Hydrocarbon reservoir analytics using high-frequency pressure data

世界上超过一半的能源来自石油和天然气，但能源部门正面临着一个重大挑战，大多数容易开采的石油已经被开采出来，因此，石油和天然气运营商正在转向新技术，使他们能够从现有储量中开采更多的石油。他们通常通过向储层注入水或其他流体来提高压力并提取剩余的油。我们之前的研究得到了ITF、BERR和NERC的资助，并开发了数据挖掘技术，可以应用于从油藏收集的低频流量数据。在知识交换方面，令人信服的价值主张是基于已经收集的现有流量数据，这些数据可供油气运营商随时使用。通过这些数据，我们能够对储层行为提供新的见解，并了解井之间的通信方式。这有助于预测未来的产量和优化注水策略。通过考虑所有井对，包括那些彼此相距较远的井对，该方法对储层的地球力学响应施加了重大约束，正如之前在北海储层研究工作中发表的现场试验所证实的那样。包括与Gullfaks油田重新激活的断层结构（http://www.geos.ed.ac.uk/homes/imain/igmpapers/grl2006main.pdf）和Valhall油田的诱发地震活动模式（http://www.geos.ed.ac.uk/homes/imain/igmpapers/Zhang_2011_SPE.pdf）.The)进行比较，该NERC项目的目的是响应NERC后续基金资助NE/J006483/1期间收到的行业对我们当前技术的反馈，并研究如何利用高频压力数据提供更多信息准确的分析。人们普遍认为压力比分配流量更准确，并越来越多地作为常规方法进行监测。由于压力与测量点的有效应力有更直接的关系，因此它也对储层的地质力学产生了更直接的限制，现在可以通过在生产层的井下运行的强大的高频仪器进行测量。高频压力数据的使用也为油井完整性或水侵的潜在问题提供了早期预警的前景。该项目的第一阶段将重点研究能够分析高频（可能每小时）井下压力数据的方法，结合生产和注入流速，并以我们的专利知识产权和已经成功开发的软件工具为基础，并在NE/J006483/1中交付。第二阶段将使用该方法对作业者提供的实际油藏数据进行分析。

Over half of the World's energy comes from oil and gas, but the energy sector is facing a major challenge, most of the easy to drill oil has already been produced and because of this, oil and gas operators are turning to new technologies that enable them to recover more from their existing reserves.They typically do this by injecting water or other fluids into the reservoir to boost pressure and extract the remaining oil. Our previous research received funding from ITF, BERR and NERC and developed data mining techniques that could be applied to low-frequency flow-rate data gathered from reservoirs.The compelling value proposition in terms of knowledge exchange is based on using existing flow-rate data that is already collected and readily available to oil and gas operators. From this data, we are able to provide new insights into reservoir behaviour and understand how wells communicate with each other. This helps enable forecasting of future production rates and optimisation of water injection strategies. By considering all well pairs, including those remote from each other, the method places significant constraints on the geo-mechanical response of the reservoir, as verified in published field trials from previous research work applied to North Sea reservoirs, including comparison with reactivated fault structures in the Gullfaks oilfield (http://www.geos.ed.ac.uk/homes/imain/igmpapers/grl2006main.pdf) and induced seismicity patterns in the Valhall oilfield (http://www.geos.ed.ac.uk/homes/imain/igmpapers/Zhang_2011_SPE.pdf).The aim of this proposed NERC project is to respond to industry feedback received on our current techniques during NERC Follow-on fund grant NE/J006483/1 and examine how high-frequency pressure data can be used to provide more accurate analytics. Pressure is widely considered to be more accurate than allocated flow rate and is increasingly monitored in a routine way. It also places more direct constraints on reservoir geo-mechanics because pressure is more directly related to the effective stress at the point of measurement, and can now be measured by robust and high-frequency instruments operating down-hole at the producing horizon. The use of high-frequency pressure data also holds out the prospect of early warning of potential problems with well integrity or water breakthrough.The first phase of the project will be focused on examining approaches capable of analysing high-frequency (perhaps hourly) down-hole pressure data, incorporating production and injection flow rates and building on our patented IPR and the software tool already developed successfully as a deliverable in NE/J006483/1. The second phase will be to use this approach on real reservoir data provided by an operator.