Gas Condensate Res.
Understanding Gas-Condensate Reservoirs
How does a company optimize development of a gas-condensate field, when depletion leaves valuable condensate fluids in a reservoir and condensate blockage can cause a loss of well productivity? Gas-condensate fields present this puzzle.
The first step must be to understand the fluids and how they flow in the reservoir.
Li Fan
College Station, Texas, USA
Billy W. Harris
Wagner & Brown, Ltd.
Midland, Texas
A. (Jamal) Jamaluddin
Rosharon, Texas
Jairam Kamath
Chevron Energy Technology Company
San Ramon, California, USA
Robert Mott
Independent Consultant
Dorchester, UK
Gary A. Pope
University of Texas
Austin, Texas
Alexander Shandrygin
Moscow, Russia
Curtis Hays Whitson
Norwegian University of Science and
Technology and PERA, A/S
Trondheim, Norway
For help in preparation of this article, thanks to Syed Ali,
Chevron, Houston; and Jerome Maniere, Moscow.
ECLIPSE 300, LFA (Live Fluid Analyzer for MDT tool), MDT
(Modular Formation Dynamics Tester) and PVT Express are marks of Schlumberger. CHEARS is a mark of Chevron.
Teflon is a mark of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company.
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A g as-condensate reservoir can choke on it s most valuable components. Condensate liquid saturation can build up near a well because of d rawdown below the dewpo i nt pressure, ultimately restricting the flow of gas. The nearwell choking can reduce the productivity of a well by a factor of two or more.
Th i s phenomenon, called condensat e blockage or condensate banking, results from a combination of factors, including fluid phase properties, formation flow characteristics and pressures in the formation and in the wellbore.
I f t h ese f acto r s a r e n ot u n de r stood a t t h e beginning of field development, sooner or later production performance can suffer.
For example, well productivity in the Arun f ield, in North S umatra, Indonesia, decline d s igni f icantly about 1 0 y ears a f ter production
began.
How does a company optimize development of a gas-condensate field, when depletion leaves valuable condensate fluids in a reservoir and condensate blockage can cause a loss of well productivity? Gas-condensate fields present this puzzle.
The first step must be to understand the fluids and how they flow in the reservoir.
Li Fan
College Station, Texas, USA
Billy W. Harris
Wagner & Brown, Ltd.
Midland, Texas
A. (Jamal) Jamaluddin
Rosharon, Texas
Jairam Kamath
Chevron Energy Technology Company
San Ramon, California, USA
Robert Mott
Independent Consultant
Dorchester, UK
Gary A. Pope
University of Texas
Austin, Texas
Alexander Shandrygin
Moscow, Russia
Curtis Hays Whitson
Norwegian University of Science and
Technology and PERA, A/S
Trondheim, Norway
For help in preparation of this article, thanks to Syed Ali,
Chevron, Houston; and Jerome Maniere, Moscow.
ECLIPSE 300, LFA (Live Fluid Analyzer for MDT tool), MDT
(Modular Formation Dynamics Tester) and PVT Express are marks of Schlumberger. CHEARS is a mark of Chevron.
Teflon is a mark of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company.
14
A g as-condensate reservoir can choke on it s most valuable components. Condensate liquid saturation can build up near a well because of d rawdown below the dewpo i nt pressure, ultimately restricting the flow of gas. The nearwell choking can reduce the productivity of a well by a factor of two or more.
Th i s phenomenon, called condensat e blockage or condensate banking, results from a combination of factors, including fluid phase properties, formation flow characteristics and pressures in the formation and in the wellbore.
I f t h ese f acto r s a r e n ot u n de r stood a t t h e beginning of field development, sooner or later production performance can suffer.
For example, well productivity in the Arun f ield, in North S umatra, Indonesia, decline d s igni f icantly about 1 0 y ears a f ter production
began.