Fully Automated Managed Pressure Drilling Delivers Precise ControlThrough High Pressures in a Narrow Drilling Window

摘要

Managed pressure drilling (MPD) helps operators efficiently navigate through narrow pore pressure-fracturepressure windows. The challenges encountered during one onshore drilling campaign included pore pressureuncertainty, high pressure influxes, total losses and high incidences of differential sticking, which at timesled to abandoning wells when drilled conventionally. The case study highlights how these challenges werecounteracted with the implementation of a fully automated MPD system. MPD is a safer and more effective drilling technique, as compared to conventional drilling, especiallyin wells with narrow drilling windows and downhole hazards. A fully automated, early kick detection andcontrol system that enables nearly instantaneous, precise adjustments to the bottomhole pressure adds greatvalue to the client's operations.