A New Strategy for Pre-Selecting Gas Wells for the Water Shut-Off Treatment Based on Geological Integrated Data

Abstract

This article presents a new analytical procedure for pre-selecting gas wells for water shut-off treatments based on available at hand results of an analysis of integrated geological, reservoir and exploitation data. Attention was paid to assess the possibility of the appearance of cross flows between layers in the near wellbore zone. Their appearance always eliminated the well as a candidate for the treatment. The basis for assessing the possibility of the emergence of cross flows was based on the assessment of the presence or absence of impermeable barriers (e.g., shales or anhydrite) in intervals, completed by perforation. For this assessment, well logging data were used, which were carried out in different years with the use of various types of probes. Based on modified quantitative and qualitative interpretation techniques, permeable and impermeable layers were separated in the analysed borehole sections. In some cases, in the absence of other data, well logs are the only source of information from which a vertical profile of horizontal permeability can be made. The article describes the verification process carried out for the eight wells situated in the area of the Carpathian Foredeep, which have been preselected by the operator. As part of this procedure, the available geological, reservoir and exploitation data were used, and a preliminary assessment of the possibility of implementing the obtained results into other wells and gas fields in the area of the Carpathian Foredeep was carried out. On the basis of the well ranking, two out of the eight analysed wells were recommended as candidates for water shut-off treatment.

Keywords

• water shut-off treatment
• gas production
• water-gas ratio (WGR)
• formation permeability
• well logging data quality and quantity interpretation
• gas well ranking