A new method for the evaluation of the utilization potential of proved undeveloped reserves and its application: a case study of Y reservoir

Abstract

Most of the proven undeveloped reserves are presently low-grade ones. Overall effective utilization is difficult with current economic and technical conditions. Most of the existing methods evaluate overall utilization potential, which is no longer suitable for evaluating the utilization potential of currently-proven undeveloped reserves. In this paper, a case study has been carried out in Y reservoir. According to the heterogeneity of the spatial distribution of reservoir parameters, the selectivity of development technology and the uncertainty of economic parameters, a prediction model of single-well-controlled recoverable reserves under different development technologies is built. Combined with the economic limits of single-well-controlled recoverable reserves under different technical and economic conditions, movable probability can be obtained, and the movable potential of geological reserves can be further calculated. Field application shows that the coincidence rate of the movable potential reserves calculated by the method in this paper and the actual produced reserves reaches 97.2%, which has high accuracy and can meet the needs of field. The research in this paper provides an effective method for the evaluation of the potential of undeveloped reserves.

Keywords

• proved undeveloped reserves
• recoverable reserves
• evaluation method
• single-well-controlled recoverable reserves
• probability distribution