Schlumberger’s Oilfield Services unit has won BG Group’s ‘Innovation Award’ for a real-time well placement solution in BG’s North Sea Minerva-Hub development. Problems arose when the first development well flowed at a rate well below expectations so a new, adaptive multilateral design was chosen for subsequent wells.
InterACT
Schlumberger’s InterACT communications link was key to this multi-discipline intervention. Real-time positioning of the laterals was achieved through remote, geoVision borehole camera imagery and azimuthal density neutron logging while drilling (LWD). Schlumberger’s InterAct is a combination of software and communications technology that enables near real-time transmission of well log image data from the well site to the office.
Tribe
Schlumberger’s well placement manager, Ian Tribe said, ‘The real-time images were critical in planning the next stage of the well. LWD saved three bit trips to recover memory data.’ Last year, BG deployed Schlumberger’s Inside Reality immersive well planning and geosteering environment at its Interactive Visualization Center, located in Reading, UK. The system is used to plan wells using seismic, geological and dynamic reservoir models interactively, in ‘true virtual reality’.
Wormley
Presenting the award, BG VP Jon Wormley said, ‘Our strategic relationship with Schlumberger enabled the project team to quickly re-design the Minerva well concept to cope with reservoir uncertainty. With Schlumberger, we identified applicable technologies and solutions to the challenges we faced. Winning the award is a tribute to the teamwork displayed by the staff of both companies in delivering an appropriate solution to the Minerva development drilling program.’
This article originally appeared in Oil IT Journal 2004 Issue # 3.
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