SPE-180491-MS

Customized Drilling & Completion Fluids Designed for Horizontal Wells to

Address the Drilling and Production Challenges - Case History
Ahmed Soliman, Ahmed Samir, and Shahad Sheer, Baker Hughes EHO Ltd; Ali AL-Khaldi, and Ali Boukhamsin,
Kuwait Oil Company

Copyright 2016, Society of Petroleum Engineers

This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE Western Regional Meeting held in Anchorage, Alaska, USA, 23–26 May 2016.

This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE program committee following review of information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s). Contents
of the paper have not been reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers and are subject to correction by the author(s). The material does not necessarily reflect
any position of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, its officers, or members. Electronic reproduction, distribution, or storage of any part of this paper without the written
consent of the Society of Petroleum Engineers is prohibited. Permission to reproduce in print is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words; illustrations may
not be copied. The abstract must contain conspicuous acknowledgment of SPE copyright.

Abstract
This paper presents drilling and completion fluids design for drilling long lateral / horizontal wells in a
North Kuwait field and its field application on well RA-AAA, RA-BBB, RA-CCC and RA-DDD. The
offset wells were reviewed to identify the issues from drilling a challenging trajectory through trouble-
some reactive formations that showed serious wellbore stability issues and stuck pipe incidents.
The customized drilling and completions fluids system was designed for different intervals, taking the
following objectives in consideration:
● Improved hole stability through stressed and reactive formations
● Enhanced hole-cleaning efficiency at critical angles
● Minimized risk of stuck pipe across depleted formations with high porosity and permeability
● Minimized / no induced losses to formation by utilizing unique wellbore-strengthening technique
● Minimal damage to reservoir section during drilling phase
● Near-wellbore damage remediation during completion phase
This paper describes the customized drilling and completions fluids performance as compared to offset
wells. A comprehensive engineered approach addressed the challenges of drilling horizontal wells by
using a revolutionary bridging technology to strengthen the wellbore and improve wellbore stability to
reduce non-productive time (NPT) related to losses, stuck pipe, etc. This paper also describes the
completions fluids design to minimize reservoir damage and utilize Mesophase technology to remediate
near-wellbore damage and improve reservoir producibility. The lessons learned on these wells were
incorporated in drilling subsequent wells to continue improve on performance.

Introduction
The Raudhatain field lies within the Arabian basin and in the State of Kuwait, an independent sheikdom
situated in the northeastern part of the Arabian Peninsula at the western side of the head of the Persian
(Arabian) Gulf. Drilling in mature fields as Radhatain land becomes a challenge due to the old age of the
field (in production since 1954) where the depletion of its producing sandstone and carbonate becomes a
real challenge to drill through in safe way and efficient manner.(citation 1 and 2)
2 SPE-180491-MS

To meet the target productions from Raudhatain field, Kuwait Oil Company initiated a horizontal
well-drilling campaign with openhole inflow control device (ICD) completion in Mauddud (carbonate)
and Burgan (sandstone) reservoirs. Some of the remarkable difficulties encountered during drilling these
wells that extremely raised the non-productive percentage compared to the whole drilling time were
wellbore instability issues in reactive and stressed shales section, interbedded formations with varying
formation pressure and hole cleaning issues.
Challenges Leading to Non-Productive time
The challenges drilling horizontal wells with Mauddud (carbonate) and Burgan (sandstone) reservoirs are
outlined below:
Challenges drilling horizontal wells for the Burgan reservoir Fig. 1
SPE-180491-MS 3

a) Challenges drilling horizontal wells for the Mauddud reservoirFig. 2

Fluids Design
The key success factors in the prevention of wellbore instability include fluids design in line with
geo-chemical and geo-mechanical properties. The objective of a customized drilling fluid design using a
revolutionary bridging technology is to strengthen the wellbore and improve wellbore stability to reduce
non-productive time (NPT) related to losses, stuck pipe, etc. The fluid design considered the following
factors:
●
Chemical inhibition to reactive shale formations
●
Density profile prediction
●
Bridging technology to retain wellbore strength
●
Downhole fluids modeling and rheological parameters
●
Hole cleaning
●
Minimize Reservoir damage
Chemical Inhibition to Reactive Shale Formations
The decision was made to use an oil-based mud (OBM) fluid system to the drill horizontal wells with
interbedded shale sections. To avoid fluid interaction due to osmotic effects, the OBM system was
complemented with water activity (water phase salinity – WPS) close to that of the formation water and
rock.
The OBM inherent chemical inhibition to reactive shale was complemented by a proprietary synthetic
organic polymer. The polymer reduced pore pressure transmission by sealing micro fractures and
effectively generated a semi-permeable membrane at the borehole interface, creating mechanical means
to estabilize the wellbore. The fluid invasion to reactive shale was thereby reduced to minimize fluid
4 SPE-180491-MS

interaction with shale. The Table 1 shows improvement in HPHT fluid loss with addition of the
proprietary synthetic organic polymer without affecting fluids rheological behavior.(citation 8).

Table 1—Laboratory HPHT Fluid loss data to evaluate performance of synthetic organic polymer
Fluids Proprietary Synthetic Organic Polymer concentration

Base Fluid (OBM) ⫹ 1 % v/v ⫹ 2 % v/v ⫹ 3 % v/v

HPHT Fluid loss@300° F 3 ml/30 min 2.6 ml/30 min 2.0 ml/30 min ml/30 min

Source: Baker Hughes Laboratory report # 6052

Based on above laboratory results and formation water analysis, oil-based mud with 2 to 3%
proprietary synthetic organic polymer and water activity in range 0.75 to 0.80 was utilized on wells
RA-AAA, RA-BBB, RA-CCC and RA-DDD drilling non-reservoir sections to chemically and mechan-
ically stabilize the reactive shale.

Density Profile Prediction

The fluid density profile was modelled for critical 12¼-in. and 8½-in. sections utilizing geomechanical
studies and proprietary software considering pore pressure, rock properties (Young’s Modulus, Poisson
Ratio, Biot constant, tensile strength) internal friction angle, minimum and maximum horizontal stress,
etc.
The density profile build was compared to offset wells and reviewed instability across reactive Ahamdi
and Wara shale formations. The effect of density was also analysed across weak/depleted Mauddud and
Burgan formations. The proprietary software was utilized to predict induced fracture characterstics (width
and length).
The safe drilling window narrows with the increase in hole angle; the fluid density required to stabilize
the wellbore is observed to be relatively higher while drilling high-angle wells (citation). However, too
much increase in fluid density may lead to fluid/pressure diffusion in open radial fractures and initiate
instability.
The fluid density was evaluated to identity any instability while drilling RA-AAA, anlayzing the
drilled cuttings’ shape and size in addition to drilling parameters (off-bottom torque, pick up/slack off
weight and pressure trends).
The Ahmadi and Wara shale were cut at ~ 40 to 45-degree inclinations with 10.5 ppg and was gradually
increased to 11 ppg until the landing point. The mud weight was increased to 11.2 to 11.3 ppg prior to
wiper trips to compensate ECD effect while the pumps were off and to minimize pressure fluctuations.
The Fig. 3 indicates density profile built for Well RA-AAA with offset wells density profiles indicating
fluid density lower or higher than required, which can initiate instability.
SPE-180491-MS 5

Figure 3—Density Profile for 12 1/4ⴖ & 8 1/2ⴖ section on Well # RA-492 & Offset wells Depth vs Density

Bridging technology to retain wellbore strength –

Work by Vickers et al. (2006) showed that approximately 40 ppb of bridging material is required in a fluid
system to obtain optimum bridging efficiency. Previous studies by Siddiqui et al. (2006) had outlined the
importance of maintaining the correct concentration and size of calcium carbonate in a fluid used to drill
through fractured formations. The addition of sized calcium carbonate and maintaining its concentration
while using the correct particle size distirbution (PSD), provides an efficient and cost-effective mean of
appropriate bridging particles.
The combination of calcium carbonate and graphite has been shown to improve wellbore stability by
increasing the hoop stress in the near-wellbore (Aston et al., 2004). This is achieved by particles bridging
in the fracture, either at, or close to, the mouth of the fracture and forming a low-permeability seal. This
enables the fluid and pressure trapped between the seal and the fracture tip to dissipate into the formation,
allowing the fracture to close. Provided the particles used to form the bridge have sufficient strength, the
6 SPE-180491-MS

bridge becomes compressed but prevents the fracture from fully closing. This imparts a hoop stress around
the wellbore, increasing the near-wellbore strength. (Citation 3 and 4)
The proprietary synthetic polymer that is characterized as a deformable sealing polymer in conjuction
with sized calcium carbonate and graphite further reduce the permeability of the seal formed in the
fracture. The proprietary deformable polymer also provides protection from differential sticking in
permeable formations by forming a very thin filtercake.

Figure 4 —Strenthening Wellbore mechanism

Laboratory testing to evaluate the benefit of the Propreitary Deformable Polymer was carried out using
a permeability plugging apparatus (PPA). Fig. 5 compares PPA fluid loss with and without proprietary
sealing polymer (DFP)

Figure 5—PPA fluid loss results at 250° F on 400 mD disk after hot roll at 250°F for 16 hours at 2000 psi.
Source: Baker Hughes Laboratory report # 7299
SPE-180491-MS 7

The concentration and size of the bridging material required in the drilling fluid formulations are as
below -
a. Wells with Burgan Reservoir (sandstone) as objective – Well RA-BBB, RA-CCC, RA-DDD

Table 2—For non-reservoir sections – Ahmadi, Wara, Mauddud and Upper

Burgan formations
Concentrations

Chemical ppb/ v/v %

Snthetic Organic Polymer 2-3 % v/v

Snythetic Graphite F 5 ppb
Calcium Carbonate 25 5 ppb
Calcium Carbonate 50 15 ppb
Calcium Carbonate 150 15 ppb

Table 3—For reservoir section – Lower Burgan formation

Concentrations

Chemical ppb/ v/v %

Calcium Carbonate 25 5 ppb

Calcium Carbonate 50 15 ppb
Calcium Carbonate 150 20 ppb

b. Wells with Mauddud Reservoir (carbonate) as objective – Well RA-AAA

Table 4 —For non-reservoir sections – Ahmadi and Wara formations with

interbedded sand streaks
Concentrations

Chemical ppb/ v/v %

Snthetic Organic Polymer 2-3 % v/v

Snythetic Graphite F 5 ppb
Calcium Carbonate 5 15 ppb
Calcium Carbonate 25 15 ppb

Table 5—For reservoir section – Mauddud Formation

Concentrations

Chemical ppb/ v/v %

Calcium Carbonate 25 5 ppb

Calcium Carbonate 5 15 ppb

Downhole Fluids Modeling and Rheological Parameters

Successful drilling of horizontal wells required prediction of fluids behavior under downhole conditions
(pressure and temperature) and minimize pressure or effective circulating density (ECD) fluctuations.
Effective wellbore pressure management (WPM) is key to reduce the risk associated with drilling in
fractured or highly-laminated shale zones.
8 SPE-180491-MS

While drilling, it is essential to carefully monitor the cuttings loading in the annulus to ensure the
openhole circulating pressure does not exceed the fracture pressure this becomes even more important in
high-angle / horizontal wells where the mud weight/fracture gradient window is further diminished.
A balance has to be established between running the fluid with minimal rheology (for minimum ECD)
and the requirement to clean the hole and suspend solids. It is advantageous to provide sufficient flow rate
to minimise cuttings of the bed formation without producing excessive annular pressure losses. The
contribution to ECD from the well design needs to be examined once fluids parameters have been
optimised, e.g., pipe selection to achieve required flow rate but to leave sufficient annular clearance to
help minimise annular pressure loss among other factors. The fluid rheology for Oil Base system was
maintained to have 6 rpm reading of rheometer (low shear value) in a range of 0.9 to 1.1 multiple of the
hole size.

Hole Cleaning
The hole cleaning is mandatory to avoid tight hole on connections and trips, avoid stuck pipe incidents
and maximise the footage drilled between wiper trips. The effectiveness of hole cleaning was tracked by
monitoring off-bottom torque and drillstring pick-up/slack-off weights on connections.
Pump rates should be maximized and the drillpipe should be rotated at a minimum of 100 to 120 rpm
to assist the cuttings lifting effect with RSS assembly. Pipe rpm must be increased for larger hole sizes.
Monitor for vibrations to ensure that high rpm does not cause lateral vibrations that could damage tools
or de-stabilise the wellbore. Ensure that ROP is controlled as per the drilling program so as not to exceed
the system’s ability to clean the hole. A good rule of thumb in the analysis with proprietary software is
not to load the annulus with more than 3% cuttings volume.
Maintain low shear rate rheology targets. It is essential the fluid has the desired carrying capacity for
removing cuttings from the hole. If working any stand more than once, ensure the bit stops at different
points each time while back-reaming and washing down. This minimizes the possibility of under-cutting
the hole.
The pumping of hole cleaning pills should be governed by drilling parameters, such as pump pressure
fluctuations, and not as standard. It is recommended that a weighted pill (1 to 2 ppg above active mud
weight) of 50 bbl for 12¼-in. hole section and 30 bbl for 8½-in. and 61⁄8-in. hole sections to be pumped
as conditions dictate to ensure the open hole is being thoroughly cleaned.
Back-reaming should only be undertaken if absolutely necessary. During drilling mode the best
hole-cleaning effects are obtained with maximum rpm. However, when rotating the pipe off bottom and
with the bit unconstrained, lateral vibrations (or whirl) can be induced at much lower rpm than while in
drilling mode. This can cause hole instability, seepage losses or even induced fractures causing losses.
These effects can also result in cavings, side-cutting of the wellbore and stripping of the existing quality
filter cake.
To avoid these issues with back reaming, the first course of action should be to run back in hole and
conduct a circulating cleanup cycle. The second action should be to attempt to pump out. Only if this is
not possible should back-reaming be undertaken.

Torque & Drag Analysis

The Fig. 5 indicates Trque & Drag analysis for Well RA-DDD as an indication for hole cleaning quality
SPE-180491-MS 9

Minimize Reservoir damage

All oil drill-in fluid system was designed to drill a reservoir section with consideration to minimize
damage to the reservoir. Optimum concentration and particle-size distribution of selected bridging
particles were customized to provide minimum fluid invasion into the reservoir. Unlike invert emulsion,
the all-oil system does not require high concentrations of strong surfactant emulsifier, so the risk of
creating emulsion blockage is reduced and the natural wettability characteristics of the reservoir rock is
preserved.
It was planned to drill the Mauddud reservoir with 7.6 to 7.8 ppg and Burgan reservoir was drilled with
9.2 to 9.5 ppg with minimum overbalance to minimize fluid invasion to reservoir. Once drilled to TD and
ICD screens were run to bottom, the customized Mesophase technology was utilized to perform
near-wellbore damage remediation and improve wellbore producibility.

Results
The Well RA-AAA (Mauddud – carbonate reservoir) was drilled successfully to set record of longest
lateral section of 5,284 ft without any major issues like tight hole during trips, sloughing shale, stuck pipe
or loss circulation incidents. The well producton was more than the expected production compared to
offset wells.
The conventional oil-based fluid system was replaced to customized fluid system with improved
bridging technique on well RA-BBB, RA-CCC and RA-DDD after series of failures and the performance
is summarized in below table 6 and 7.
10 SPE-180491-MS

Table 6 —Performance of customized fluid system comparing it with conventional fluid in terms of NPT on well RA-CCCSource:
KOC DDR
Well RA-CCC Plan Conventional Fluid Customized Fluid

Side Tracks 0 3 0
Total NPT hours on Stuck Pipe & Fishing 0 675 hours 12 (Jar not functioning).
BHA LIH 0 3 0
Stuck pipe incidents 0 6 1
Attempts with Nitrified diesel/acid 0 7 Nitrified Diesel & 6 Acid Jobs 0
Cement Plug / Bridge Jobs (Additional) 0 3 0
Drilling Days 60 (Spud to TD) 91 days (Objective incomplete) 18 days drilling⫹ 7 days completion
(8½-in.and 61⁄8-in.hole sections)
Section / Well Objective (MD) 10,900 ft 8,188 ft (Incomplete) 10,908 ft

Table 7—Performance of Customize Fluid system comparing it with Conventional fluid in terms of NPTon well RA-BBB.Source:
KOC DDR
Well RA-BBB Plan Conventional Fluid Customized Fluid

Side Tracks 0 1 1 (Coal seaming issue in Fault section @ 8,160 ft)

Total NPT hours on Stuck Pipe & Fishing 0 307.5 hours 0
BHA LIH 0 0 0
Stuck pipe incidents 0 2 0
Attempts with Nitrified diesel/acid 0 1 Acid Job 0
Cement Plug / Bridge Jobs (Additional) 0 1 1
Drilling Days 60 (Spud to TD) 43 days (Objective incomplete) 31 days drilling (12¼-in. and 8½-in.hole sections)
Section / Well Objective (MD) 9,246 ft 7,626 ft (Incomplete) 9,246 ft

Table 8 —Performance of Customize Fluid system comparing it with Conventional fluid in terms of NPTon well RA-DDD.Source:
KOC DDR
Well RA-DDD Plan Conventional Fluid Customized Fluid

Side Tracks 0 1 0
Total NPT hours on Stuck Pipe & Fishing 0 288 hours 0
BHA LIH 0 1 0
Stuck pipe incidents 0 1 0
Attempts with Nitrified diesel/acid 0 2 Nitrified Diesel 0
Cement Plug / Bridge Jobs (Additional) 0 1 1

Conclusion
The instability in horizontal wells can be the result of pressure fluctuations in the wellbore. The greater
the pressure fluctuations, the greater the severity of the problem. Effective wellbore pressure management
is key to reducing the risk associated with drilling in fractured or highly laminated zones.
The addition of a synthetic organic sealing polymer can enhance the sealing ability of customized fluid
based on calcium carbonate and graphite and prevent loss circulation while minimizing the potential for
differential sticking. NPT due to differentially stuck pipe or lost circulation has been reduced by applying
the wellbore-strengthening package, improving success rates in problematic wells.
Optimum concentration and particle-size distribution of selected bridging particles were customized to
provide minimum fluid invasion into the reservoir. Minimum overbalance pressure would minimize fluid
invasion and facilitate well cleanup operations.
Mespohase technology can further improve wellbore producibility by removing filter cake, removing
ICD screens bloackages, removing migrant solids like asphaltene deposition, removing emulsion bloack-
ages and improving reservoir wettability.
SPE-180491-MS 11

Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thanks the management of Kuwait Oil Company and Baker Hughes EHO Ltd
for permission to publish this paper.

References
1. Adasani, M., 1967, The North Kuwait oil fields: 6th. Arab Petroleum Congress, Kuwait.
2. Carmalt, S. W., and B. St. John, 1986, Giant oil and gas fields, in, M. T. Halbouty, ed., Future petroleum provinces
of the world, American Association of Petroleum Geologists Memoir.
3. ASTON, M. S., ALBERTY, M. W., McLEAN, M. R., De JONG, H. J., and ARMAGOST, K. Drilling Fluids for
Wellbore Strengthening. SPE 87130, SPE/IADC Drilling Conference, Dallas, March 2-4, 2004.
4. FETT, D., MARTIN, F., DARDEAU, C., RIGNOL, J., BENAISSA, S., ADACHI, J., and PASTOR, J. Case History:
Successful Wellbore Strengthening Approach in a Depleted and Highly Unconsolidated Sand in Deepwater Gulf of
Mexico. SPE/IADC 119748, SPE/IADC Drilling Conference & Exhibition, Amsterdam, 17-19 March 2009.
5. SIDDIQUI, M. A., Al-ANSARI, A.A., Al-AFALEG, N.I., Al-ANAZI, H. A., HEMBLING, D.E., and BATAWEEL,
M.A., Drill-in Fluids for Multi-Lateral MRC Wells in Carbonate Reservoir-PSD Optimization and Best Practices Lead
to High Productivity. SPE 101169, 2006.
6. VICKERS, S., COWIE, M., BURGESS, M., and ANDERSON, D. The Application of Specifically Formulated
Bridging Materials To Successfully Reduce Pore Pressure Transmission To Enable Depleted Fractured Reservoirs To
Be Drilled and Produced Without Incurring Formation Damage. SPE107753, European Formation Damage Confer-
ence, Scheveningen, 30 May-1 June 2007.
7. VICKERS, S., COWIE, M., JONES, T., and TWYNAM, A.J. A new methodology that surpasses current bridging
theories to efficiently seal a varied pore throat distribution as found in natural reservoir formations. AADE
06DFHO16, 2006.
8. Luigi, P. Moroni, Stephen Vickers, John Trenery, Wael El Sherbeny. ENHANCING BRIDGING AND SEALING TO
DRILL HIGHLY OVERBALANCED WELLS. Rio Oil & Gas Expo and Conference 2010
9. BAKER HUGHES LABORATORY TEST REPORTS (6052 and 7299).
12 SPE-180491-MS

APPENDIX
SPE-180491-MS 13
14 SPE-180491-MS