BHP Billiton Deploys 467 Fractal System Guns 99.1% Reliability | SLB

BHP Billiton Deploys 467 Fractal System Guns with 99.1% Reliability

Published: 03/01/2016

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Pie chart showing causes of failures encountered with perf gun systems.
To mitigate wiring issues in the field, Schlumberger developed the Fractal system, which includes a perforating gun that is preassembled at the manufacturing center, thus reducing the number of electrical connections made manually on location by 85%. The unique modular plug-and-play design also eliminates the O-ring threaded port plug on each gun, minimizing the risk of flooding. The crews experienced a 50% faster turnaround compared with conventional gun systems, which allowed them to focus on other aspects of operational planning and execution, safety, and maintenance while achieving 99.1% reliability. The Fractal system reduces the likelihood of misruns by up to 77% when compared with conventional systems. To address issues experienced by conventional perforating systems, the Fractal system features prewired guns to eliminate wiring connections and errors in the field. Full assembly in controlled conditions virtually eliminates the possibility of human error at the wellsite.
Location
Permian Basin, United States, North America, Onshore
Details

Lithology
Carbonate shale

Play
Eagle Ford

Operation
BHP Billiton

Bottomhole temperature
322 degF [161 degC]

Bottomhole pressure
11,181 psi [77.09 MPa]

Max. perforating depth
19,855 ft [6,052 m]

Background

Approximately 35% of all gun failures are related to wiring or flooding. To improve the overall efficiency of multistage stimulation and perforating, BHP Billiton decided to deploy 402 Fractal multistage stimulation perforating systems in the Eagle Ford and 65 in the Permian basin as a field test.

Products Used