Abstract
This paper presents a field development case study of a low permeability turbidite reservoir in Russia. The giant Priobskoye field contains 30 API crude in laminated sandstones of 0.1 to 20 md at a depth of around 2500 meters. The complex geology, lack of reservoir information and lack of technology availability caused a 20-year gap between discovery and development.
The initial pilot development was halted after poor drilling success, thus the operator invested in 3D seismic acquisition and an integrated, multidisciplinary reservoir modeling and simulation effort. The subsequent development was based on oriented water flooding patterns and massive hydraulic fracturing, together with an artificial lift system equipped with permanent pressure and rate monitoring for evaluation and real time production enhancement.
The optimization of operational practices and introduction of fit for purpose technologies enabled a production increase from an intermittent hundreds of BOPD to more than 75000 BOPD in a period of 3.5 years. The exploitation strategy of this pilot area demonstrated commercially sustainable production from the reservoir and will form the basis for full field development.
