Successful Deployment of a Purpose-Built Rig on Multi-Well Platform in a Swamp Location for Concurrent Drilling and Production

摘要

The 'lean and green' operating philosophy adopted for a fielddevelopment plan in a Nigeria major E & P company in 1996focuses on spending less and leaving the environment withminimal impact. Previously, the company cuts an average of0.7 hectares of vegetation per well in the swamp to createdrilling locations. Entry to a pre -installed multi well platformin a dredged drilling location by a specially built rig inOctober 1999 marked the inception, industry-wide, ofplatform drilling in the swamp .The successful deployment of this custom made rig to asix-well platform, each well spaced 2.5 meters (8 feet) apart,and the hooking up of the first well in the cluster Monday, 27November 2000, ushered in the first oil from a multi-wellplatform operating in a concurrent drilling and productionmode from an inland water location. This is indeed companyand industry-wide achievement. Since then, five more wellshave been drilled and completed from the same location,thereby saving over $2.0m from location preparation andavoiding multiple rig moves. The use of one single location todrill six wells significantly reduced the footprints on theenvironment in line with the company's mission inthat respect.This paper presents the planning and execution of drilling,completion and production in a cluster location concurrentlyusing the purpose-built rig during a recent campaign.