Abstract
Four major operators with significant coal seam gas (CSG) holdings in Queensland, Australia identified Progressing Cavity Pumps (PCPs) as one of the preferred artificial lift technologies to deliquify coal seams and allow the adsorbed coal seam gas to be produced to surface. Each operator also acknowledged the need to accelerate their understanding of PCP technology in order to effectively overcome the unique challenges of this application. To address this need, since early 2012, these operators have met semi-annually to share reliability data on their PCP installations and the experience gained in their field operations. It was found that, through these semi-annual meetings, learnings were accelerated. Possible solutions to key challenges were identified during the meetings, trialled in the field and evaluated for success. The results were then shared with the other operators. This paper describes the process that was used to highlight challenges and identify potential solutions. It also presents examples of solutions that proved to be effective. This collaborative effort shows that challenges can be overcome in a shortened time period, if experience and operational data is shared among operators in similar applications.
