A recent project initiated to drill shallow horizontal wells in California, USA for Macpherson Oil Co. utilized a customized package of solutions and technologies that were developed to drill horizontal wells in the field while improving production. After completing one third of the initial horizontal development, the current production is the highest the field has seen in 72 years. Highly precise wellbore placement, in conjunction with robust real-time logging information, were sighted as the primary reasons for the success of the operation thus far. Further development of the field will include the examination of technologies that are still at the inception stage but hold potential for development and execution in these operations. For the intents and purposes of this paper, the names of geological identifiers, formation information, and well names will be assigned arbitrary naming conventions to protect the anonymity of those we choose to reference.
In a field that has been in production since the 1920s, an in-field drilling program has yielded tremendous production results through the implementation of a multi-disciplined reservoir navigation service. Through the utilization of deep-azimuthal resistivity, continuous survey monitoring and correction, downhole bending moment and bending tool-face measurements conveyed via a rotary steerable system; precise wellbore placement in various reservoir sweet spots has revitalized production from the field. In the geological overview, we will describe the environment in which we apply these services, related complications, and formation characteristics that enable the economic use of the reservoir navigation services. A brief background of the reservoir navigation service (RNS) will be provided as a primer to understanding the tools related to RNS and their functionality as they relate to wellbore placement optimization. Following this is a description of the role that deep-azimuthal resistivity measurements play in bed boundary detection and a brief overview of that technology.
