Formation Pressure While Drilling Measurements for Reservoir Management Applications-Case Studies from Saudi Arabia

摘要

The introduction of formation-pressure-while-drilling tools has brought significant benefits to the industry including improved well landing and placement, drilling optimization, and reservoir characterization. Acquiring formation pressure data while drilling rather than traditional wireline methods may be particularly advantageous when rig costs or wellbore stability risks are high. Typical reservoir management applications include identification of reservoir compartmentalization and permeability barriers, identification of fluid type using gradients, and identification of the best production/injection zones on the basis of reservoir pressure and mobility estimates. This paper presents examples from several fields in Saudi Arabia where formation-pressure-while-drilling data was successfully acquired and discusses its impact on the reservoir management of the respective fields. One of the examples illustrates an innovative utilization of a normally undesired supercharging effect to identify the optimum casing landing point. The paper also describes the lessons learned during the course of acquisition and interpretation of the pressure and mobility data obtained from the formation-pressure-while-drilling tool