--> Challenges in the Exploitation of Offshore Heavy Oil Reservoirs in Mexico, by Fernando Castrejón Vacio; #90062 (2007)

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Challenges in the Exploitation of Offshore Heavy Oil Reservoirs in Mexico

Fernando Castrejón Vacio
Instituto Mexicano del Petróleo

Global production of conventional light oil is expected to decline within the next ten years. The world’s remaining oil resources are in the more-difficult to find and to produce deposits. In this sense oil industry in the world is facing new challenges related to unconventional resources like heavy and extra-heavy oils.

New technological developments have resulted in several oil exploitation technologies, and new ideas continue to be generated. This innovative effort is related to the need to maintain oil production and energy expectations. Successful examples of these developments can be found in the vast heavy oil deposits in Canada and Venezuela. In this case, these resources are related to onshore reservoirs, and largely unconsolidated sandstones with roughly similar lithological, geomechical and petrophysical properties.

In México, more than 50% of the oil reserves are heavy oil from reservoirs located mainly in the Gulf of Mexico. Oil production is associated to naturally fractured carbonate reservoirs located shallow waters. As a result of exploration activities in the last 5 years, new discoveries in this area are heavy and extra-heavy oils. Oil production in Mexico in the next years will come from heavy and extra-heavy oil reservoirs. The main issues will be related to exploit naturally fractured reservoirs, heavy and extra-heavy oils in an offshore environment.

Exploitation of offshore heavy oil fields requires improvements or new developments in all the engineering chain since reservoir characterization, data acquisition, displacement efficiency, artificial lift, flow assurance, oil treatment, transportation and in many cases refining.

In this talk some challenges in the case of Mexican heavy and extra-heavy oils reservoirs are discussed, and it is clear that many efforts are needed to develop these resources into proved reserves and contribute to maintain oil production.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90062©2006 AAPG Hedberg Research Conference, Veracruz, Mexico