Research of water control technology for horizontal wells in water-driven reservoirs

Horizontal wells are widely applied in the Bohai offshore oil fields due to their large oil drainage areas and high yields. However, water coning is a significant problem existing in water-driven reservoirs. To control water coning, this paper introduces a stinger completion method which can be applied in the horizontal wells. Based on the principle of mirror reflection and mass conservation law, a mathematical model coupling fluid flow both in the reservoir and in the horizontal wellbore has been developed. Using the new proposed model, the well production profile and bottom hole flowing pressure distribution along the horizontal well, considering the influence of flowing in the wellbore, are calculated successfully. Moreover, the influence of the stinger completion on the inflow profile is investigated. According to the results of the sensitivity analysis, a 160 m’ 2-7/8 tubing is designed to be built in the horizontal section. The field-test results show that the stinger completion could be used to improve the wellbore inflow profile and decrease the possibility of water-cut thus increasing the effective enhanced oil recovery (EOR).Cited as: Shang, B., Han, X., Li, S., Liu, K. Research of water control technology for horizontal wells in water-driven reservoirs. Advances in Geo-Energy Research, 2018, 2(2): 210-217, doi: 10.26804/ager.2018.02.0