Autonomous directional drilling boosts ROP by 13%

An operator in the Middle East used Neuro™ autonomous solutions to autonomously drill a well from 22° to 90° inclination with a 2,500-ft curve section and a 5,400-ft lateral section. For both sections, the operator used autonomous-capable rotary steerable systems that contributed to the balance between surface and downhole autonomy, enabling a 36% reduction in downlinks compared with offset wells drilled in manual mode while achieving a 13% increase in ROP.

Improve efficiency and stay on target

The wells present challenging steering decisions in order to stay on target. The operator had goals to maintain performance, to minimize delays by reducing the number of downlinks to the BHA, and to improve ROP throughout the well.

Enhance well construction performance by increasing footage between downlinks

SLB recommended using a BHA with Neuro autonomous solutions, which comprises a group of enhanced technologies to perform well construction activities in the most efficient, effective, and consistent manner possible. Leveraging an AI steering advisor to balance surface and downhole control, Neuro solutions technology delivers better verticals, steeper curves, less tortuous tangents, and more accurate laterals.

Using Neuro solutions, the operator drilled an entire 6⅛-in lateral section from 9,417-ft MD to 14,828-ft TD with less than 21 downlinks, averaging one downlink sent every 258 ft.

Neuro solutions minimized the amount of downlink commands necessary to meet all primary targets. Compared with offset wells in the same area that did not use the technology, in the section that used Neuro solutions, the average length between downlinks was 36% higher. Additionally, Neuro solutions reduced the time spent for off-bottom downlinks by more than 80%, bringing the total time to only 10 min for the well.