RE: Re. Massive oil column16 Apr 2020 13:21
I think I may have worked out a simplified reason why - when the Lancaster production wells have their oil water contact point, some 200 metres plus below the lowest point of the horizontal well - with a well producing say 15,000bpd, that there is little chance, when these wells have a productive index of about 200bbl/d/psi (ie delivering around 200 barrels/day/pound per square inch pressure drop) little chance that ithey could be pulling up aquafer water.
In my opinion, taking a 15k bpd rate at a PI (productivity index)of 200 it would cause 15,000/200 = 75 pounds per square inch, down the well, pressure drop as a result.
Now, 1 pound per square inch pressure drop can lift a column of water just 2.31 feet (0.704metres)
So the ‘suction’ of 75 psi in the wellbore caused by drawing 15kbpd could lift the aquafer water some 75 x 0.704metres = 52.8metres.
So, even if there are good fractures going straight down from the horizontal wells to the aquafer, by my ballpark calculations, that amount of water lift is considerably less than the distance from the lowest point of the deepest Lancaster horizontal production well ie. the 7z well, which is 268metres above the oil water contact depth of the aquafer. So, still over 200 metres of separation from the aquafer water, even when 'pulling' 15k bpd from the 7z well - And the 6 well, which is slightly higher, should be even safer. So, no coning problem.
This is a simplified, ball park estimation, not taking into account such things as fracture surface flow resistance, due to the fracture passageways not having smooth surfaces, nor to any tapering of fractures as they ascend to the well bore.
Anyone with genuine knowledge to improve on these thoughts/calculations?
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