Abstract: Historical Problems with Old Field Rejuvenation

BLASKOVICH, FRANK, Blaskovich Services Inc.

The purpose of this paper is to show that, in many parts of the world, the redevelopment of older fields presents unique problems that will require innovative solutions. With the rising costs of finding and developing new oil fields, oil companies are turning more attention to revitalizing older fields. Because of historical practices, older fields often have significant potential for enhanced recovery. These older fields have many different problems to deal with than the more modern fields that traditionally drive petroleum technology. Advances in computer hardware and software technology have made it possible to analyze reservoirs at a level of detail unimagined only a few years ago. With all of this power on our desktops, it is easy to lose sight of the real problem in dealing with older fields - the historical data.In many cases, there may be a large amount of historical data, but much of it is either inaccurate or critical types of data have not been gathered. Several field examples will be discussed. Each field has redevelopment potential using modern techniques, but each project has great uncertainty due to data constraints. The conclusions of the paper will include suggestions for ways to solve these problems. Since we cannot go back in time to gather critical missing data (e.g., initial fluid properties, produced compositions, etc.), other techniques will be needed to evaluate the value of the projects.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90911©2000 AAPG Pacific Section and Western Region Society of Petroleum Engineers, Long Beach, California