Reactivation of an idle lease to increase heavy oil recovery through application of conventional steam drive technology in a low dip slope and basin reservoir in the Midway-Sunset field, San Joaquin basin, California. Quarterly report, January 1--March 31, 1996

摘要

This project will reactivate ARCO's idle Pru Fee lease in the Midway-Sunset field, California and conduct a continuous steamflood enhanced oil recovery demonstration aided by an integration of modern reservoir characterization and simulation methods. The objectives of the project are: (1) to return the shut-in portion of the reservoir to commercial production; (2) to accurately describe the reservoir and recovery process; and (3) convey the details of this activity to the domestic petroleum industry, especially to other producers in California, through an aggressive technology transfer program. The producibility problems initially thought to be responsible for the low recovery in the Pru Fee property are: (a) the shallow dip of the bedding; (b) complex reservoir structure, (c) thinning pay zone; and (d) the presence of bottom water. The project is using tight integration of reservoir characterization and simulation modeling to evaluate the magnitude of and alternative solutions to these problems. Two main activities were brought to completion during the first quarter of 1996: (1) lithologic and petrophysical description of the core taken form the new well Pru 101 near the center of the demonstration site and (2) development of a stratigraphic model for the Pru Fee project area. In addition, the first phase of baseline cyclic steaming of the Pru Fee demonstration site was continued with production tests and formation temperature monitoring.