EOR Options for Heterogeneous Carbonate Reservoirs Currently Under Waterflooding

Abstract

Abstract Carbonate reservoirs in the Middle East are highly heterogeneous with complex porosity systems and mixed-wet matrix properties. These characteristics strongly affect reservoir performance under waterflooding. This paper concerns a highly layered limestone reservoir with various levels of cyclicity in properties and can be described at a high level as consisting of two main bodies, i.e., an Upper zone and a Lower zone with permeability contrast of up to two orders of magnitude. The main part of the reservoir is currently under waterflooding. Field observations show that injected water tends to channel quickly through the Upper zone along the high permeability layers and bypass the oil in the Lower zone. Past studies have indicated that this water override phenomenon is caused by a combination of high permeability contrast and capillary forces which counteract gravity forces. In this paper we will investigate different development options for such heterogeneous mixed-wet reservoirs aiming at improving recovery from the Lower zone: 1- Optimized waterflooding with infill wells, 2- Novel EOR options designed to overcome the capillary forces and improve vertical sweep. The EOR options include (a) polymer-assisted solutions consisting of injecting polymer in the Upper zone and water or miscible gas in the Lower zone; and (b) surfactant assisted solutions (foam and enhanced gravity drainage). The main conclusions of the study are: 1- Waterflooding is an efficient recovery mechanism for the Upper zone and tight well spacing is required to improve recovery from the Lower zone; 2- The EOR processes have the potential of improving recovery from the Lower zone; 3- The most attractive EOR schemes are the polymer-based options which, when compared to the optimized waterflooding/infill scenario, lead to much higher recovery, lower volumes of water injected and significantly less water cycling and the requirement of fewer wells. The polymer-assisted solutions also require injecting much lower polymer volumes compared to conventional polymer flooding. Simulation results show that the process(es) are robust to injection rates, vertical heterogeneity, well completions and a range of polymer viscosities.