Lecture on Well Intervention and Well Completion (Part 3)

Introduction

• Presenter: Ahmed lwi
• Location: Cairo, Egypt
• Topic: Well Completion
• Overview: Third session; first two sessions covered controlling well pressure and gas management.

Presenter Background

• Name: Ahmed lwi
• Education: Mechanical Engineer, graduated in 1983
• Experience: Over 40 years in the oil field industry
  • Worked for service companies
  • Experience in wireline and coil tubing, well testing, and completion
  • Roles: Site Manager, Operations Manager, Director
  • Instructor since 1995
  • Conducted courses in 18-19 countries

Course Overview

• Target Audience: Beginners in well intervention
• Key Concept: Well intervention as the science of dealing with live wells and pressure
• Focus: Well completion—final stage of drilling, making the well ready for production
• Philosophy: Maximize profitability without compromising safety and environment

Well Completion

• Importance: Ensuring efficient hydrocarbon extraction from the reservoir to the surface
• Gas Role: Acts as the driving mechanism for liquid hydrocarbons
• Challenges:
  • Maintaining gas velocity to prevent hydrostatic head buildup
  • Design completion diameter properly
• Solutions:
  • Selecting appropriate completion size (e.g., 3.5 inch vs. 4.5 inch)
  • Using coil tubing as an alternative

Example: Gas Well

• Problem: Liquid accumulation due to improper completion size
• Solution: Reduce completion diameter to maintain adequate gas velocity
• Alternatives: Implement secondary or tertiary recovery methods if initial design fails

Well Completion Types

• Open Hole: No tubing in front of the reservoir, full-area production
• Slotted Liner: Used for sandstone formations to reduce erosion from sand
• Gravel Pack: Similar to slotted liner, uses small stones for filtration
• Cemented Case and Perforated: Tubing goes through perforated pay zone for targeted production
• Single Production Zones: Various configurations for producing from one or multiple zones

Completion Accessories

• Five Groups:
  • Anchoring Device: E.g., landing nipple—receives flow control devices
  • Circulating Device: E.g., SSD and side pocket mandrel—enables communication between tubing and annulus
  • Isolation Device: E.g., packer—isolates upper part of casing
  • Anti-erosion Device: E.g., blast joint—prevents erosion from high-velocity sand
  • Others: Wireline entry guide, perforated joint, control line, tubing hanger

Isolation Devices

• Packer: Main component to isolate casing and protect against corrosion
• Other Isolation Tools: Tubing seal assembly, polished bore receptacle (PBR)

Anti-erosion Devices

• Blast Joint: Heavy wall thickness to prevent erosion
• Flow Coupling: Used in high-erosion areas

Introduction to Wellhead and Christmas Tree

• Wellhead: Components of casing head, tubing head, casing hanger, tubing hanger
• Christmas Tree: Set of valves that control well flow
• Tubing Head Flange (THF): Connects wellhead and Christmas tree

Purpose of the Cellar

• Accommodate wellhead height for accessible Christmas tree
• Depth: Indicates depth and complexity of the well

Overview of Christmas Tree Valves

• Lower Master Valve (Manual): Not for regular use
• Upper Master Valve (Hydraulic/Pneumatic): For regular operation, has shearing capabilities
• Kill Valve: For kill operations
• Production Wing Valve: Controls flow to production facilities
• Choke: Regulates flow rate
• Surface Safety Valve (SSV): Ensures safe operations
• Swab Valve: For wireline or coil tubing operations
• Tree Cap and Gauge: Monitors and manages pressure

Tubing Hanger and Selection Criteria

• Purpose: Hangs production tubing, provides profile for back pressure valve (BPV)
• Selection Factors:
  • Production rate
  • Depth
  • Pressure and temperature tolerance
  • Tensile strength
  • Corrosion resistance (e.g., 9% Chrome vs. 25% Chrome)
  • Erosion resistance

Conclusion

• Wrap-up: End of session with Q&A
• Next Session: Continue on Tuesday at 6:30 PM