During a workover intervention for a deepwater well in the Gulf of Mexico, the operator was attempting to retrieve a junk basket sitting on top of a plug. After a failed attempt to latch the junk basket on the slickline, a lead impression block (LIB) was deployed to visualize the situation. The LIB run concluded that small hard debris sitting on top of the basket blocked access.
Due to the tight restriction in the 3½-in completion, a magnet run was deemed risky. Instead, the operator sought SLB to deploy its ReSOLVE iX™ intelligent extreme wireline intervention service to clean up the debris and retrieve the junk basket. SLB engineers mobilized to the customer site within two days.
A key part of the solution was the ReSOLVE iX service’s active debris removal tool, which is equipped with a coarse filter and a special snorkel to fit inside the fishing neck to vacuum debris. The tool doesn’t require additional pumping of fluid because it generates localized circulation that helps move debris into the bailer for capture.
In addition, the ReSOLVE iX service offers a high-force anchor-linear actuator tool that—based on real-time measurements—can confirm the precise force and distance of travel being applied downhole. Once anchoring is confirmed, the linear actuator can be extended or retracted multiple times to apply a large, controlled force of up to 16,000 lbf to the specific well component. Continuous displacement measurements to less than 1-mm resolution then confirm the completion.
During the first run, an active casing collar locator installed with the ReSOLVE iX service enabled the crew to confirm that a small accumulation of debris was laying on top of the junk basket. The active debris removal tool was deployed to collect the debris, and soon after, the crew noticed the pump load increase. Once retrieved to surface, metallic particles, cohesive debris, and small pieces were observed. A subsequent run with the active debris removal tool confirmed a debris-free junk basket and the pump torque increase was attributed to the vacuum generated when engaging the junk basket.
At that point, the anchor-linear actuator tool was deployed to pull up the junk basket. After proper engagement was confirmed, the junk basket was successfully retrieved to the surface. Hard metallic pieces were found at the bottom of the junk basket matching the imprints on the slickline-deployed LIB.
It was concluded that the active debris removal tool of ReSOLVE iX service collected the debris that was bridging the small metallic parts, and the snorkel managed to push them inside the junk basket. A slickline operation then pulled the lock mandrel and reinstalled the crown plug to put the well back into production.
The quick mobilization and effective collection of debris deep inside the fishing neck convinced the operator that a good choice had been made to deploy the ReSOLVE iX service rather than coiled tubing, which would have cost significantly more and could have taken more than five days to complete. Without wasting time, the challenge had been met by ReSOLVE iX service, and production was fully restored.
