Production optimization at the well level and at the field level helped Joe Bridges and Michael Geffert reap an enviable profit for themselves and their investors in an existing Louisiana... more

Large mature fields have complex production facilities. Even facilities with the most elegant design of their day, with the best planned and executed maintenance programs, eventually Figure 1. The purpose... more

The preferred method for obtaining a representative reservoir fluid is to collect the sample downhole. Maintaining it in a truly representative state requires preserving the original Figure 1. The Armada... more

The Bakken formation in the Williston basin has experienced an explosion of activity since the year 2000 through the effective use of technology and the quest to optimize operations and... more

Conduct a search of the oil and gas technology environment today and you’ll find “production optimization” to be one of the most commonly used phrases. From the latest downhole gauges to... more

Recent developments in drillstring software modeling enable prediction of several key drillstring characteristics to reduce cost and risk. One such development is Cerberus for Drilling (CfD), jointly developed by NOV... more

Geosteering — estimating well path position within the stratigraphic setting and occasionally changing the remaining planned path accordingly — has traditionally for smaller companies Figure 1. Landing a horizontal well... more

A new series of composite plugs known as FracGuard was designed with the intent of facilitating fracturing operations in both single- and multiple-zone completions. Now new plug designs have been... more

When a major North Sea operator evaluated the potential of using through tubing rotary drilling (TTRD) to sidetrack a 20-year-old well in a UKCS field, it identified significant cost savings... more

Depending on well depth, tripping time can account for a significant amount of non-productive time (NPT) and make a major impact on overall completion cost. Minimizing NPT is critical to... more

Drill-in solid liners have proven valuable for reaching target depths beyond trouble zones. When depleted zones, lost circulation zones or unstable formations are encountered, drilling Figure 1. Baker Oil Tools’... more

Time, the fourth dimension, has become a prominent element in field characterization and management. Historically, different technical disciplines marched to their individual tunes, some barely acknowledging the existence of the... more

Gas hydrates are solids where gas molecules are locked inside cage-like structures of hydrogen-bonded water molecules. The physical properties of hydrates are remarkably close Figure 1. Each of the two... more

Wellbore breakouts are zones of enlargement that develop due to failure of the rock at the wellbore wall. These failures occur at orientations where the greatest stress concentrated Figure 1.... more

It must be great being a company like Statoil. Its brilliant researchers come up with new technologies, and Statoil then spins them off to establish companies which can develop innovative... more

There are few industries more dependent on technology than the oil and gas industry. Reservoir simulation technology is responsible for exploring new resources and exploiting existing ones, while also determining... more

For years I’ve maintained that there’s a connection between the video games my daughter plays and the squiggly lines and earth models that geoscientists use to find drillable targets. For... more

In an industry that demands hardware in sizes and capacities that often run to the enormous —with capabilities to match — it’s nice to see a downhole tool come along... more

Most of us in the energy industry have figured we could put together a better all-around energy picture than those Washington politicians or environmental extremists. Well, Chevron gives us a... more

Roughly 75% of the formations drilled contain reactive shale and over 90% of wellbore stability problems are related to the inability of drilling fluids to control reactive shale. The most... more

Barco’s new 12,000 lumens Galaxy NH-12 is an active stereoscopic projector with Windows The Galaxy NH-12 allows Windows desktop integration. (Image courtesy of Barco) desktop integration that projects 2-D mono... more

Fern Communications Ltd., a provider of two-way radio communications systems, has launched The FRX-1 ATEX portable radio repeater bends radio signals around solid objects for improved communications without interruption from... more

Moyno’s Tri-Phaze System is a patented progressing cavity solution with a low total cost that The Tri-Phaze system can generate and transport up to 60,000 b/d of formation fluids and... more

Caledyne has announced the qualification of its Torus safety valve, which achieved an API 14A class 1 certification for the 2 7/8-in. insert valve. According to the company, the valve... more

T-3 Energy Services, Inc. released its Diamond Series Model 6012 Subsea blowout preventer The Tri-Phaze system can generate and transport up to 60,000 b/d of formation fluids and is designed... more

In order to meet operators’ needs to acquire the best possible image of the subsurface in the most effective and efficient manner, geophysical providers are working diligently to bring sophisticated... more

Regular visitors to this space may notice that books appear as topics from time to time. Even in this manic digital age, a book has a lot going for it... more

Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Co. (SNEPCO) made the first major deepwater discovery in Nigeria at Bonga in 1995. When development of the field began four years later, Shell took... more

Global forces are stirring change in the exploration and production (E&P) industry, marked by rapidly increasing ambiguity as we move forward in this century. This “New Era” demands a change... more

Logging is personal at Schlumberger. It grew from the dedication of Conrad and Marcel Schlumberger to technology through bathtub experiments in the back yard through the first downhole application into... more

There is a lot of talk about how young people entering the petroleum industry have a different value system than the older generations. I don’t dispute that they currently have... more

Sri Lanka, an island nation off the southern coast of India smaller than Ireland with five times as many people, will open its oil and gas potential to international bidders.... more

There comes a point when wringing one’s hands about the Great Crew Change doesn’t make too much sense. It is happening. Whether we can find enough qualified individuals to fill... more