Print this pageReservoir Description of Empire Abo Field Applied to Field Operations
McGOWEN, MARY K, ROBERT G. LOUCKS, THUY DANG, G. B. ORABY, GARY B. SMALLWOOD, and DARRELL WOLFENBARGER
The Permian (Leonardian) Abo reservoir at Empire Abo Field, Eddy County, New Mexico is in a mature stage of development. The field was discovered in 1957 and was placed under a gas reinjection program in 1974. Decline in oil production accompanied by an increase in recycled gas prompted a reservoir study for the purpose of identifying recompletion opportunities.
Abo is a reef shelf-mar in complex developed along the northern margin of the Delaware Basin. Rock types and fractures control porosity and permeability distributions in the field. Rock types are grouped into "facies" that characterize reef trend and general reservoir quality. A computer-assisted wireline log correlation program was used to zone the reservoir and interpolate porosity between wells using calculated porosity logs. The geological and petrophysical model was correlated with production and well completion data to evaluate effectiveness of current perforations, identify potential by-passed reserves, and evaluate vertical and horizontal communication between good porosity zones.
Recompletion opportunities fall into three categories: (1) hydraulic fracturing to improve vertical connectivity in highly stratified back-reef facies, (2) extension of perforations to improve conformance, and (3) deepening of selected wells to contact additional pay lower in the reef trend. Implementation of these recompletion opportunities has led to enhanced gas recovery and the addition of both oil and gas reserves.