Big Data Analytics, Best Completion Practices and Refracs

Would you believe that over 80% of the horizontal wells completed prior to 2012, in the foremost shale plays in North America, are grossly under-stimulated??It is true and refrac results from wells of this vintage clearly show a large part of the designed stimulated reservoir volume that was believed to have been stimulated is indeed not contributing to the well’s production.?How best do you see that??By refracs on best wells, at the time they were completed, that have been re-stimulated using today’s best practices and seeing results that equal or exceed the well’s initial performance and hold up as if you have drilled and completed a brand new well.?The only way that could occur is by connecting new rock (matrix and fractures) that were not adequately stimulated the first time.

In the early history of unconventional resource plays, the industry was trying desperately to find the right or best completion design recipes that would result in the best producing wells.?Most companies were not willing to share their design and results with competitors, though some local operators in each of the respective plays, began to realize that it was far better to work together than independently.??Since the wells are so expensive, there is a need for more data to provide input into the best completion practices, that are the most cost-effective but more importantly, result in the best performing wells.?As one looks back at plays that have had quite a bit of completion activity it becomes difficult to explain why some wells outperformed others in the same geologic environment, without assuming it was a function of completion design.?Millions upon millions of dollars on micro-seismic have been expended attempting to ensure the designed frac goes where one intended, but yet long term performance of these wells dramatically differ.

With the advent of more advanced analytics software packages and the availability of drilling and completion data from all operator’s wells, that is now publicly available from multiple sources, operators can analyze entire plays and identify the technical step changes that have resulted in better wells and help explain why wells with similar geologic parameters perform differently, primarily based upon certain frac design parameters.

Plays that are over-pressured, suffer from an additional parameter, in that, how the well was flowed back after stimulation is as critical as the completion design.?It is very clear using analytic software, operators that pulled their wells harder in attempt to get higher IPs have indeed permanently damaged the performance of their wells.?Thus, one can conclude that conservative choke management is mandatory to maximize the performance and long-term recovery from over-pressured reservoirs, such as the Eagleford and Haynesville, to name a few of the big ones.

The bottom line is that to achieve the best performing wells that greatly exceed their offsets in similar geologic environments, one must ensure that all productive pay is adequately stimulated and connected with any natural fracture systems that exist in addition to the matrix itself.?Bi-wing conventional fracs that are pumped with cross linked gels do not adequately connect the matrix and the fracture system to maximize the stimulated volume.?To accomplish a well-designed stimulation, one has to ensure that all pay within a stage is of “like-rock” to prevent the stimulation preferring to go more to the area of greatest permeability, than to the rock with lesser permeability, that truly benefits the most from the frac stimulation.?This can be accomplished by combining like-rock within stages and utilizing a limited entry approach to perforating, i.e. bpm/hole of 2.0 or greater and larger perforation holes.

Thus, when these best practices have not been adhered to, the resultant wells have been found to be excellent refrac candidates that will truly result in performance equal to or greater than the original completions.?Thus, utilizing big data analytics, operators can determine how their well performance stacks up to the competition and at the same time discerning what are the best completion designs that have resulted in the best performance in the plays you are involved.?This also provides a tool to analyze who might be the best take over or acquisition candidates wherein frac designs were not optimized and resulted in wells grossly under-stimulated that are likewise under-performing.

Interest in analytics is on the rise, as most majors and larger independents have been forming data analytic groups within their organizations.?I first started using Spotfire in 2002, when most companies I worked with had never heard of it, because it was primarily being utilized in other industries than oil and gas.?I believe the future of our industry will rely on engineers, geologists and data scientists being fluent in working with large data packages utilizing tools such as Spotfire, to maximize drilling success, and lowering finding costs, while significantly creating more cost efficient operations.?This technology is imperative to exist and thrive in lower commodity price environments.

Mike Cherry is an oil and gas executive with experience, in most basins in North America, with strong operations experience, and has helped numerous companies achieve exceptional completion results that have resulted in top tier wells, in the Permian, Eagleford and Haynesville plays, in implementing key strategies for best practices in drilling and completions as well as refracs. He is also one of the leading pioneers in the oil and gas industry, in the advancement of big data analytics to assist in maximizing performance of completions and hydrocarbon recovery in horizontal unconventional resource plays in North America.

Leading industry Thought Leader in the execution of advanced completion designs that build near wellbore complexity with shear, tensile and expulsion fracturing, to connect matrix production by diffusion, that result in industry leading well performance and reserve recovery.