F. To exploit this enormously rich energy source, both industry and other groups have initiated programs to encourage and develop the necessary technologies. In the past, it has taken as long as 25 years for technology to evolve; that is, to be researched, developed and ultimately accepted. The pace will have to pick up, and all involved parties know it. And yet, there is a legitimate concern among the public that hurrying up carries some pretty serious risk. Just to cite a crazy example, using a 2002-vintage blowout preventer to try and control a 2010 HPHT well might pose some . . . issues.

The risks are not just physical but monetary. A well-known example of the latter was ExxonMobil and Newfield’s Blackbeard West No. 1 HPHT well, on South Timbalier Block 168, which was drilled to 32,997 ft in 2008. Despite considerable potential, the exploratory well was ultimately considered a commercial failure, which ended up costing the two companies around $110 million.

Taking the long-term view. Last February, BP announced Project 20K, which is intended to take the industry to 20,000 psi, and 350–400°F.  The initiative has four main areas of focus: 1) well design and completion; 2) rig, riser and BOP; 3) subsea production systems; and 4) well intervention and containment. The effort is led by BP, but the company is cooperating with other operating companies, service companies and manufacturers, as well as regulatory agencies, to reach these goals by the end of the decade.

The project will focus initially on three major offshore oil provinces to apply these technologies: the Gulf of Mexico, predominantly, as well as Azerbaijan and Egypt. Beginning with a team of 60 experts, Project 20K completed the concept-appraisal phase this summer, and subsequently began an 18-month period, during which requirements and equipment specifications are identified.

Engineering firm KBR was given the assignment of developing execution plans for the project, including capital cost and schedule estimates, risk assessments and technical designs. FMC Technologies will work jointly with BP to design and develop 20,000-psi-rated subsea production equipment, including a subsea production tree and a subsea high-integrity pressure protection system.

Previous efforts. An earlier deepwater technology development is DeepStar, managed by Chevron, which has been in continuous operation since 1991. The program operates in two-year funding phases, and is now in its 11th phase of research projects. DeepStar XI is funded by 10 major operators in addition to Chevron: BP, Total, Petrobras, Nexen, Statoil, Marathon Oil, ConocoPhillips, Maersk Oil, Anadarko and Woodside Energy. A second tier of membership includes more than 50 manufacturing, engineering and service companies, which participate on technical committees that address many different subsea issues, including drilling, completions, intervention, reservoir management, geosciences, flow assurance and subsea processing.

Deepstar’s projects are focused on the early stages of technological development—immature technologies that have a 5-to-10-year timeline for commercialization. Just as important, DeepStar also has a regulatory committee that acts as a communications conduit between technology developers and regulatory agencies like the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and the U.S. Coast Guard. This way, once a technology is developed, it can be more quickly adopted, if regulatory issues have already been addressed.

Governmental initiatives. In 2002, the U.S. Department of Energy established the Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA). Utilizing funding from federal royalties, this nonprofit corporation provides financial incentives for experts, both inside and outside industry, to develop energy technology.

RPSEA’s Ultra-Deepwater Program was created in 2007. The program is sponsoring a variety of HPHT projects in various phases, from well testing to drilling to completions, all with a safety component to address challenges in waters greater than 5,000 ft and specific to the Gulf of Mexico.

Operating at these depths and conditions will require an almost unprecedented industry-governmental effort. It will take cooperation, brainpower and lots of money. Most importantly, safety standards will have to evolve, along with the science, to regain and maintain public trust.