Abstract
One of the main drivers of field development is maximization of oil reserves. The value of assets and therefore companies is strongly linked to the amount of producible reserves of their holdings. Traditionally the full potential of the reservoir is locked due to a series of limitations both at the sub-surface and surface. Increasing in oil demand challenges the development not only to improve on oil recovery but also boost the near term production.
Subsurface models are extensively used to determine the optimum development strategy for the field, infill wells are used to target un-swept areas of the reservoir, while water and or gas injection may be used to preserve reservoir energy. In comparison surface facilities are not so extensively looked after especially in an offshore environment, and often times only a de-bottlenecking of the optimum sub-surface case is performed. The integration between surface network modeling and subsurface modeling is critical to ensure field operation is in line with reservoir management and the facility is adequate to handle the expected production.
This paper discusses the various stages of optimization, using numerical simulation combined with a surface model, to determine the impact of surface operations in overall field performance. The results allowed shifting of the resources to further understand the surface operations which affect the overall field performance as well as identifying near term production enhancement opportunity. This work shows how an effective combination of reservoir energy preservation by means of upgrading the current surface facilities and adding optimized existing wells accounts for as much as 50% of the total potential recoverable reserves.
Furthermore, after evaluating each development options, a matrix risk is formulated to take into account not only the quality and quantity of the data but also the degree of man interventions during the life of the field (surface optimization). Value-of-information figures were then associated to each of the suggested new data/equipment to help prioritize the development As a result measurement efforts were carried out including horizontal production logs to minimize uncertainty of the reservoir contribution.
