SPE/IADC 79896

World Class Drilling in the Gulf of Thailand: North Pailin Project

Wiwat Yodinlom, SPE, Nat Luckanakul and Pichai Tanamaitreejitt, Unocal Thailand Ltd.
Copyright 2003, SPE/IADC Drilling Conference
This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE/IADC Drilling Conference held in
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1921 February 2003.
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Abstract
The North Pailin field, located in the Gulf of Thailand (GOT)
had been evaluated during 1996-1997 with 15 delineation
wells. Risked gas resources of 1,280 BCF (1 January 2002)
will be fully developed with a Central Processing Platform
(CPP) and a total of 357 development wells on 31 wellhead
platforms (WP). However, thanks to a flexible performanceoriented operational philosophy, Unocal Thailand put North
Pailin development on a fast track, aggressive timeline that
moved the start-up project from well plan to cash flow within
9 months.
Each well of the initial first four-platform drilling program
was highly deviated and followed a 3-D design in three
sections: 11-3/4, 8-1/2 and 6-1/8. During this drilling
campaign, many world class drilling records were achieved:
1) In February 2002, North Pailin A-05 3D-well was
directionally drilled from spud (325-ft mud line) to
11,388 feet TD in 1.9 days at $49.6 per foot.
2) The 12-well program on North Pailin-A was
completed within 34.42 days, 115,103 feet were
drilled by average 4,387 SFPD at $64 per foot.
3) For the entire four-platform, four rigs had drilled
618,786 feet (117 miles) out of 55 wells in the first
quarter of 2002, at an average cost of $850K per well
or $76 per foot.
4) Together with those records, 307,140 man-hours were
also achieved safely without any lost time incidents.
The records achieved on the North Pailin make it the most
efficiently drilled development program so far in the GOT. A
brief background of the North Pailin will be presented.
However, the main focus is to highlight the key performance
statistics and offers insights into the success of the North
Pailin drilling campaigns.

Introduction
Unocal Thailand, Ltd., a subsidiary of Unocal Corporation,
was the first Oil Company to win exploration rights in
Thailand in 1962. The company is engaged in exploration and
production of natural gas, oil and condensate in the Gulf of
Thailand. As of September 2002, Unocal has set 108 platforms
(81 wellhead, 4 production, 5 central processing, 1 oil central
processing, 7 living quarters, 8 flare tripods, 1 gas
compression and 1 riser platforms), drilled more than 1,699
wells, and produced over 4,838 BCF of gas and 174 MM bbls
of condensate. Unocal Thailands facilities are located near the
center of the Gulf. (Figure 1. Thailand Concession Map)
Discovered in 1990, the Pailin field lies 90 miles east of
Nakhon Si Thammarat province on the southern coast. The
field is located in Concession Block B12/27, which
encompasses an area of 1,200 square miles. The prospective
area extends approximately 38 miles N-S, and 6-9 miles E-W.
Unocal Thailand, Ltd., is operator of the Pailin field and holds
a 35 percent working interest. Co-ventures include PTT
Exploration and Production (PTTEP) Public Company
Limited (45%), Amerada Hess Exploration (Thailand) Co.,
Ltd. (15%), and MOECO Thai Oil Development Co., Ltd. (an
affiliate of Mitsui Oil Exploration, 5%).
Pailin is Unocal Thailand's largest and most complex
single project ever undertaken and employs the latest
environmental technologies. The field is being developed in
two phases. Phase 1 covers the southern half of the field and
had been started up on Dec 1, 1998, with a gas rate (DCQ) of
165 MMCFD. The reserve estimation for the Phase 1 (South
Pailin) development is 1,426 BCF (1 January 2002).
Phase 2 (North Pailin) covers the northern half of the field
with reserves of 1,280 BCF. The North Pailin project was
kicked off in October 1999 during the economic crisis and a
predicted oversupply market. However, with good
collaboration from the co-ventures and the Petroleum
Authority of Thailand, the entire difficult situation had been
overcome. The North Pailin project has been start up on 1 July
2002, at a gas rate of 207 MMSCFD (DCQ of 165 MMCFD).
The North Pailin will be fully developed during the next 20
years, with additional 200 development wells planned.
Field Overview
The Gulf of Thailand (GOT) is approximately 343 miles
across at its widest point and 522 miles in length and is about
115,830 sq. mile in area. Maximum water depth is about 256

feet. The central portion of the Gulf is over 183 feet deep and
is separated from the South China Sea by two ridges at depths
of 76 feet and 152 feet, respectively.
The geology of the GOT features a series of north-trending
ridges and linear, fault-bounded basins with a sedimentary
section predominantly of upper Tertiary sediments. The
Pattani Basin, located near the geographic center of the GOT,
contains as much as 8 km of predominantly non-marine fluvial
deltaic sediments. (Figure 2. GOT Seismic-Geological Profile)
The reservoir sandstones from which gas is produced are
dominantly within the sequences II, III and IV of the
classification shown in Figure 2. The sandstone themselves
range in thickness up to greater than 100 feet. Though most
pay sands are in the range of 5 to 50 feet, averaging about 15
feet. The markers within and at the boundaries of these
sequences can be mapped from seismic data to a greater or
lesser extent, depending on local variations in depositional
environment, bed thickness and quality, and the availability of
modern seismic data.
The stratigraphic section is intensely faulted by generally
north-south trending graben systems, which create the
structural traps exploited in the gas fields but also subdivide
the already restricted reservoir sands into small sub-units.
The complexities of the structural and stratigraphic model
have been developed over the years and such knowledge was,
of course, one of the most success factors in the exploration
and development program of Unocal Thailand.
North Pailin Start-up Project
As mentioned earlier, the North Pailin reserves will be fully
developed with the installation of an integrated Livingquarters-CPP Platform, 62.3 miles of associated pipelines, and
a total of 256 development wells on 23 wellhead platforms.
However, with clear goals of full field development
optimization and early cash flow, the North Pailin start-up
project called for 55 development wells on four wellhead
platforms connected to a CPP.
The North Pailin start-up project was to coordinate and
link subsurface work packages, facility work packages and
interface work packages. The project required intense
coordination among the companies and departments involved.
Service companies needed to be more active participants in the
decision making process, and multi-disciplinary teams were
essential for making sure the project was designed to be as
efficient and cost effective as possible.
Concerning project trade-off aspects, time was the top
priority because delays or failure to deliver gas to Petroleum
Authority of Thailand (PTT) would create a major financial
impact on the Company and Partners of approximately
US$760,000/day due to loss of sales opportunity and shortfall
penalties. The project schedule did not have excess float, and
most of the work packages were completed in series, which
made the project susceptible to knock-on effects and hard to
recover. In terms of quality, the project needed to meet the

SPE/IADC 79896

start-up quality requirements as a minimum. Any quality

enhancements beyond the minimum requirement should be
achievable after the start-up period. Additional costs incurred
due to any changes were justified on a case by case basis,
especially when compared with the financial impact due to
schedule delays.
The start-up project was kicked off in early October 2001.
Wells were being planned while the first four Wellhead
Platforms were being fabricated and installed. Each Wellhead
Platform was installed just before the rig moved onto the
location. In January 2001, the start-up project schedule
forecasted approximately 30 days of clashes between drilling
and installation operations. Whilst clashes still occurred
during the installation operations, the total installation spread
was less than 3 hours. Had those plan clashes caused rig
downtime, the resulting cost would have been over US$3
million. This success was a direct result of excellent
communication, both onshore and offshore, among the
Planning and Exploration groups, the Asset Teams, and the
Drilling and installation groups.
The North Pailin CPP was installed and commissioned
ready for start-up with four wellhead platforms just in time.
The synchronies of all well-planning tasks allowed the CPP to
start up with four WPs on 1 July 2002, with a gas rate of 207
MMSCFD. The project was implemented from well plan to
production within 9 months. The development schedule and
schematic are presented in Figure 3 (North Pailin Start Up
Project Schedule).
North Pailin Drilling and Completion Achievements
Table 1. North Pailin Drilling Campaign
W/H PF
NPWA
NPWB
NPWC
Rig
RT-7
RT-4
T-15
Well #
12
16
11
Day
34
70
55
Feet
115,103
180,917
131,634
$ MM
7.39
13.24
11.2
Day/well
3
4
5
Feet/well
9,592
11,307
11,967
$/W
615,568
827,588
1,017,873
$/Feet
64
73
85

NPWD
E-57
16
87
191,132
14.94
5
11,946
933,920
78

The year 2002 was a challenging year for the Unocal Thailand
Drilling team. A total of 220 wells were drilled with six rigs
compared to a 10-year average of 100 wells per year. Out of
these 220 wells, the drilling program on North Pailin was even
more challenging, with 55 wells drilled on 4 platforms with 4
rigs running simultaneously. Drilling resources were stretched
as a result of the challenges from the fast track approach. All
the preparation work, including contracts and personnel
administration, well design, procurement, rig moves, etc and
execution of drilling were crammed into a limited period. To
meet the challenge of an increase in activities, steps were
taken to improve efficiency through more effective utilization

SPE/IADC 79896

of existing internal and external resources. For the entire

project, the eight drilling records on the North Pailin project
and the 307,140 man-hours of rig crew to drill 618,786 feet
without any incidents were notable accomplishments.
In February 2002, the Company drilled the North Pailin A05 well at a rate of 6007 feet per day, from spud (325-ft mud
line) to 11,388 feet TD in 1.9 days. On the same platform,
NPWA-09 was drilled from 325 feet to TD at 8,276 feet
(7,566 feet-TVD) in just 1.56 days. The 12-well drilling
program on North Pailin-A platform was completed by
Smedvig Robray T-7 tender rig within 34.42 days, with
115,103 feet drilled, an average of 3,344 TFPD (4,387 SFPD)
at $64 per foot.
In March 2002, the 16-well drilling program on the North
Pailin-B platform was completed by Smedvig Robray T-4
tender rig within 70 days, with 180,917 feet drilled, an average
of 2,603 TFPD (3,572 SFPD) at $73 per foot.
Table 2. North Pailin Drilling Key Performance Statistics
LTI
Nil
Environmental Incidents
Nil
Near Misses
21
Platforms
4 (A + B + C + D)
Wells
55
Drilling cost, CAPEX - $M 47.5
Drilling Duration days
116 in Record Time
Avg. NPT DPW
0.42 (1.3: 2001 standard well)
Drilling Records
8
World Record - 8-1/2 Hole 932.6 FPH (1,727 FPH-OnSection
bottom).
Best Flat Time after TD
0.6 DPW (NPWA)
Completion Efficiency - %
72 (60% Avg. UT wells)
Development Duration,
Oct 01 - June 02
Including Startup
Development Drilling Cost 1.33 $/BOE
Downstream - MMcfg/d
207 (Initial)
In April 2002, the 11-well drilling program on the North
Pailin-C platform was completed by the Trident-15 jack-up rig
within 55 days, with 131,634 feet drilled, an average of 2,390
TFPD (3,053 SFPD) at $85 per foot.
In March 2002, the 16-well drilling program on the North
Pailin-D platform was completed by the Ensco-57 jack-up rig
within 87 days, with 191,132 feet drilled, an average of 2,201
TFPD (3,430 SFPD) at $78 per foot.
The company was able to achieve eight drilling records on
North Pailin because of its familiarity with the behavior and
characteristics of the Gulf of Thailand geology, the application
of slimhole/monobore drilling, the rig upgrade and the
teamwork among all parties. The records achieved on the
North Pailin-A platform made it the most efficiently drilled
development program so far for Unocal Thailand. These
drilling records were also achieved safely, without any lost
time incidents.

Table 3. Unocal Thailand Drilling Records (February-2002)

Deepest well, feet MD
$/ft
TFPD
SFPD
Average Platform SFPD
Drilling Time, day
Total Time, day
Well Cost, $
8-1/2" ROP, ft/hrs
6-1/8" ROP, ft/hrs

Records
15,189
49.6
4,632
6,007
4,387
1.56
2.31
519,301
933
308

Well
Pailin B-11
NPWA-05
NPWA-05
NPWA-05
North Pailin A
NPWA-09
NPWA-09
NPWA-13
NPWA-13
NPWB-01

Date
Sep-01
Feb-02
Feb-02
Feb-02
Feb-02
Feb-02
Feb-02
Jan-02
Jan-02
Mar-02

Additional challenges to produce and manage the wells

had to be overcome. To accelerate the process, some of the
cased-hole loggings (GR/CCL/CBL) were run under the rig
floor (URF), providing the asset team engineer more time to
plan the perforation program. During the second quarter of
2002, 3,177 feet of sands in 51 well were perforated and
tested. Pressure build up (PBU) survey was performed on
selective sands in 11 wells to evaluate completion efficiency.
Completion efficiency of 72% on average for North Pailin,
was better than the average GOT efficiency of 60%. This
indicated that the drilling and well services team not only
delivered cheaper but also better wells to the asset team.
Production logging tools (MPLT) were run in 10 wells to
provide a baseline to manage the reservoir later. The initial
completion program was completed well in advance of the
start-up date.
Table 4. Initial Completion Program
Platform
NPWA NPWB NPWC NPWD
Well #
12
15
11
16
55
Budget $MM
0.977 1.023 1.328 1.347 4.675
Cased-hole Log
12
15
11
16
55
(5URF)
Perforation Feet 1000
1000
1787
1700
5487
(2Q2002)
(705) (684) (851) (937) (3177)
Well clean up
12
15
11
16
55
PBU
2
3
3
3
11
MPLT
2
3
2
3
10
Keys To Success
Basically, there are three fundamental components, which
contributed to the success of the North Pailin drilling
campaign: 1) Man (individuals and teamwork), 2) Machine,
and 3) Method (manuals, policies, and procedures). The
following sections outline the major success factors, highlight
the key performance statistics, and offer insights into the keys
to success of the North Pailin drilling campaign.
The Can Do Team
Of the three fundamental components contributing to the
success of the North Pailin project, the human factor is the
most critical component. Manuals, policies, and procedures
(methods) cannot and will not alone ensure efficient operation.

SPE/IADC 79896

Likewise, there are no rigs that can compensate for a lack of

careful attention, commitment and competence.
A multi-disciplinary team was set up, composed of skilled
colleagues with a Can do attitude. Most of the Exploration,
Asset, Construction and Drilling team members from the
previous South Pailin project were integrated together which
enabled all of them to benefit from each others experience.
Each person had a proven record of success and was expected
to make a difference. The continuity of personnel from the
South Pailin project to the North Pailin project was of great
value. They formed closely integrated work groups using
state-of-the-art techniques for prospect mapping, delineation
and development planning, and well design.
This teamwork philosophy also applied to the company
partnerships with contractors and service companies. They
worked closely together using an integrated approach, which
resulted in seamless cooperation. The successful completion
of this very aggressive program is a powerful example of the
results of working as a fully integrated and
communicative team.
Well Planning & Execution Processes
To devise operational goals that will be jointly held by the
asset team and the drilling team, Unocal Thailand established
process and communication forums to reinforce alignment of
groups activities towards maximizing value. The table below
summarizes the practices used for controlling information
flow during well planning processes, drilling execution and
well completion.
Table 5. Well Planning & Execution Processes
Communication
Purpose
Forum
Project Team Meeting To select Project Coordinator
Concept Meeting
Review most attractive well
locations, number of prospects /
wells, TD constraints / fault
blocks,
and
assess
slot
availability.
E&C/Drilling Meeting Outline project objectives and
exceptions to identify a list of
special order items and plan for
facility modifications on the
platform, no less than six months
prior to spud
Well Planning
Optimize well paths to maximize
reserves
and
operational
efficiency,
review
scoping
economics, rank prospects (and
plan a decision tree in case of
contingencies)
TD and TI provide information on
Torque and Drag Run
Tortuousity Index
the relative difficulty of the well
Calculation
path, the former the probability of
the bit reaching bottom, the latter
risk of drilling and logging
problems

Target Meeting

Contact
Directional
Support.
Well Drillability /
Target Review
(Operations Review)

RLLCP, Document
Delivery to DMR,
Partners and Internal
Customers
Pre-spud

Daily
Meeting

Morning

Weekly Foreman
Meeting

Wrap-up

Post-spud
Initial Completion
Meeting
Weekly WSVC
Coordination Meeting.
Completion Lookback

Peer
feedback
on
project
objectives and estimates, targets,
well courses, reserves, risks, data
collection
Prepare for Well Drillability
meeting
Discuss planned to drill well
course
relative
to
target
dimensions,
drillability
/
logability / serviceability of
proposed wells. Review well cost
(mechanical POS) vs. reserve
trade-off.
Document for partners, drilling
and geological operations that
summarize purpose and plan for
the well. This document is used
to generate the AFE.
Inform offshore personnel of
objectives and exceptions, high
pressure wells, data gathering,
tubing changes, drilling order, site
information, tool availability,
contingencies
Review drilling daily results,
information gained, problem
discussion.
Inform foreman of objectives and
exceptions; high pressure wells,
data gathering, drilling order, site
information, tool availability,
contingencies
Informal review of projects
technical aspects, expectations
vs. results, focus on exceptions,
knowledge gained, future work
Review drilling project results,
information gained reserves,
value added, and problem areas.
Review
drilling
results,
information gained, reserves,
review of completion strategy
(sequence, gun, test, WSO etc.)
Inform asset team of progress and
exceptions, data gathering, work
order, site information, tool
availability, contingencies
Review of completion result,
problem and new strategy
(sequence, gun, test, WSO etc.)

Each forum involved a variety of people: geologists,

geophysicists, reservoir engineers, production engineers,
project coordinators, drilling liaisons, deputy director drilling,
technical assistants, directional representatives, well services
representatives, and drilling foremen. The time spent was well
worth the effort as working through this process has proven
effective in balancing the drive for lower per well costs and

SPE/IADC 79896

the drive for higher per well reserves, so that the asset teams
obtain drillable, loggable and producible well bores.

conventional motors, MWD, and gyro surveying techniques.

The first casing (9-5/8) is then set and cemented in place.

In a process developed over a decade, geologists and

geophysicists form project teams with reservoir engineers for
planning a platform development or delineation well. Based
on structural and stratigraphic mapping of a potential location,
an optimal conceptual plan is created, usually for 12 wells per
platform. Reservoir engineers are closely involved in planning
optimum well spacing, anticipated pressure profiles and
project economics. The seismic displays, including inclined
sections parallel to fault surfaces, sections along well courses,
radial lines from the planned platform, and seismic horizon
amplitude maps are used to design a series of targets to
constrain a well course. The geophysicist and geologist then
design a well course to pass through the targets from the
chosen surface location, using drilling parameter constraints
specified by the drilling engineers according to current
capabilities. (See Figure 4)

Table 6. Unocal Thailand General Operating Environment

Water Depth:
190-240 feet
Surface Section
1000ft
11-3/4 Hole / 9-5/8 Casing
Intermediate Section 4000-5000 feet TVD
8-1/2 Hole / 7 Casing
Production Section 9,000-15,000 feet MD
8,000-10,000 feet TVD
6-1/8 Hole / 2-7/8 Tubing
BHT
350-400 F
BHP
1 - 1.62 SG
Production
Gas/ Condensate, 5 - 75% CO2
Pay per Well
0 - 30 sands, 0-600 feet between
5,000-10,000 feet TVD

This process ensures a viable well can be drilled to meet

the defined geologic objectives. Drilling engineers at this stage
use the well design parameters to simulate the torque and drag
profile of the proposed well. This takes into account the casing
program, drilling mud program, etc., and ultimately indicates
to the team whether the well can be drilled to TD or suffers a
risk of being cut short by torque limitations.
The process is iterative and requires close co-operation and
cross-disciplinary understanding between team members in
order to maintain the high drilling rates described.
Considerable effort was put into keeping well courses as
simple as possible to minimize drilling time, cost and risk,
without compromising geological objectives.
This multi-disciplinary effort has resulted in the life of the
Gulf of Thailand fields being extended into the 21st century.
Simplified Drilling Program
In a typical GOT well, with an average of 10 pay-sands, the
reservoir properties (porosity, water saturation, permeability)
of the individual sands tend to vary enormously. The gas
contained by the sands is of varying composition, phase
behavior and condensate yield. The sands are distributed
across a large vertical interval, from around 4000-ft subsea to
9500 ft subsea. As a result, initial reservoir pressures range
from 1600 psi to over 5000 psi (in over-pressured areas).
Overpressures are observed deeper than 6500-ft subsea.
Slimhole technology was utilized as the standard for
development wells. The well plan calls for a hole (11-3/4) to
be drilled using a rock bit and seawater through the seabed to
approximately 1000 ft TVD. The surface hole sections were
drilled in a batch process. The well path for the surface hole of
those wells included a slight build to 15-20 degree inclination
while moving away from the platform. The wells were steered
directionally to avoid other wells and to position the 9-5/8
surface casing to facilitate directional work in the 8-1/2
intermediate section. The directional work was done with

After a batch of surface hole sections, a batch of the 8-1/2

hole interval was drilled to final depth at approximately 5000
ft TVD in upper Miocene shale, prior to entering any
hydrocarbon-producing interval. The high temperatures in the
Gulf of Thailand have precluded using downhole motors and
steerable systems with any degree of reliability below 7000 ft
TVD. In addition, in the 6-1/8 section of hole, the rates of
penetration with downhole motors, even when rotated, have
not matched that of rotary assemblies. For that reason, where
feasible, any major turns in the well are planned to be
accomplished in the upper 8-1/2 hole section. A 7 casing is
subsequently run, cemented in place, and pressure tested.
Drilling of the 6-1/8 hole interval resumes to a TD of
9,000-15,000 feet MD using a PDC bit / AGS / MWD together
with Saraline synthetic based mud (SBM). Through the years,
study of the database of all bits indicates that certain types of
bits have certain characteristics with respect to the rate of turn
they cause. Some bits turn left to varying degrees; others
remain straight, while some tend to turn right. This was used
to advantage to hit geologically defined targets, especially at
depth where temperature precluded the efficient use of
steerable systems. Synthetic-based mud (SBM) is used
because of the problems of torque, drag, and enhanced
formation evaluation. WBM have significantly greater friction
factors than the SBM and would not be suitable for use in
existing designs for well drilling at great depths. The well is
then completed with 2-7/8 tubing, cemented in place, and
pressure tested.
Simplified Completion Design
In general, a mono-bore completion concept is adopted for the
GOT wells. The 7 casing is set at the pressure ramp (+/- 5000
feet TVD), the well drilled to TD with 6 1/8 hole, and 2 7/8
tubing is run to TD and cemented in. This well design follows
the slim-hole concept, based on the minimum needs for
production. The main driver for this completion and
production philosophy is the substantial capital cost saving
that would result (compared to conventional well design).

SPE/IADC 79896

The unitized wellhead is the standard for Unocal. This

wellhead saves considerable time because it was not necessary
to remove the BOPs after each string of casing is run to
install a new section of wellhead. This contributed to safety as
it was never necessary to remove the BOPs, so the well was
always secure and the amount of handling of heavy BOPs,
clamps and wellhead sections was reduced considerably.
Table 7. Unocal Thailand General Drilling &
Completion Program
Hole Section
Surface
Intermediate Production
Mode
Riserless
BOP
BOP
Wellhead
9 5M KVN Integral WH
Fluid
Gel Mud
Sea water
SDF
Depth MD
1,000
4,000-5,000 9,000-13,000
Inclination
15
60
60
Drill Pipe
5
5
3-1/2 or 4
Bit size
11-3/4
8-1/2
6-1/8
PDC/Motor
PDC / AGS /
Bit / BHA
Rock bit
MWD
MWD
/Motor &
MWD
FIT
12.5 PPG
14.5 PPG
Hole sweep
100bbl
50bbl gel
Hi-vis pil
mud
Casing set
9-5/8
7
2-7/8
12.4ppg lead 13.5ppg
Cement
13.5 or
Class-G:
15.0 PPG: & 15.9 tail:
TOC 1,000
TOC 2,500
100%
feet above
ft-TVD
excess
7shoe.
The normal initial completion program for the GOT wells
includes wireline, cased-hole logging, perforation, and
complex well clean-up & testing operations. In general, the
production philosophy used for GOT wells is to produce from
the deepest zone first. Once the sand or zone is depleted to a
predetermined rate (0.5-1.0 MMSCFD), the next sand(s) is
perforated (See Figure 7). All questionable sands are left for
perforation prior to abandoning the well. A pressure build-up
survey was performed on selected sands in the initial program
to evaluate completion efficiency. Production logging tools
are also run in referenced wells to provide a baseline to
manage the reservoir later.
MWD / Adjustable Stabilizer
As discussed earlier, high temperatures have precluded using
downhole motors and steerable systems with any degree of
reliability below 7000 ft TVD. Therefore, any major turns in
the well are planned in the intermediate 8-1/2 hole section.
The 8-1/2 hole is drilled conventionally, building to 60
degrees (maximum) at 10-degrees/100 ft rate. The directional
work is done with conventional motors and MWD.
Continuous surveying becomes standard in all hole sections
but is particularly valuable in 8-1/2 holes. The 8-1/2 hole is
steered directionally to position the 7 intermediate casing at a
location to facilitate directional work in the 6-1/8 section.
Aligning the intermediate casing in this way eliminates the
motor out of the 6-1/8 hole section BHA. Therefore, the
positioning of the well path at 7 casing shoe is extremely

important, often making the difference between a successful

well and a multiple-trip well. In general, the 6-1/8 well path
is planned for 0.2 degree / 100 feet build rate from the 7
casing to the second target with any hold or drop built in.
MWD and the adjustable stabilizer have been very
successful in drilling the 6-1/8 hole sections by reducing the
number of trips necessary with the rotary assembly. This
equipment, together with the bits database, were useful for
hitting geologically defined targets, especially at depths where
temperature precludes the efficient use of steerable systems.
Drilling Rig / Competition
Competition played a large part in the success of the
operation. In this North Pailin Drilling Campaign, two tender
rigs and two jack-up rigs from three drilling contractors were
competing for contracts. (See Figures 5 & 6.) Companies
working for Unocal Thailand know that every aspect of
performance is being measured, and unless they can maintain
a competitive edge, they will be replaced.
Unocal Thailands contract strategy is to maintain and
strengthen long-term relationships with top performers. For
example, the T-4 and T-7 have worked for Unocal Thailand
continuously since delivery in the early 1980s. The only
explanation for this long relationship is the consistent
performance achieved by the excellent crew.
The history of T-7 is unique. The rig started working
continuously with Unocal Thailand since it was delivered in
1983. The unit came off a five-year contract in 2000 and
entered into a new five-year contract in 2001 after the
upgrade. T-7 was set to start the North Pailin Drilling
Campaign on North Pailin-A. The decision was significantly
influenced by the knowledge that this new rig designs and her
offshore team would help set a benchmark for other rigs to
follow. The eight drilling records set by T-7 on North Pailin-A
provided a very effective benchmark. In addition, the T-7 team
also reached two years without a lost workday case during the
North Pailin-A drilling campaign.
The key components of the T-7 upgrade are automation,
mobility and flat-time reductions through parallel operations.
The old mast was replaced with an 8-ft wider mast, modified
to enable making up and laying down tubular outside the
critical path in parallel with the ongoing drilling operation.
Time is saved by reducing the number of connections for
picking up and laying down drillpipe, and making up and
breaking out bottom-hole assemblies. In addition, casing and
tubing can be made up offline and run in doubles.
Key Performance Management
The driving force behind the success was Unocal Thailands
innate desire to continually improve its performance. In order
to do this, Unocal Thailand has defined goals and directions
and established methods of performance measurements to
demonstrate the achievement of these goals. The direction for
Unocal Thailand was clear. In order to survive, the company
had to find a way to drill wells much faster and cheaper.
Initially, four main performance indicators were used to

SPE/IADC 79896

measure achievement and create an atmosphere for

improvement. They were well cost, footage drilled per day
from spud to TD (including all associated activities such as
running and cementing casing), total number of days per well
(including completion), and accident frequency.
This procedure was further refined and drilling operations
for a development well were broken down into 17 activities.
For each activity, Optimum Time or 100% efficiency was
defined by the fastest time achieved to date. Future activities
were benchmarked against these and regular, positive
feedback given on performance achievement. The
performance improvement is illustrated in Figure 8.
Performance contracts were introduced over a number of
years. Based on performance results, the contracts were
structured to share some of the future savings with the service
contractor if they exceeded the performance agreed upon, and
to penalize them if they failed to achieve the agreed
performance level. They were structured to make the reward
for exceeding the performance level higher than the penalty if
they did not. Unocal either gained a lot if the contractor
exceeded the performance level or took the brunt of the loss if
they did not meet their performance level.
Goals were set and reviewed annually by the department
with close involvement of the field personnel who supervised
the operations. With these goals in mind, it was the
combination of strong engineering support and the willingness
and eagerness of the supervisors, contractors and rig crews to
successfully recommend and implement new ideas and
technology that was instrumental in the success of the
development drilling. (See Figure 9)
Safety and Loss Prevention Program
The foundation of the Unocal Thailands safety and loss
prevention program is the GO-HES (Good Operations
Health, Environment and Safety) program. The purpose of
GO-HES is to provide a two-way communication chain, with
the lower levels providing the input and communicating to the
top the necessary needs to achieve the company objectives. It
is line managements responsibility to see that these programs
and program standards exist and are being adhered to. The
program, designed based on research by safety professionals,
has twenty-two elements that are necessary for a safely
managed operation. The degree to which these programs are in
place is measurable, with points awarded by an external
auditor. Performance in any program can only improve if it
can be measured. It is a measurable, proactive safety program,
which will further enhance the efficiency of operations.
In spite of this stressful work schedule, the T-7 team had
reached two years without a lost workday case on the North
Pailin-A drilling campaign. On the North Pailin-B drilling
campaign, the T-4 team also reached one year without a lost
workday case.
For the entire four-platform program, four rigs drilled 55
wells during the first quarter of 2002, a total of 618,786 feet
and 307,140 man-hours without any lost time incidents.

Compared to IADC statistics in Figure 10, these results clearly

indicate that the Unocal Thailand drilling operation is among
the best operations anywhere in the world in terms of safety.
(See Figure 10)
Besides the goal to drill wells as cheaply and safely as
possible, environmental concerns are also taken into
consideration in all operations. An Environmental Impact
Assessment (EIA) was conducted and guided by the results
obtained from an earlier Initial Environmental Evaluation
(IEE) carried out for Unocal in 1995. The EIA Report
identifies and assesses the potential impacts expected from
Pailin development.
For drilling operations, the primary sources of
environmental effects are drilling wastes, domestic wastes,
noise, operations, shipping, and accidental spills of supply
materials. Each of these sources of impact was evaluated and
the only source of potentially significant environmental effects
was identified as drilling waste (drilling mud and mudcontaminated cuttings). The impacts from the remaining
sources were identified as being negligible.
Although the discharge of SBM-contaminated cuttings is
allowed, minimization of the environmental impact from this
discharge still has to be addressed. Therefore, Unocal has
utilized solids control equipment that can reduce SBM loss on
cuttings, and thus reduce the impact on the environment.
Moreover, a good environmental management program is
another approach to achieving this goal. This program is
basically a routine operation that gets everyone involved and
responsible for promoting environmental quality. The most
important lesson to be emphasized is that the most appropriate
approach and procedures not only provide benefits for
environmental care, but eventually reduce the overall drilling
costs as well.
Conclusions
The success of Unocal Thailand and the North Pailin project
have created additional opportunities for exploration and
exploitation ventures in the Gulf of Thailand. This success has
encouraged the development of marginal fields and extended
the life of mature fields.
The main contributions to the success of Unocal Thailand
have been the advances in 3D seismic technology, drilling
technology and construction techniques. These have resulted
in improvements in the accuracy of mapping and targeting
small channel sandstone reservoirs. Advances in drilling
technology provided the opportunity for improved well
designs and more accurate and efficient drilling to penetrate
the sands in an optimal manner, resulting in more costeffective drilling, with limited formation damage and
production maximization to achieve maximum recovery and
profitability. Construction techniques were modified to
optimize the use of unmanned well platforms feeding into
central processing platforms. The resulting value creation
from applying these advances has improved field development
economics and made significant contributions to the bottom
line and asset management.

SPE/IADC 79896

The North Pailin drilling achievements have been not so

much a one-time breakthrough, but rather the result of a series
of improvements that have enabled the company to tackle the
challenges of drilling for marginal field development and
maintaining results at a growing pace. The company has
consistently pushed the limits of drilling cheaper, faster and
safer with the application of new ideas and technologies. The
list of innovative technologies that have taken the company
where it is today is long and impressive. Often technological
development is simply finding a new use for an old concept.
Taking advantage of activities the company performs on a
regular basis makes it more efficient and economically viable.
Finally, facing these types of challenges is what the
company does best and provides Unocal Thailands
competitive advantage. Unocal Thailand, working with its
service companies and involving both people and technology,
was able to produce significant achievements by working
together in a truly integrated and committed team.
Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank Unocal Thailand for permission to
publish this paper. The results and technical excellence are the
work of many professionals within Unocal and contractors
companies. The authors also wish to take this opportunity to
express their appreciation for the exceptional efforts by all to
make the North Pailin Drilling Program such a huge success.
Special recognition to the Unocal Thailand Drilling Team and
the crews of the Smedvig Robray T4 and T-7 tender rigs,
Ensco-57 and Trident-15 jack-up rigs for delivering worldclass performance through teamwork and continuous
improvement.
Nomenclature
BOE
=
BHP
=
BHT
=
CPP
=
DCQ
=
DPW
=
EIA
=
FPW
=
FPH
=
GOT
=
GPM
=
IEE
=
LTI
=
MD
=
MWD
=
NPT
=
PTT
=
PTTEP =
ROP
=
SBM
=
SFPD
=
SS
=
TD
=
TFPD
=
TVD
=
WBM
=

Barrel Oil Equivalent

Bottom Hole Pressure
Bottom Hole Temperature
Central Processing Platform
Daily Contract Quantity
Day per Well
Environmental Impact Assessment
Feet per Well
Foot per Hour
Gulf of Thailand
Gallon per Minute
Initial Environmental Evaluation
Loss Time Incident
Measure Depth
Measure while Drilling
Non Productive Time
Petroleum Authority of Thailand
PTT Exploration and Production
Rate of Penetration
Synthetic Based Mud
Spud Foot per Day
Subsea
Total Depth
Total Foot per Day
True Vertical Depth
Water Based Mud

WP

Wellhead Platform

References
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)

7)

Assanee Meeponsom, Unocal Thailand Ltd., Thailand

Petroleum Conference 2002. Drilling Innovations: A Key
to Developing More Reserves in the Gulf of Thailand.
Duantem P, PGE 381 DRILLING OFFSHORE
ENVIRONMENT.
Unocal Thailand, July 1997. Environmental Impact
Assessment Pailin Field Hydrocarbon Development, Gulf
of Thailand.
Unocal Thailand, July 1997, Pailin Field Development Plan
XA.
E.R. Callahan III, SPE, and G. Schut, SPE, Unocal
Thailand Ltd. SPE 38053 Slimhole Development in the
Gulf of Thailand.
P.G. Western and B. Davis, Unocal Thailand Ltd., 1993.
ASCOPE 93 5123 ERAWAN FIELD A YOUNG
ELEPHANT, THE FIRST TWENTY YEARS. ASCOPE
2-6 November 1993, Bangkok.
Unocal Thailand, Exploration Department, 1993. Gulf of
Thailand Block B12/27 Exploration License Renewal and
Production Area Application.

Conversion Factors
The list below includes SI Metric conversion factors for
common engineering units in this paper. These conversion
factors are from the SI Metric System of Units and SPE Metric
Standard, the Society's official standard, SPE, Richardson,
TX.
Bbl
ft
ft3
F
gal
in.
mile
psi
sq. mile

x 1.589 874
x 3.048*
x 2.831 685
(F - 32)/1.8
x 3.785412
x 2.54*
x 1.609344*
x 6.894 757
x 2.589 988

*Conversion factor is exact.

E-01
E-01
E-02
E-03
E+00
E+00
E+00
E+00

= m3
=m
= m3
=C
= m3
= cm
= km
= kPa
= km2

SPE/IADC 79896

Figure 1. Thailand Concession Map

Figure 2. GOT Seismic-Geological Profile

10

SPE/IADC 79896

NORTH PAILIN START UP PROJECT

Sep-01

Oct-01

Nov-01

Dec-01

Jan-02

Feb-02

Mar-02

Apr-02

May-02

Jun-02

Jul-02

Aug-02

Sep-02

Completion Design
Well Planning
CPP & LQ
FIRST GAS 01JULY2002

Well Hook up pre-droll

Well Hook up post-drill
WP /DRILLING /WSVC
NPWA-RT7

WP

NPWB-RT4
NPWC-Trident15
NPWD-Ensco53

DRILLING
WP
WP

Figure 3. North Pailin Start Up Project Schedule

WP =
WSVE

DRILLING
WP

NPWE-Trident15

Figure 4. North Pailin Well Plan

WSVC

DRILLING

DRILLING

PLATFORM INSTALLATION

WSVC =INITIAL COMPLETION

WSVC
WSVC

WP

DRILLING

WSVC

SPE/IADC 79896

11

PRESENT WELL CONDITION

AND COMPLETION PLOT

well xxx
67.10' ELEVATION (ENSCO-57)
2-7/8" TRSV

9-5/8" 40 PPF N-80 CSG

2-7/8" XO 13 CRM FOX BOX x
7" 23 PPF NT-80HE ERW BTC CSG
5180 = 0.24
Sw = 0.47

-5486
5490 = 0.23
Sw = 0.35
-6013
6010 = 0.22
Sw = 0.43
-6412
6410 = 0.22
Sw = 0.44
-6528
6530 = 0.19
Sw = 0.75

8317- 8332

(15')

2-7/8" R-NIPPLE
T.O.C at 8700 ft RKB CBL/VDL/GR/CCL/MAP
8720- 8734 (14')

9409- 9441

(32')

9939- 9965

(26')

GWC

10094- 10100 (6')

AZI
2-7/8" R-NIPPLE

-6544
6540 = 0.21
Sw = 0.78
-6755
6750 = 0.19
Sw = 0.46

Figure 5. RT-7 Rig on Conventional 4-pile Platform

10116- 10123 (7')

AZI
10402- 10411 (9')
2-7/8" R-NIPPLE

-6956
6960 = 0.21
Sw = 0.46
-7419
7420 = 0.16
Sw = 0.48

10676- 10725 (49')

GWC

11321- 11393 (72')

GWC

2-7/8" R-NIPPLE
5-7

4
3

-7561
7560 = 0.15
Sw = 0.54
-7769
7770 = 0.14
Sw = 0.75
-7913
7910 = 0.15
Sw = 0.50

11521- 11559 (38')

11817- 11824 (7')
AZI
12017- 12026 (9')
2-7/8" R-NIPPLE

Figure 6. Jack-up Rig on Tripod Platform

-8106
8110 = 0.15
Sw = 0.74
-8168
8170 = 0.15
Sw = 0.74

12287- 12292 (5')

AZI
12373- 12378 (5')
AZI
2-7/8" FLOAT COLLAR
2-7/8" FLOAT SHOE
TOTAL DEPTH

Figure 7. General Well Completion Schematic

12

SPE/IADC 79896

Figure 8. Section of Performance Sheet

Unocal Thailand Historical Drilling Data

250

100

10
150
# well

day / well & MM$ / well

200

100
1

50

Figure 9. Performance Improvement History

2002

2001

2000

99

Total Wells

98

97

96

95

$MM /well

94

93

92

91

90

89

88

87

86

85

84

83

82

80

0.1

81

Day /well

SPE/IADC 79896

Figure 10. HES Performance History (as of September 2002)

13