An Essential Periodical Assessment & Performance Revision for Optimizing Sucker Rod Pumping Systems' Operations

Abstract

Abstract West Qarun (WQ) and North Bahariya (NB) oil leases are being operated by Sahara Oil & Gas Company (SOG); the two leases are located in Abu El Gharadig (A/G) basin in the Egyptian Western Desert with a total of seven oil fields including a total of 58 producing wells “at the time of writing this paper”; According to the nature of silty-sand oil reservoirs in the area with low initial production rates; most of wells had been hydraulically fractured against one or more of the included various hydrocarbon bearing zones; this fact led to necessitating the deployment of an artificial lifting system that is capable of producing the expected initially high rates and then cope with the expected low rates after the routine initial decline in well rate. According to theoretical sorting criteria and field trials; sucker rod pumping systems proved to be the most suitable artificial lifting system for these wells; but various wells conditions induced the use of several pumping parameters and equipment sizes according to each well conditions. This paper demonstrates a methodology for initial sucker rod pumping system selection, wide scope for designing required equipment and operating parameters, and the essential periodical revision of pumping performance and assessment of the system within a continuous optimization process that aims to get maximum possible pumping rate and lowest operating costs via reducing the frequency of system failures and modifying operating parameters to the enhanced scheme as per well conditions. The most difficult part in the evaluation process is obtaining accurate measurements in real time, integrate all available well data in diagnosing well pumping status, discover the tricky signs, and interact with well pumping parameters to reach the optimum status or decide a well intervention job. The conclusion is summarized in attracting attention to the importance of ensuring the selection of optimum artificial lifting system to the field scale and then keep it operating with optimum design and operating parameters.