Summary
In this paper we describe a novel method for water unloading of natural gas wells in mature reservoirs experiencing low reservoir pressures. Current methods for water unloading from gas wells have at least one of the drawbacks of restricting gas production, requiring external energy, using consumable surfactants, or being labor intensive. The proposed design offers a new approach to water unloading that does not restrict or interrupt gas production. It can operate without external energy, and uses no consumables. Virtual and physical simulators have been developed and the full‐scale version of the concept has been studied in test wells to demonstrate the feasibility and performance of the new water‐unloading concept. An industrial‐grade preproduction prototype was tested successfully in a test gas well to validate this study.