A STUDY OF PRODUCTION OPTIMIZATION (A NODAL ANALYSIS APPROACH USING PROSPER)


A STUDY OF PRODUCTION OPTIMIZATION (A NODAL ANALYSIS APPROACH USING PROSPER)

ABSTRACT

Crude oil production is a major requirement to sustaining the wellbeing of any petroleum company. It entails the effective placement of all facilities and equipment; surface or subsurface in order to achieve optimum volume of crude oil production. This is usually called Production Optimization. In this study, the software PROSPER was utilized to case study wells P-P1 and P-P2. Well P-P1 (short string) and Well P-P2 (long string) were producing at its peak oil rates of 2000STB/day and 2500STB/day at 0% water cut but since then production has been on the decline due to increasing water cut and decreasing reservoir pressure. But to date, Well P-P1 becomes a dead well while Well P-P2 is producing at an oil rate of 1200STB/day at a water-cut of 40%. Thereafter an optimization plan scenarios such as sensitivity runs on the water cut, reservoir pressure and gaslift techniques for the dual string well were simulated in PROSPER and then evaluated. The results of this work suggests that; at present reservoir pressures of 3000psig and 3500psig for Well P-P1 and Well P-P2 with optimum gas injection rates of 3.3MMscf/day and 2.7MMscf/day, the well’s life can be extended to an economical water cut of 90% and 95% respectively. Also, the oil production rates increased from 0STB/day and 1200STB/day at 50% and 40% water cut to about 900STB/day and 1500STB/day for Wells P-P1 and P-P2 respectively.

                  TABLE OF CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE…………………………………………………………………………i

APPROVAL ....................................................................................................... ii

DEDICATION ............................................................................................. iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ................................................................................. iv

ABSTRACT ............................................................................................. vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS ….……………………...………………………………….vii

LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................. x

LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................ xi

CHAPTER ONE ...................................................................................................... 1

1.0 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................1

1.1 Background of Study ................................................................................... 1

1.2 Statement of Problem ............................................................................................ 2

1.3 Aim and Objectives of Study ........................................................................ 2

1.4 Scope of Study .................................................................................................. 3

1.5 Methodology .................................................................................................3

1.6 Limitations of Study ................................................................................. 3

CHAPTER TWO .............................................................................. 4

2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................... 4

2.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................4

2.1.1 Nodal Analysis Theory ......................................................................4

2.1.2 Inflow Performance of a Well .............................................................6

  2.1.2.1 Darcy’s equation ................................................................................. 7

  2.1.2.2 Productivity Index (PI) ...................................................... 7

  2.1.2.3 IPR Curve....................................................................................... 8  

 2.1.2.3.1 Vogel Equation.......................................................................................... 9

2.1.3 Tubing Performance of a Well ................................................................9

2.1.4 Choke Performance of a Well ................................................................10

2.1.5 Multiphase Flow .....................................................................................11

2.1.6 Overview of Gaslift System ................................................................12

CHAPTER THREE ................................................................................................ 21

3.0 METHODOLOGY OF STUDY .................................................................... 21

3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................21

3.2 Brief Description of PROSPER Tool ....................................................... 21

3.2.1 PVT Data ..........................................................................................25

3.2.2 Equipment Data ..................................................................................26

3.2.3 Inflow Performance Relationship (IPR) Data ...............................................28

3.2.4 Gaslift Data ...............................................................................................29

CHAPTER FOUR ........................................................................................................ 31

4.0 INTERPRETATION, DISCUSSION OF RESULTS AND SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS

FOR WELLS P-P1 AND P-P2 ................................................... 31

4.1 Building a Base Model for Wells P-P1 and P-P2 ..............................................31

4.2 Sensitivity on Gaslift Injection Rates and Water cut ......................................... 39

4.3 Sensitivity on Reservoir Pressure and Water cut ............................................. 40

4.4 Economic Evaluation .............................................................................42

CHAPTER FIVE ........................................................................................................ 43

5.0 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION .................................................................. 43

5.1 Conclusion ...........................................................................................................43

5.2 Recommendations .................................................................................................44

REFERENCES ..........................................................................................................45

APPENDIX ...................................................................................................... 48                           LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1: PVT data entry……………………………….25

Table 3.2: Downhole equipment data entry…………………….27

Table 3.3: Geothermal gradient data entry……………………28

Table 3.4: PI Entry IPR model data entry…………………28

Table 3.5 Continuous gas lift data entry…………………………...29

Table  4.1a: Showing  results  of  sensitivity  on  Gaslift  injection  rates  for  well  P-P1  (short  string)……………………………39

Table  4.1b: Showing  results  of  sensitivity  on  Gaslift  injection  rates  for  well  P-P2  (long string)……………….39

Table 4.2a: Showing base case forecast results for well P-P1 (short string)……….40

Table 4.2a: Showing base case forecast results for well P-P2 (long string)………..41                            LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1: Showing the location of various pressure drop nodes on a well……....5

Figure 2.2:  Determination of flow capacity……………………….....6

Figure 2.3:  Inflow Performance Relation…………...……………..…7

Figure 2.4: Productivity Index (PI) Curve………………8

Figure 2.5: Effect of tubing size and Finding optimum tubing size………….10

Figure 2.6: Flow regimes in horizontal flow…………………….....11

Figure 2.7:  Flow regimes in vertical flow………………………....12

Figure 2.8: General Gaslift system………………..13

Figure 2.9: Estimating optimum gaslift rate…………………….13

Figure 2.10: Gaslift well performance curve………………...........14

Figure 2.11: Gilbert analysis of the System performance for various wellhead chokes...18

Figure 3.1: Flow chart for Systems Analysis using Prosper.......................22

Figure 3.2: Well Completion Status Diagram for Wells P-P1 and P-P2............24

Figure 3.3: Menus and Options in Prosper Main Screen.............................25

Figure 3.4: Deviation survey data............................................27

Figure 4.1a: PVT is matched for Well P-P1 (short string)........................31

Figure 4.1b: PVT is matched for Well P-P2 (long string)..................................32

Figure 4.2: The well deviation survey...................................33

Figure 4.3 Subsurface Equipment design in PROSPER for Wells P-P1 and P-P2..........33

Figure 4.4a: IPR plot for well P-P1 (short string)..................................34

Figure 4.4b: IPR plot for well P-P2 (long string).......................................34

Figure 4.5a: Pressure Transverse for well P-P1 (short string)..................35

Figure 4.5b: Pressure Transverse for well P-P2 (long string)....................36

Figure 4.6a: Gaslift performance curve for well P-P1 (short string).............37

Figure 4.6b: Gaslift performance curve for well P-P2 (long string)................37

Figure 4.7 Pressure Transverse for well P-P1 (short string) under Gaslift...............38

                  CHAPTER ONE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of Study

Hydrocarbons are produced from wells that penetrate geological formations rich in oil and gas.

The hydrocarbons can flow to surface provided the reservoir pressure is high enough to overcome

the back pressure from the flowing fluid column in the well and the surface facilities. During the

movement or transport of these fluids, the fluids will require energy to overcome frictional losses

in  the  systems  and  to  lift  the  fluids  to  the  surface (Golan  et.al.,  1991).  The  production  rate  or

deliverability of a well can often be affected by several components in the system in which energy

or pressure losses occur.

The production optimization of oil and gas wells by NODAL system analysis has contributed to

improved completion techniques, production, and efficiency for many wells as proposed by Gilbert

(1954). He continued his proposal by striking a balance between production deliverability of the

wells and demand which basically is aimed at increasing the rate at which a well flows from the

reservoir  without  restriction  to  the  surface  storage  tank(s).  Thus,  Beggs  (1991)  stated  that

production optimization through nodal analysis is a way of preparing a well for the production of

oil or/and gas from a reservoir to achieve the greatest possible efficiency. Oil and gas production

optimization ensures that wells and facilities are operating at their peak performance at all times

to maximize production (Beggs et al., 1991).  

Production  system  can  be  divided  into  main  three  components.  These  are  inflow  (fluid  flow

through porous media), vertical well flow (from sand face to the wellhead choke), and flow through

surface  facility  (Brown  and  Kermit,  1977).  In  order  to  optimize  the  system,  one  of  these

components must be isolated and evaluated separately. This is performed because the production

rate or deliverability of  a well can often be severely  restricted by the performance of only one

component  in  the  system.  Therefore,  well  analysis  is  the  most  important  step  to  optimize  oil

production  but  before  a  well  can  be  optimized  for  effective  performance,  there  is  need  for  a

Production Engineer to;  

  a) Identify the components in the system.

  b) Select one component to be optimized.

  c) Select the node location that will best emphasize the effect of change.   d) Calculate pressure drop versus rate for all components.

  e) Determine the effect of changing the characteristics of the selecting component.

  f) Repeat the procedure for each component.

  g) Optimize the production system.

Therefore, a Nodal Approach suited for evaluating both flowing wells and wells on artificial lift is

to  identify  flow  restrictions  or  opportunities  to  enhance  performance (Schlumberger  Oilfield

Glossary, 2006). A partial list of possible applications of nodal analysis is given as follows:

  a) Selection tubing size and flow line size.

  b) Gravel pack design.

  c) Surface choke sizing.

  d) Subsurface safety valve sizing.

  e) Artificial lift design.

  f) Allocating injection gas among gaslifted wells.

  g) Determining the effect of compression on gas well performance, etc. (PROSPER Manual, 2009).

1.2 Statement of Problem

When the reservoir energy is too low for the well to flow, or the production rate desired is greater

than  the  reservoir  energy  can  deliver,  it  becomes  necessary  to  put  the  well  on  some  form  of

artificial lift to provide the energy to bring the fluid to the surface. Hence, one of the challenges

faced in lifting the oil and gas from the reservoir via the production tubing to the surface facilities

is an unnecessary production decline which poses a serious problem to the oil and gas industry

today or inability of the well to flow (expected rate) due to the viscous nature of the fluid. This

decline  may  be  as  a  result  of  mismanagement  of  wells,  excessive  pressure  drops  along  the

production system, oversized or undersized tubing, and improper perforation method, high water

cut, skin, etc. A change in a single component of the production system may lead to a change in

the pressure drop behavior of the other components since the various components are interactive.

1.3 Aim and Objectives of Study

The quantity of reservoir fluids estimated to be commercially recoverable declines every day, thus

the role of production optimization cannot be overemphasized. Hence, the aim of this work is to

optimize the Wells P-P1 and P-P2 performances in order to maximize the production rates using

PROSPER software. The objectives of this study are;

  1. To carry out optimization plan to optimize Wells P-P1 and P-P2 oil productions, by doing

      sensitivity runs on the well production system parameters such as the well head pressure,

      chokes sizes, tubing sizes, skin, water cut, etc.

  2. Finding out  the  optimum gas  injection  rates  for Wells P-P1  and  P-P2,  to  achieve  the

      maximum oil production.  

1.4 Scope of Study

This study will be conducted on a dual completion well located in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria

and  the tool  employed  for  these  wells  will  be carried  out  using PROSPER (PROduction  and

Systems PERformance) analysis software in comparing the productivity of the wells when flowing

naturally and installation of gaslift as a means of production optimization.  

1.5 Methodology

The  aspect  of  artificial  lift  on  oil  well  performance  cannot  be  overemphasized.  Therefore  the

methods used in this study are as follows:

  a) Collection of well and production data from wells P-P1 and P-P2.

  b) Building a single well model with the available data.

  c) Using prosper to design the gaslift option.

  d) Comparing the production rate of the wells using gaslift with that of the naturally producing

      wells.

1.6 Limitations of Study

  1) Lack of complete field data to give a full scale economic analysis for the optimization plan

    of the wells from the subsurface up to the storage tank of the processing facilities so as to

      know the profitability of the plan.

  2) Inability to optimize the sustainability of the oil production rate of the wells due to non-

      availability of a reservoir simulation software like the Eclipse (Schlumberger) software at

    the time of conducting this studies.  

.

A STUDY OF PRODUCTION OPTIMIZATION (A NODAL ANALYSIS APPROACH USING PROSPER)



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