ABSTRACT: Utilization of Current Geological, Geophysical, and Engineering Technologies to Increase Oil Recovery in the Suffield J Pool, Alberta, Canada

R. A. McIntosh, K. N. Beckie, W. R. Freeborn, G. A. Robb, K. J. Young

The Suffield upper Mannville J pool, discovered in 1977, contained original oil in place of 90 million bbl of 14° API crude oil, with less than 1% originally estimated to be recoverable through primary depletion. The pool is approximately 5 mi long and 0.5 mi wide. The pool is part of a much longer, lenticular sand body interpreted to be an estuarine sand shoal, and it has up to 135 ft of pay at depths of about 3000 ft.

The geometry and reservoir geology of the pool, together with the high viscosity of the oil, have encouraged the piloting and implementing of a number of techniques to improve oil recovery and reduce development costs. These techniques include reduced well spacing, horizontal drilling, a hot-water flooding pilot project, and development of a gas injection process to reduce water coning. The pool initially was developed on a 40-ac spacing. The spacing was reduced to 2.5 ac by an infill drilling program based on three-dimensional seismic. In 1988, two horizontal wells were drilled to determine if the remaining reserves could be more economically recovered than by using vertical drilling, minimizing water coning at the same time. Integrated geological and three-dimensional seismic interp etations were successful in guiding horizontal wells along the top of the porosity and away from shale-filled intrabar channels. Detailed review and interpretation of data from cores and logs, together with production histories of individual wells, indicated that a number of earlier wells were perforated in ineffective parts of the reservoir. A subsequent program of recompletions significantly enhanced production rates.

These projects required the complete integration of geological, geophysical, engineering, and drilling technologies. The techniques used have significantly increased the expected oil recovery to more than 10% of the oil in place and the potential for an even greater recovery has been established.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #91003©1990 AAPG Annual Convention, San Francisco, California, June 3-6, 1990