Exercise no.

3
Drain Hole Drilling, Rev. 1, 25.10.04

Reference is made to equations given in “Design of Oil wells using analytical friction
models” by Aadnøy and Andersen (Hand-out).

Consider an existing platform well. The well has a continuous bearing at 90º Az.
Well-slot: 6,910,000 mN, 190,000 mE

The well consists of the following sections:

Section From MD (m) To MD (m) Inclination section end (º)

Vertical 0 400 0
Build 400 600 50
Tangent 600 1600 50
Drop 1600 1900 20
Tangent 1900 2900 20
Build 2900 3300 90
Horizontal (Res.) 3300 4000 90

The well is completed with a 7” Tubing (6.1” ID) down to the end of the reservoir
section.

Reservoir extension

It is believed that the productivity of the well can be increased by extending the
horizontal section further. This could be accomplished with a 3 ½ “ Drill string inside the
tubing (TBG). Drilling with Coiled Tubing is also considered. The available CT size is 2
3/8”.

1.) Specify the key-points for the existing wellbore: KOP, End of build, Target,
Northings, Eastings, MD, TVD, HD, Inclination and Azimuth.

2.) Find the maximum drilling length when using Drill pipe (DP) and Coiled
Tubing (CT) for extension of the initial well bore. What is the limitation?
Calculate the Safety Factors due to tension and drillstring torque (bit on
bottom / bit off bottom). Also calculate the Safety Factor against sinusoidal
and helical buckling.

Remote reservoir
The start position of a remote reservoir section is located at: 6,910,400 mN, 193,300 mE.
(Same TVD as the original reservoir). By milling through the tubing in the horizontal
section, the remote reservoir should be penetrated 400 m at 35 deg. Az. To exit the
tubing, a BUR of 1 deg/.100 ft has to be applied for 300 m drilling length. Right after the
first bend, a second bend with BUR of 3 deg./100 ft should be applied.
 3.) Where should the mill-out point be located when drilling the remote reservoir
section? Specify key-points for this trajectory: End of build, Target,
Northings, Eastings, MD, TVD, HD, Inclination and Azimuth.

4.) Is it possible to avoid buckling when drilling the full remote reservoir length
(400 m) with coiled tubing? What is the maximum WOB applicable before
helical buckling takes place and any further drilling is impossible? Calculate
the Safety Factors due to tension and drillstring torque (bit on bottom / bit off
bottom). Calculate SF for sinusoidal and helical buckling for drill pipe and
CT. Sketch the different forces vs. measured depth.

5.) Pressure drop based on using a flowrate of 500 LPM is given below. At this
rate, the pressure drop across the bit and the surface equipment is 20 and 10
bar, respectively. The formation fracture pressure is 530 bar, and the pump
Pop-off pressure is 338 bar. Decide if the remote target could be reached as
planned with either DP or CT.

Groups of two students working together are allowed, but the group should submit only
one spreadsheet.

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Hand in date: 12. Nov. 2004
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DATA:

Drillpipe:
OD=3 1/2”, OD TJ=4 3/4”, ID=2.992” Weight including TJ=13.95 lb/ft, Yield
strength=120.7 *103daN, Max MUT=1806 daNm

Coiled Tubing:
OD=2 3/8”, ID=1.995” Weight=4.43 lb/ft, Yield strength=390 kN

BHA:
Length of BHA (drill collar, MWD, LWD), bit, etc.: 30 m
Diameter of BHA: 4 1/4”
Average weight of BHA: 62.9 kg/m

Other factors:
Steel density: 7.84 g/cm3
WOB: 2.0 kN
TOB: 0.5 kNm
Bit Diameter: 5 ¾”
Mud weight: 1.7 SG
Safety factor against torsional and yield stress: 1.1
Friction factor (both steel/steel and formation/steel): 0.2

Pressure drop table

Section Annulus (Pa/m) Inside pipe (Pa/m)
DP/TBG 680 1033
CT/TBG 380 6116
DP/OH 994 1033
CT/OH 493 6116