This reference is for an abstract only. A full paper was not submitted for this conference.
This paper discusses the value of integrating subsurface and surface elements for gas fields located in Egypt's Western Desert concession. The Hydrocarbon accumulations in the operating company consist of oil and gasfields; first gas was discovered in 1982. Currently gas is produced from three fields that share the same plant and facilities. Each field is producing from two to five reservoirs with different productivity, pressure, Temperature, and PVT.
To optimize production and thereby maximize the remaining value of the asset, the use of an integrated forecast tool is beneficial. As the gas fields become a more mature asset, the allocation of well production to different production trains (High, medium, low pressure) in the future needs to be evaluated. Also the benefit of further optimisation on surface facility (e.g., decreasing the inlet pressure) in the tail-end production period could be addressed.
The integrated model was built with the aim to address the coupling of several reservoirs with the surface network to allow predicting the interactions between different fields/reservoir/pressure regimes, wells and facilities. The following key issues were addressed:
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Pressure interaction between surface and subsurface
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Pressure interference between different reservoirs and wells connected to a shared surface facility.
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Influence of facility constraints, e.g., separator limits, commingled flowlines, etc. on a set of reservoirs connected to a shared facility.
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Production optimization in the overall system against a set of common criteria or the current constrains.
The model's results allowed the operating company to improve its understanding of the interaction between the subsurface and surface activity and constraints. It serves as a tool to optimize the production of remaining reserves within a common timeframe.
