A New Application of Pressure Transient Analysis to Calculate Completion Efficiency in Long Horizontal Wells with Limited Entries: Flow Restrictions and Well Architecture

Abstract

Abstract This paper presents a novel application of pressure transient analysis to calculate completion efficiency in long horizontal wells with limited entries to calculate completion efficiency in long horizontal wells, using pressure transient analysis to unleash flow efficiency restrictions and maximize well productivity. This calculation scheme could be done prior to well drilling using reservoir data and calculating unsteady flow pressure perturbation around flow ingresses, using Green's functions, or during production modes at any time using downhole pressure transient behavior at each flow restriction. The total flow efficiency is impacted by the configuration of well architecture and the distribution of flow entries along horizontal sections and laterals. The unsteady flow pressure perturbation could be augmented into the wellbore flow hydraulics to determine the overall performance of wells, especially in finite-conductivity horizontal and multilateral wells. The use of pressure transient analysis showed a very instrumental tool to calculate the overall efficiency of completion in horizontal wells. It can explain why some horizontal wells didn't produce to the design capacity and help salvage well completion design. This advanced calculation scheme has never been used as a tool to calculate a completion efficiency factor by which the overall all performance of horizontal wells are measured. The scheme is an innovative way to design and maximize well completion to decide on the configuration of well architecture and placement of flow entries/restrictions in horizontal sections. This is best applied during production mode to continuously monitoring completion efficiencies in cases where multiphase flow occurs, with real-time data acquisition of pressure transient downhole.