Water production shut off

Objective: This gas production well with 4 ½" x 5 ½" tubing was completed in 1996. The programme's primary objective was to shut off water production zones and install a new completion. HWO was used to remove the straddle completion, isolate the Rotliegend formation, isolate the water zone in the Bunter formation and recomplete the well as a Bunter producer, with production only from the top part of this zone.

Location: The well side is located in an environmentally-sensitive area that borders a UNESCO protected dune area and within close proximity to housing. The use of the HWO unit will have a major impact on how operations affect the local environment:

  • Significant reduction in site preparation work compared to a drilling rig and no requirements to extend the concrete base
  • Significant reduction in trucking operations to rig up and rig down the HWO unit compared to a normal drilling unit
  • Reduced visibility of the HWO unit (no derrick structure)
  • Lower noise level than a normal drilling unit

Execution:

  • Work completed without incidents (no spills, no accidents)
  • Successful abandonment of the Rotliegend formation
  • Completion recovery and packer milling successfully carried out
  • Compliments from nearby residents on minimal disturbance
  • Well is producing twice the expected capacity (dry gas)