Published: 03/12/2014
Published: 03/12/2014
ORNCEM completed Well 258D in the Upper Hollin sand, Sacha field, Ecuador, in April 2012. Oil production stabilized at approximately 300 bbl/day but started to decline steadily a month later, reaching 180 bbl/d by August 2013. The operator decided to stimulate the well to enhance production. Schlumberger accepted the challenge of planning and executing an optimal stimulation operation.
ORNCEM and Schlumberger worked as a team, evaluating the geology, petrophysics, well completion, and initial well test as part of a detailed reservoir and well analysis. They concluded that production could be significantly increased (formation damage had grown over time from an initial skin value of 22 to 25). Hydraulic fracturing would enhance results; the thick carbonate and shale sequence above the 20-ft-thick sand and the thick shale below would provide excellent barriers to fracture height growth. Compared with existing practices in Ecuador, the hydraulic stimulation program for Well 258D incorporated the following for significant improvements:
Immediately after the fracturing treatment, production rose to over 600 bbl/d, with no sand produced. Oil production stabilized at 575 bbl/d. Incremental oil production for the first 60 days surpassed 25,000 bbl, increasing ultimate recovery and recovering cost of treatment in fewer than six days. The team’s extensive experience in hydraulic fracturing, combined with a proven candidate selection process and close cooperation, resulted in a substantial return on investment for ORNCEM. The operator plans to continue using this integrated approach on additional wells in the Sacha field.
“The job performed by Schlumberger was above our expectations. It opened doors for future fracturing treatments in the Sacha field and a new opportunity for our field in the Hollin formation.”
- Gino Hinojosa General Manager ORNCEM
Challenge: Reverse production decline from a sandstone reservoir in Sacha field, Ecuador, through an optimal hydraulic fracturing program.
Solution: Use detailed well and reservoir analysis combined with extensive experience and advanced stimulation technologies to design and execute the most suitable fracturing program for one well.
Results: Increased average oil production from 180 bbl/d to 600 bbl/d, recovering stimulation costs in less than one week.
