Abstract
The interest in and demand for natural gas has dramatically shifted the focus for many operators in the past few years. Plunger lift, which for many years was viewed as a last resort, and somewhat of a nuisance, has gained an all time high in popularity, and effectiveness and applicability. Most of the guesswork in evaluating candidates has been replaced with exotic programs that combine Nodal analysis with performance based calculations.
In recent years both equipment and applications have improved, and the production range of plunger lift now includes many wells previously not possible to produce with plunger lift. Here we will examine the new technology utilized in tracking, evaluating, and troubleshooting plunger lift wells. Also several case studies on where previously difficult production is now commonplace, will be presented.
