Petroleum Africa
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Friday, August 28, 2015
AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 27, 2015 /PRNewswire-iReach/ — Maurer Engineering Inc. (MEI) is developing a shale stimulation technique that consists of drilling drainholes across hydraulic fractures (“fracs”) to improve production in depleted shale wells.
The oil and gas production from fraced shale wells deplete by up to 70 percent in the first two years, requiring refracing every 2 or 3 years at a cost of $2 million or more.
This high cost significantly decreases the economics of shale wells and causes some of these wells to be abandoned after only 20 to 30 percent of the oil in place has been produced.
A lower cost stimulation system is needed that eliminates the need to refrac the wells so often.
The rapid depletion occurs primarily due to a 10 to 15 foot constriction zone produced at the frac/horizontal well interface during the fracing process.
As the wells are produced, small solid particles produced from crushed proppants and crushed formations propagate down the frac and into the constriction zone further plugging the fracs.
This new stimulation system consists of drilling 3 to 4-3/4 inch diameter drainholes from the horizontal well to bypass the constriction zones and provide large passageways from the fracs to the horizontal wells.
The drainholes are relatively inexpensive since they are drilled with small rigs and they are completed openhole or with slotted liners. We estimate that their cost will be 70 percent less than refracing.
If necessary the drainholes can be fraced using conventional straddle packers and the drain holes can be sidetracked to cross the fracs in different places, providing a lot of flexibility to this system.
MEI is seeking investors, service companies, licensees, and operators interested in utilizing this patent pending technology in shale wells.
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