Application of a Newly Developed Workflow to Design and Optimize MRC and Smart Well Completions

Abstract

Abstract It is challenging to find optimal well placement and completion design for maximum reservoir contact (MRC) wells in heterogeneous oil and gas reservoirs. Saudi Aramco initiated a new workflow in collaboration with a service company, to achieve such objectives based on integrated software packages of Petrel™ and Saudi Aramco’s POWERS™ simulator. This workflow can conduct simulation runs optimizing well architecture, smart completions with inflow control devices (ICD/ICV), lateral and vertical shift of the well, to obtain maximum oil and gas recovery applying sensitivity and optimization algorithms. The new workflow proved to have robust functionality and provided significant cost savings and optimal oil and gas recovery. Three case studies are discussed in this paper. The new workflow assessed the proposed side track and concluded that it was not a good option due to faster water influx from the west flank. This workflow moved the side track lateral to 207 meters to the east and designed to equip the well with ICD and blank pipes. The optimized side track provided 50% more oil recovery than the well that was not moved. The second case was to propose the best location and complex well design for a dual-lateral maintain potential well. The most sensitive parameters were moving the well to the north and vertical locations, motherbore’s length and oil rates. Shifting dual laterals to 750 meters north, optimized ICDs, and 1750-meter motherbore length provided double the cumulative oil production than the single well manually designed and completed. The third case discusses a tri-lateral well optimization for an oil field that is under development. Based on the sensitivity analysis and shifting well locations have the most significant impact to provide higher oil recovery and delayed water breakthrough for several years.