DC174743 DOI: 10.
2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17 Stage: Page: 1
Completion Optimization Provides Step
Changes in Horizontal Well Performance
in the Oooguruk Field, Alaska
Andy Bond, Rami Jasser, Vern Johnson, and Mike Morgan, Caelus Energy Alaska; Mike Martin, Northern Solutions;
Terry Palisch, Carbo Ceramics; and Brock Williams, Resman
Summary
The Oooguruk Unit is on a man-made gravel island in the Beau-
fort Sea, five miles offshore the Alaskan North Slope (ANS) in
Harrison Bay. The field produces from the Kuparuk, Torok, and
Nuiqsut reservoirs. The focus of this paper is the Nuiqsut sand-
stone, which is currently undergoing water and lean-gas injection
for secondary recovery. The wells are completed as 6,000- to
7,000-ft horizontal laterals aligned parallel with the preferred
fracture orientation in a line-drive waterflood pattern. Recent opti-
mizations in mechanical-diversion fracturing in these laterals
have provided significant improvements in production rates,
including several recent wells with initial production of more than
7,000 BOPD. This paper will document the completion and frac-
turing-design evolution over several vintages of wells, as well as
the use of preinstalled tracer systems to verify production uni-
formity and diversion success.
The reservoir ranges in thickness from 60 to 120 ft and is di-
vided into several producing sand and shale intervals. The initial
phase (I) of completions planned for this reservoir was to use
8,000-ft-long undulating openhole horizontal laterals. However,
these were quickly abandoned after the first well collapsed in a
shale section. The second phase (II) used undulating wellbores for
producing wells, but were completed with preperforated pups
spaced evenly throughout the uncemented liner in the horizontal
section. These wells were also stimulated with dynamic-diversion
fracturing treatments that used ball sealers. Because of the logisti-
cal difficulties and expense in fracturing operations on a gravel
island in the Beaufort Sea, two wells were also completed during
this phase as unfractured dual-laterals, but resulted in productivity
similar to dynamic diversion fracturing in one well and signifi-
cantly less in the second well. During these phases of increased
well productivity, modifications were required to increase water-
flood well injectivity, which was accomplished by implementing
a system of high-pressure breakdown (HPBD) stimulations, as
well as fully mechanical diversion-fracture treatments. These
changes in injection-well completions will also be described in
the paper.
Phase II wells resulted in production improvements of nearly
100% over the Phase I completions. This led to the third phase of
development, which used mechanical-diversion techniques,
implemented in relatively flat horizontal laterals. This completion
type allowed mechanical-diversion fracturing treatments that
placed more than three times the low-density ceramic (LDC)
proppant and generated wells with initial production of more than
7,000 BOPD (an additional 100% increase over Phase II comple-
tions). All future producing wells are now planned to be com-
pleted with mechanical-diversion equipment. The completion-
optimization evolution described in this paper will be useful to
completion and development engineers of other conventional res-
ervoirs, and the lessons learned are already being successfully
applied to another nearby ANS development.
Copyright V
C 2017 Society of Petroleum Engineers
This paper (SPE 174743) was accepted for presentation at the SPE Annual Technical
Conference and Exhibition, Houston, 28–30 September 2015, and revised for publication.
Original manuscript received for review 22 February 2016. Revised manuscript received for
review 22 September 2016. Paper peer approved 6 October 2016.
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Total Pages: 12
Introduction
The Oooguruk Unit (Fig. 1) has been under development since
initial production began in June 2008. The field produces from a
man-made gravel island—the Oooguruk Drill Site (ODS)—
approximately 5 miles offshore, and is tied back to the production
infrastructure—the Oooguruk Tie-in Pad—by means of a subsea
flowline bundle (Fig. 2). Initial development focused on a thin,
high-productivity Kuparuk C Sand interval that required short
horizontal laterals and no stimulation. Development then shifted
to the Nuiqsut sandstone, which contains the bulk of the reserves.
The Nuiqsut formation (Fig. 3) is one of several Jurassic oil-bear-
ing sandstones that have been encountered in the Colville Delta
area. These are, from oldest to youngest, the Nechelik, Nuiqsut,
and Alpine sandstones. The Nechelik and Alpine sands are cur-
rently under development in the nearby Colville River Unit. All
three Upper Jurassic sandstones share similar depositional and
lithological characteristics. They are very-fine to fine-grained
quartz arenites that were deposited on an inner shelf, likely as ma-
rine bars, and contain up to 15% siderite and glauconite in some
intervals. After deposition, the interval was cropped by the re-
gional Lower Cretaceous Unconformity (LCU). The structure
(Figs. 4 and 5) of the Nuiqsut reservoir is controlled by a broad
southeast dip, with the subcrop against the LCU to the northwest.
Well productivity is a key concern for this development. The
Nuiqsut reservoir is challenged by relatively low horizontal and
vertical permeabilities as well as relatively high oil viscosity,
compared with other ANS reservoirs. The typical horizontal per-
meability is less than 10 md, and the oil gravity ranges from 20 to
26 API (viscosity of 2 to 6 cp). Although the vertical permeability
within individual sand packages is finite, over the larger-scale for-
mation package, the vertical permeability approaches zero
because of interbedded shales and silt/siderite laminations
throughout the section. Reservoir pressure is approximately 3,250
psia, and temperature is 170 F.
The Nuiqsut reservoir has been developed to date with 6,000-
to 8,000-ft horizontal wells roughly aligned parallel to the maxi-
mum-stress field, on the basis of stress-field studies and major-
fault orientations (Fig. 4). Waterflood and lean-gas injection for
secondary recovery has been ongoing since soon after field startup
by means of offset horizontal injection wells that are approxi-
mately 1,500 ft away. The wells were aligned parallel to maxi-
mum stress so that created fractures would be roughly
longitudinal and would prevent early waterflood breakthrough
from a transverse-fracture scenario. The field has been injecting
water for more than 5 years, and no waterflood breakthrough has
occurred in the Nuiqsut reservoir.
Although the low vertical permeability appears to have effec-
tively controlled the secondary flood front, it has presented a chal-
lenge to ensure all net pay has been contacted, leading to the use
of various completion strategies. In addition, the Nuiqsut reservoir
is susceptible to formation damage during drilling because of
the high clay content in the reservoir, and underperformance
of unstimulated wells has led to a subsequent need for hydrau-
lic fracturing.
The Nuiqsut reservoir has a relatively high clay content and
small pore throats (approximately 1 to 10 mm in diameter). The
clays consist mainly of kaolinite and illite. Quartz overgrowths
1
 DC174743 DOI: 10.2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17 Stage: Page: 2 Total Pages: 12

Fairbanks

Anchorage
Alaska
N

Oooguruk
Beaufort Sea
Unit

Colvile River
Unit

Kuparuk Prudhoe
River Unit Bay Unit 1002 Area
National Petroleum Reserve - Alaska

Artic National Wildlife Refuge

0 20 40 80
Miles

Beaufort Sea
Nikaitchuq
Harrison Bay Unit
Oooguruk Milne Point
Qugurk Unit Unit
Unit
Pikka
Colville River Unit
Unit

Kuparuk River Unit

NPR-A

Greater
Mooses Tooth
Unit

0 5 10 20
Miles

Fig. 1—North Slope and Oooguruk Field locator maps.

and some pyrite are also present. The formation is susceptible to
damage from water-filtrate invasion as well as drilling/weighting-
agent-solids invasion into the pore throats, as evidenced from spe-
cial core analysis. Although the damage seen in these analyses
was not deep (several inches), it significantly reduced near-well-
bore permeability. Both water- and oil-based mud systems have
been used with little difference in productivity of unstimulated
wells. Core thin sections demonstrate the large amount of clays
present in the formation (Figs. 6a and 6b), and scanning electron
microscope (SEM) photos of the core show the presence of kao-
linite and illite clays in the pore throats (Figs. 7a and 7b). Several
pressure-buildup tests were performed in the unstimulated wells;
however, production profiles could not be obtained because of
severe well undulations, despite the attempted use of wireline
tractors and coiled tubing. Skin determinations are therefore non-
unique. Consequently, a range of skin factors vs. percentage of
the lateral flowing was generated, and was quite large, spanning
þ3 to þ 10 skin. As a result of these high skin values and low pro-
ductivity of the unstimulated wells, the initial dynamic-diversion
hydraulic-fracture stimulations were evaluated.
Dynamic-diversion techniques were chosen first, to evaluate
the potential benefits in existing wells that were completed with
preperforated liners. After a benefit could be proved, more-suita-
ble diversion techniques would be evaluated. Initial results of
these first dynamic-diversion fracturing treatments resulted in a
doubling of nonstimulated production. As the shale-fracturing
revolution began to ramp up in the lower 48 states, the use of ball-
drop mechanical-diversion fracturing was viewed as a potential
method to increase well productivity at Oooguruk. Although
implementation of this technique required changes to the existing
undulating-wellbore design, it has provided a step-change
improvement in productivity with another doubling of production
beyond the results of the dynamic-diversion fracturing. In addi-
tion, oil tracers placed in the laterals indicated significant
improvement of mechanical-diversion treatments over dynamic-
diversion treatments. The remainder of this paper will discuss the

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Caelus production
Oooguruk Field facilities and tie-in
Development to Kuparuk river
unit DS-3H flowline

Oooguruk

Harrison Bay Power/communications

cable
Gas flowline
N Arctic heating
fuel flowline
Nabors 19E ~ 5 miles offshore
drill rig Produced-fluids
flowline

Oooguruk Dock Water-injection

drill site and flowline
production Production
facilities modules

Barge ramp

Camp area

Fig. 2—Oooguruk development schematic.

step changes in completion methods, the productivity improve-
ments gained by these technology improvements, and the logisti-
cal hurdles overcome to implement them.
Well-Construction Process
A single drilling rig is present on the ODS location. The rig is
used to drill new wells and to perform workovers on existing
wells. Nuiqsut wells require approximately 50 to 80 days to drill,
depending on well/lateral length and the complexity of the well
geometry (wells are drilled from a central pad on the island). The
reservoir section is typically drilled with a 61=8-in. bit through the
7-in. production casing. The wells are typically left with fresh
mud, base oil, or brine in the lateral section of the reservoir. An
unstimulated well can be flowed back in a matter of days after the
drilling operations are complete. Wells scheduled for stimulation
may wait for up to 9 months before hydraulic-fracture stimulation
because fracturing operations can only occur during the winter
months. Wells are completed with a 41=2-in. production liner and
either 31=2- or 41=2-in. fracturing work strings. The 41=2-in. upper
completions or fracturing strings are used in wells scheduled for
hydraulic fracturing to allow treating rates of up to 40 bbl/min.
The mud or brine in the liner is displaced out the end of the lateral
before starting fracturing operations.
Oooguruk-Fracturing Logistical Challenges
The location of the Oooguruk Field development is extremely
challenging logistically for fracturing operations. Although many
of the challenges are not unique to Oooguruk, the combined con-
straints of operating in a remote location on an offshore island in
the middle of the Arctic during the coldest months of the year
make preplanning, contingency planning, and flexibility crucial to
success. Moreover, these logistical hurdles can also limit opera-
tional and design changes on-site, leading to a more-rigid plan
than experienced in more-standard oilfield operations.

Nuiqsut Fm
TM_VCLC ILD_SMT
0 0 10 Nuiqsut (Upper Jurassic)

60–120 ft thick, average permeability <10 md

Very fine-grained sandstone to sandy siltstone

Nuiq 1
6400

Zones 2 and 4 are shaley and siderite rich

Nuiq 2
Nuiq 3
Nuiq 4 Oil quality ranges from 20° to 26°API

Nuiq 5
Initial reservoir pressure is ~3,250 psia
6450

Initial reservoir temperature is ~170°F

Fig. 3—Nuiqsut sand type log and reservoir description [depths are in feet total vertical depth subsea (TVD-SS)]. Type log shows
calculated shale volume (TM_VCLC) in left track and deep resistivity (ILD_SMT in ohms) in right track.

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 DC174743 DOI: 10.2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17 Stage: Page: 4 Total Pages: 12

0
30
–6300 –6
N02
N04

00

0
40
–61
ed

62

–6
at

–62

00
00
nc

00

–65
ru
103i

00

50
N01 N26i

1
rT

–6
N28

–6
i

0
vo
N27
N19i

620
A´
er
es

N29
–6400

–
R

N18 ext
–6
N15 ext 10

–63 –6300
0
N32i
N16 ext N34i N37

00

0
50
0
N18

–6
30
VIK

–6200 N36

–6
N16L1

0
–62

50
–6
N16

–6400
–6 PS2
00

–6 20 PS3

00 0 PS4

–6400
00
–6

0
– 62

50
Drilling
20

–6
–6
0

10 Island 0
40
0
61

–6

–64
0

NATCHD

00
142B
1A

0
40
A Nuiqsut Top-Structure

–6
Map–Subsea TVD
00

IS14
–62

0 0 0 Producer
62
0
– 63
0

Injector
30

–
–6

One Mile
0
20

–6
–6

20 N
0 –6500

Fig. 4—Nuiqsut sand top structure (TVD-SS) and development map.

The limited footprint of the ODS was originally envisioned to porting loads up to 350,000 lbm. An ice pad is also constructed to
support the drilling of 48 wells with a single drilling rig (Fig. 8). accommodate a seasonal fracturing camp and the fracturing-equip-
Drilling was expected to take 3 to 4 years, and there were no plans ment spread (Fig. 9). Typical ice-road season is from early January
for fracturing operations, with only limited wireline or coil-tubing through late April. During the summer months, when there is open
intervention expected during the drilling and completion phase of water in the Beaufort Sea, ODS access is accomplished with per-
the project. sonnel-crew boats and barge/tugboat for trailers and heavy loads.
Island access follows a seasonal pattern dictated by the weather Open-water season typically runs from mid-July to early October.
on the ANS. Winter access is by means of an annually constructed During the spring and fall seasons, when there is no ice road or
ice road from ANS infrastructure to ODS, and is capable of sup- open water, transport is provided by helicopter.

A A´
–6000
–6000

Lateral
Wellbores
–6100
–6100
Depth (ft TVD-SS)

Depth (ft TVD-SS)

1
ut
iqs
–6200
–6200

Nu
t5
iq su
Nu
–6300
–6300

–6400
–6400

1 Mile
–6500
–6500

6 Miles

Fig. 5—Nuiqsut sand cross section.

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 DC174743 DOI: 10.2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17
Plate 14A
0.1
1 mmmm
(a)
Plate 14B
qo
Pi
py
0.1 mm
0.1 mm
(b)
Fig. 6—(a) and (b): Core thin sections showing the large
amount of clays present in the formation. (qo 5 quartz over-
growths, Pi 5 intergranular porosity, and py 5 pyrite.)
Because of the restricted access during the spring and fall sea-
sons, fracturing is limited to summer and winter operations. In
2009, dynamic-diversion treatments were completed during the
summer months, and the treatments were relatively small in com-
parison to current operations because of space, design, and logisti-
cal considerations. The summer stimulation program was
successful, but strained the available camp and pad space on the
island. Large barges could be staged at the edge of the island to al-
leviate the space limitations, but analysis indicated that it would
be more expensive and risky than winter fracturing operations. It
was decided that to continue fracturing wells at Oooguruk—and,
in particular, with larger treatments—the work would need to be
performed during the winter ice-road season.
A typical hydraulic-fracturing winter season is approximately
70 days—from mid-February through late April. Weather delays
account for roughly 4 to 7 days of lost activity during a season but
could be as high as 2 weeks in a more-severe winter. The Arctic
winter also presents unique challenges, including winter storms
with winds up to 70 miles/hr. Even early in the season, it is com-
mon for winds to exceed 30 miles/hr, requiring the shutdown of
all crane, slickline, electric line, and coil-tubing operations that
support fracturing operations. Blowing snow can also shut down
operations for several days after the wind event so that snow can
be cleared from the roads and around equipment and supplies.
Extreme cold weather can also delay operations, when tempera-
tures fall below the minimum-operating temperature for equip-
ment (–40 F). These extreme temperatures can last for several
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Plate 14A
100.0 µm
(a)
Plate 14B
DMc
kao
qo
10.0 µm
(b)
Fig. 7—(a) and (b): Nuiqsut SEM photos showing the presence
of kaolinite and illite clays. (DMc 5 detrital matrix clay,
kao 5 kaolinite clay, and qo 5 quartz overgrowths.)
consecutive days, shutting down operations for a lengthy period
of time. The cold temperature not only shuts down work, but also
shuts down equipment, which leads to the need to thaw out sur-
face lines and tanks. Fracturing tanks must be insulated and the
fluids periodically heated to keep fracturing fluids in an accepta-
ble temperature range. Water-supply lines, treating lines, and
other equipment must also be heated with portable diesel-fired
heaters to prevent freezing. As many as 30 heaters may be needed
at the start of the season. Darkness in the winter months must also
be addressed. Daylight during the fracturing season is short, last-
ing only an hour near the start of the season. Portable light plants
are used to mitigate the long arctic darkness, with typically 15–20
mobile light plants in use during the fracturing season.
As the well-completion strategy evolved and the need to stim-
ulate Nuiqsut wells became apparent, equipment, people, and
resources needed to be added to accommodate the work scope.
The footprint and camp that was planned to support a drilling
operation now needed to support drilling, completions, stimula-
tion, a hot-oil unit, additional trucking, a temporary flowback fa-
cility, slickline, electric line, perforating, and coil tubing. The
ODS camp capacity was increased from 75 to 104 and was sup-
plemented seasonally with an additional 54-person camp staged
on an ice pad during the fracturing season.
Management of simultaneous operations is critical to the suc-
cess in any operation, and it becomes more important as the level
of operational complexity increases. The logistical constraints,
weather, limited space, and limited resources—while
5
 DC174743 DOI: 10.2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17 Stage: Page: 6 Total Pages: 12

Fig. 8—Oooguruk Island summertime view.

simultaneously drilling, supporting production operations, sup-
porting a large and complex fracturing operation, and supporting
a variety of well-intervention activities (wireline, coil tubing,
pumping, and others)—require close coordination between all
interested parties. The complexity of the winter fracturing season
at the Oooguruk Unit requires significant resources to manage si-
multaneous operations. Formal simultaneous operations meetings
are held daily with field supervisors from drilling; health, safety,
and environmental; fracturing; well work; production; and logis-
tics, as well as key contractors and home-office support. Addi-
tional daily-management meetings are held to manage operational
priorities as circumstances change.
Nuiqsut-Completion History—Production Wells
The initial phase of completion designs envisioned for the Ooo-
guruk Field used undulating horizontal wells with openhole com-
pletions (Bond et al. 2006, 2007). These were based on the early
success at the nearby Alpine and Fiord Fields in the Colville River

Fig. 9—Oooguruk Island winter fracturing operations showing ice pad in foreground and left side of island.

6 2017 SPE Drilling & Completion

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 DC174743 DOI: 10.2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17
2008 Original Undulating Well Design
–6100
Nuiq 1
Nuiq 5
–6200
–6300
Undulating Openhole-Well Schematic
Fig. 10—Undulating-openhole-well schematic.
Unit. In 2008, one well was drilled as an eight-“segment” undulat-
ing lateral, covering the Nuiqsut Zones 1 through 5 (Fig. 10). A
“segment” is one sinusoidal cycle. The well was completed with a
standard electrical submersible pump in the upper-completion
string only. At the time, the decision was made not to run a liner
in the 7,300-ft openhole lateral and not to fracture stimulate the
well. The completion drivers were to mitigate poor vertical/hori-
zontal permeability ratio by contacting the entire reservoir with
undulations, low cost, and completions similar in style to those in
analog fields. This well demonstrated very-low productivity (less
than 100 BOPD), and it was concluded that the wellbore had
likely collapsed at one of the shaley Zone 2 or Zone 4 intervals.
The wellbore collapse was assumed on the basis of low well pro-
ductivity. Although wellbore intervention was not performed to
confirm, two wellbores were also found to be collapsed at the ana-
log field in the same time period. It was therefore assumed to be a
similar problem.
Phase II of completion designs still consisted of undulating lat-
erals, but uncemented liners were used to provide for openhole
access. From 2009 to 2011, nine wells (five preproduced injectors
and four producers) were drilled as five-segment undulating later-
als, covering Nuiqsut Zone 1 through Zone 5 (Fig. 11). Both pre-
produced injectors and producers were drilled with 7,000- to
8,000-ft openhole laterals, and were completed with a liner
that consisted of multiple preperforated subs (eight drilled holes
of 1=2-in. diameter each) spaced 200 to 400 ft apart. The liners
were also designed to allow the implementation of dynamic-diver-
sion fracturing treatments, largely on the basis of the success of
this technique at a nearby field (Schneider et al. 2007). During
this time period, drilling operations were very difficult in the last
1,000 ft of the laterals, so the future typical laterals were short-
ened to 6,000 ft.
After numerous wells were produced without any stimulation
treatment and yielded disappointing results, (approximately 300-
to 500-BOPD stabilized rates), future producing wells were stimu-
lated with dynamic-diversion fracturing. Dynamic-diversion treat-
ments consisted of multiple stages (six or more) of crosslinked
borate fluid pad and proppant slurry up to 8 lbm of proppant added
per gallon (ppa), separated by “bio-ball sealers” to divert the next
fracturing stage to a new location in the wellbore. The bio-ball
sealers are 7/8-in. balls that dissolve with temperature increases
and water. Typically, these treatments consisted of a total of
600,000 lbm of 20/40-mesh LDC proppant. Significant production
improvements were realized with a 100% improvement in initial
production rate over unstimulated wells (more than 1,000 BOPD).
2009 Dynamic Diversion Frac
Nuiq 1
Nuiq 5
Undulating Well with Liner for Dynamic-Diversion Fracturing Schematic
Fig. 11—Schematic of undulating well with liner for dynamic-diversion fracturing.
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–6100
No liner, no frac
155_NUOSUT
8,000-ft lateral, 8 full segments
–6200
–6300
These treatments were completed during summertime when all
equipment had to be placed on the small 6-acre Oooguruk produc-
tion island. The logistical challenge was significant, and any larger
treatments in the future had to be completed during the winter
when an ice pad could be built next to the production island. The
future injection wells were stimulated with “high-pressure break-
downs” (Palisch et al. 1996), which consisted of multiple stages
(eight or more) of slickwater and small scour stages of 1 to 2 ppa.
These treatments significantly improved water injectivity initially,
but experienced high decline rates. Attempts were made in the
injection wells to obtain injection logs to evaluate waterflood con-
formance along the laterals. Unfortunately, it was impossible to
reach deep into the laterals with conventional wireline logging
tools and tractors resulting from the high dogleg severity (greater
than 10 /100 ft) caused by the undulations.
Because of the logistical challenges and costs associated with
the fracturing operations, two wells were drilled in 2010 as dual-
lateral completions. One lateral was a 6,000-ft undulating well-
bore covering Nuiqsut Zones 1 through 5, whereas the second
lateral was a 7,000-ft flat lateral drilled in Nuiqsut Zone 1 only
(Fig. 12). The first lateral used an uncemented liner with preperfo-
rated pups with a hollow aluminum billet at the junction to allow
the second lateral to be drilled and lined back to the original well-
bore. A sliding sleeve was run in the second lateral to allow flow
from the first lateral. Neither lateral was stimulated. Because the
concept was designed to test whether two laterals could deliver
more-cost-effective production than the dynamic-diversion frac-
turing, the wells were not designed for fracture stimulations or
future access to the original lateral. The production results (300 to
1,000 BOPD) were comparable to a single dynamic-diversion
well, but after mechanical-diversion fracturing was tested, this
completion type was also abandoned.
After witnessing industry successes in the Lower-48 unconven-
tional plays (as well as in the nearby Alpine Field) by use of ball-
drop and plug-and-perforate mechanical-diversion fracturing, a
well was drilled in early 2012 as a flat horizontal lateral (i.e., no
undulations) to test the concept of mechanical-diversion fracturing
(Fig. 13). The hope was that by use of mechanical diversion in
multiple stages, the entire vertical section could be accessed with a
durable fracture stimulation. The well was drilled in the middle of
the Nuiqsut reservoir at the base of Zone 1. The flat lateral was
necessary to reduce the difficulty of drilling as well as to allow the
placement of multiple isolation oil-swellable packers and ball-
drop sliding sleeves (Fig. 14). The first well was drilled with an
approximately 6,000-ft lateral and completed with an uncemented
Added liner and Dynamic
Diversion
8,000-ft lateral, 5 full segments
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2010 Dual-Lateral

Liners, but no frac

6,000 to 7,000-ft lateral, 4 segments
Nuiq 1

Nuiq 5

Completion Schematic

Fig. 12—Dual-lateral-completion schematic.

2012+ Mechanical Diversion Frac

Liner, ball-drop staged frac

6,000 to 7,000-ft lateral, smooth
Nuiq 1 wellbore

Nuiq 5

Mechanical-Diversion Fracturing Schematic

Fig. 13—Schematic of full-mechanical-diversion fracturing.

liner. Eight preperforated pups were used for the bottom 2,000 ft
of the lateral, and eight sliding-sleeve stages were placed in the
upper 4,000 ft of the lateral. The well was not completed with
100% sliding sleeves because of concerns with coiled-tubing reach
should a screenout occur. In addition, individual water and oil
tracer subs were placed in each fracturing segment to allow quali-
tative and potentially quantitative measurements of flow from
each segment of the well. The well was fracture-stimulated in win-
ter of 2012 in 10 stages using 16/20-mesh LDC proppant; the bot-
tom 2,000 ft of the well was fracture-stimulated with two
dynamic-diversion stages consisting of a total of 350,000 lbm of
proppant, and the remaining 4,000 ft was treated in eight mechani-
cal diversion stages consisting of a total of 1,800,000 lbm of prop-
pant. Maximum proppant concentration in the dynamic stages was
8 ppa, whereas the maximum of the sliding-sleeve stages was 10
ppa. The 5,000-BOPD initial production exceeded expectations.
The initial results from the tracers installed in the lateral indi-
cated that approximately 90% of the flow was from the mechani-
cal-diversion section of the well even though the reservoir quality
appeared to be better in the dynamic-diversion (toe) section of the
wellbore. The combination of drilling flat laterals and performing
mechanical-diversion fracturing stimulation appeared to be the
key to economically unlocking the Nuiqsut-reservoir develop-
ment. Wells from 2013 to the present have been drilled and com-
pleted with flat, 100%-mechanical-diversion completions, and
production results continue to exceed expectations. The risk of
screenout in the sections of the wellbore where coiled tubing can-
not reach has been minimized by limiting the maximum proppant
concentration to 8 ppa. To date, deep screenouts have not been a
major problem (only one well has experienced a deep screenout
beyond the reach of coiled tubing), validating the decision to pro-
ceed with 100%-sliding-sleeve completions.
The 2014 winter fracturing campaign built on these successes
with the completion of four wells, placing approximately 2.5 mil-
lion lbm of 16/20-mesh LDC proppant in 11 to 12 stages per well.
Typical maximum proppant concentrations ranged from 8 ppa at
the toe to 12 ppa at the heel of the wellbore. High-conductivity-
and-durable proppant was warranted for several reasons, includ-
ing the need to maintain long-term vertical connectivity across
the shaley layers, thereby linking the entire Nuiqsut reservoir.
High-conductivity proppant is also critical to any fractures that
grow transversely, and, in particular, in the presence of high liquid
and gas rates (Pearson et al. 1992; Pospisil et al. 1992). This
necessitates the use of 16/20-mesh LDC proppant. The continued

Swell packer Sliding sleeve

Fig. 14—Schematic of example ball-drop sliding-sleeve/swell-packer completion.

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 DC174743 DOI: 10.2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17
Average Cumulative Production by Completion Type
600
~540 MBO
Unstimulated
Dynamic diversion
450 Dual-lateral
Barrels of Oil (MBO)
Mechanical diversion
300 ~270 MBO
~135 MBO
150
0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300
Days of Production
Production-Rate Comparison of Various Completion Types
Fig. 15—Production-rate comparison of various completion
types.
improvement in completions and fracture design has led to initial
production rates for three of the wells of more than 7,000 BOPD
(the fourth well had an initial rate of more than 5,000 BOPD).
Nuiqsut-Completion History—Injection Wells
Over this same time period, injection wells continued to be drilled
as undulating wellbores. However, with the successful increase in
production from the new completion methodology in producing
wells, injectivity of these wells was unable to keep up with off-
take. The Oooguruk Field was initially developed with HPBDs on
undulating injection wells to stimulate or maintain injectivity.
Generally, the HPBDs were completed after the wells had been
placed on injection for some period of time. The HPBDs consist
of low-proppant concentrations for scouring and stages (Palisch
et al. 1996) separated by bio-balls for diversion. However, these
maintenance treatments have only been successful in improving
injectivity on a short-term basis (3 to 6 months). One earlier injec-
tion well was fracture-stimulated with a dynamic-diversion frac-
ture stimulation and 600,000 lbm of 20/40-mesh LDC proppant.
This fracture treatment supplied significant initial injection
increases as new zones were opened up to injection. However, the
increased injectivity was lost after several months of injection af-
ter a water-injection system shut down. Because water is injected
at pressures above the fracture gradient during normal injection, it
was speculated that the proppant near the wellbore was being dis-
placed over time on fractured injection wells, leading to a loss in
the connection between the wellbore and fracture.
After seeing the improvements in the production wells, the
mechanical-diversion completion concept was applied to the two
injection wells drilled and completed during the 2015 winter sea-
son. Both wells are now on injection after preproduction. The first
well was fractured with regular 16/20-mesh LDC proppant, and
has been placed on injection. It was purposely choked to maintain
surface injection pressure below fracturing pressure. To date,
injectivity has been consistent with no loss of injectivity being
experienced after shutdowns. The plan for the well is to obtain a
baseline injection profile and then begin increasing injection pres-
sure above fracturing pressure to increase injection rates. This
well supports two offset, mechanically fractured wells, and under-
choked injection currently cannot keep up with offtake from those
two wells. The well will be monitored for changes in injectivity
and logged as needed to determine any changes. The second well
used curable resin-coated 16/20-mesh LDC proppant in an
attempt to keep the proppant in place while injecting above frac-
ture gradient. This well has had extremely high injectivity and is
able to keep up with offset injection. This area of the reservoir has
more than twice the permeability than most of the Nuiqsut reser-
voir. The plan is to obtain a baseline injection profile with tractors
and injection logging tools and continue to monitor injectivity.
On the basis of the early success, this technique (mechanical
diversion with resin-coated 16/20-mesh LDC proppant) is planned
for future injection wells.
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ODS Nuiqsut Completion Styles
100-day Cumulative Oil
400,000
Mechanical-Diversion Fracs
Cumulative Oil Production at 100 Days (BO)
Average = 253 MBO
350,000
300,000
Dynamic
250,000 Diversion Fracs
Average = 124 MBO
Dual-
200,000 Laterals
Average
150,000
Unstimulated
100,000
Average = 51 MBO
350 50,000
0
Individual Wells
Fig. 16—Production rates during first 100 days.
Production Results From Various Completion
Types
Production gains from improved completion designs have been
significant (Fig. 15). Phase II (placing hydraulic-fracture treat-
ments with dynamic diversion) provided, on average, an incre-
mental 135 thousand bbl of oil (MBO) after 1 year, or a 100%
increase over initial Phase I completions. This performance was
found to be comparable to drilling a dual-lateral. Phase III (dril-
ling and completing flat, mechanically isolated hydraulically frac-
tured completions) has resulted in an average 1-year production
improvement of an additional 270 MBO over Phase II. The major
components to the improved production rates include pumping
larger amounts of proppant per stage with mechanical diversion,
concentration of fracturing energy at each ball seat which creates
greater fracture height through the vertical-permeability-chal-
lenged reservoir, and higher proppant concentrations providing
higher fracture conductivity.
The production results for all wells of each completion type
are presented in Fig. 16. Note that, when viewed in this manner, it
becomes apparent that Phase III mechanically diverted hydraulic-
fracture treatments have been critical to production improvement.
The continued use of the original Phase I completion plan of
unstimulated horizontal wells in this thick formation would
require significantly more wells and capital to effectively drain
the reservoir.
The success of changing from dynamic to mechanical diver-
sions can be attributed to two benefits. The most critical is the
ability to definitively stimulate the entire lateral without risking
overflush on previous treatments, and knowing the individual
zones are being treated. In addition, mechanical diversion allows
for increased proppant volume to be placed in the lateral. In this
case, three to four times more proppant was placed in mechanical-
diversion wells than with dynamic diversion. All other major
design factors have been kept the same, thus indicating that the
increased productivity can be attributed to the diversion technique
and associated benefits.
The production improvements have yielded very-robust eco-
nomic value. Dynamic-diversion Phase II treatments increased
completion costs by approximately 20%, and Phase III mechani-
cal-diversion treatments added an additional 20%. However, the
production-rate increases yielded by these designs significantly
reduced the payout time of the wells. The uplift yielded by Phase
II provided a 50% reduction in payout, whereas that of the Phase
III reduced payout time by an additional 33%. The increase in
production rate also improves the overall recovery by accelerating
oil into the economic field life, thereby adding reserves.
Tracer Results Indicate Productivity
Improvement
Tracer Technology. Chemical-tracer technology (Andresen
et al. 2012) was used to measure the effectiveness of the
9
 DC174743 DOI: 10.2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17
Slotted outer sleeve
Tracer material
Fig. 17—Tracer carrier during assembly.
stimulation treatments. Unique chemical tracers were installed in
each stage such that the chemical tracer would only respond to
flow occurring in the uncemented annulus of the zone that was
stimulated. Fig. 17 is a photo of the carrier being assembled. The
tracer material extends the length of the carrier between an outer
slotted sleeve and the inner base pipe. Flow past the slots picks up
a small quantity of the tracer material and carries it to the surface.
Both oil and water tracers were installed in each segment of the
completion, although the water tracers will not become useful
until waterflood breakthrough occurs in the future.
Fig. 18 illustrates how the carriers were positioned in the well-
bore on either side of the fracturing sleeve. In the actual wellbore,
the distance between the swell packers was hundreds of feet, and
the carriers were approximately 10 ft long.
During a shut-in period, the tracer material generates a small
volume of high tracer concentration in the oil inside the carrier.
When the well is restarted, flow from the reservoir flushes out the
oil containing the high concentration. This generates a tracer-con-
centration vs. cumulative-production profile in the samples that
are taken at the surface. This profile is proportional to the flow rate
going past the carrier. A numerical model is then used to interpret
these profiles. One example (Fig. 19) determined that one stage
(green data points) was flowing 50% more than the other (red data
points). By modeling the flush-out response for every stage seg-
ment, a percentage of total inflow can be assigned to each zone. In
this example, the green data points show a higher amount of tracer
arriving initially in the samples. This, along with the well flow
rates and well geometry, determines the inflow from each zone.
The tracer data are typically obtained around planned produc-
tion-shutdown events. When it is known that wells will be shut in
for several days, plans are made to collect tracer samples during
the restart of the well. Because of the production-system configu-
ration, only one test header is available to collect samples at a
time, so well restarts must be staggered if tracer sampling is
desired on multiple wells. The samples are typically only col-
lected for the first 24 hours after the well is brought back on pro-
duction, so there is minimal delay in returning the wells to
production. Tracer data can also be collected at any point while
the well is flowing to identify whether tracer is still present in the
production stream, although these data are not viewed as quantita-
- Each point is the measured tracer concentration
from samples of the produced oil taken at surface.
Tracer Concentration
(linear scale) (ppb)
- The tracer material in each zone contains uniquely
identifiable chemical signatures.
- Green and red points are from the tracer material
from two different zones.
0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 3,000
Cumulative Production Since Restart (bbl)
Fig. 19—Example tracer-concentration profile.
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Fig. 18—Tracer carrier on either side of fracturing sleeve (41=2-
in. equipment).
tively as post-shutdown flowbacks. The tracer samples must be
shipped to an off-site laboratory for analysis (off the North Slope),
typically requiring approximately 1 month to complete.
Tracer-Inflow Survey Results. Fig. 20 shows the results of the
inflow-distribution tracer surveys in the 2012 well that used
dynamic diversion in the bottom four tracer segments (containing
eight preperforated pup joints), whereas the last eight segments
used mechanical diversion. The tracer results confirmed very little
inflow from the dynamic-diversion stages, with approximately
90% of the flow coming from the stages using sliding sleeves. In
fact, the dynamic-diversion stages were in what was found to be
better-quality reservoir sands as determined from openhole log-
ging, so clearly this portion of the well was understimulated.
A similar tracer program was deployed on a subsequent well
with all mechanical diversion. The results of this test showed that,
by using the ball-drop sliding-sleeve system, a more-consistent
inflow distribution was observed over the entire length of the lat-
eral (Fig. 21). The results of these two wells confirmed the com-
plete adoption of mechanical-diversion techniques in place of
dynamic diversion.
This tracer technology may also be used for qualitative moni-
toring of inflow distribution while the well is producing in a
steady-state mode. Tracer concentrations during normal produc-
tion should remain relatively constant, illustrated by the samples
toward the end of sampling in Fig. 19. If a tracer signal is lost
from a given segment, it may be an indication that an obstruction
has developed in the annulus of that segment or flow from the
segment has stopped. Alternatively, if a tracer signal is from
stages downhole of a specific stage, it is likely that an obstruction
inside the wellbore has developed, and a cleanout may be war-
ranted. Produced-oil samples from these wells are being periodi-
cally analyzed to complement normal-production surveillance
and operations.
Conclusions
The use of horizontal wells and largely longitudinal fracture
designs has proved to be the key to developing the Nuiqsut reser-
voir and the Oooguruk Field. The Nuiqsut reservoir has been suc-
cessfully waterflooded for more than 5 years without breakthrough,
confirming the longitudinal nature of the created fractures.
Mechanical-diversion fracturing by means of a ball-drop, slid-
ing-sleeve system has provided significant production benefits
in the moderate-permeability Nuiqsut reservoir. Production in-
creases of more than 400% have been realized compared with the
original nonstimulated completions. Significant efforts were
required over time to modify the completion designs to obtain
more-optimal production results. In addition, the logistical chal-
lenges of fracturing on a man-made island in the Beaufort Sea
are considerable.
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 DC174743 DOI: 10.2118/174743-PA Date: 6-January-17 Stage: Page: 11 Total Pages: 12

Mechanical- and Dynamic-Diversion Fractured Inflow

17,500-ft MD
11,500-ft MD
s ut
Top Nuiq

Tracer carrier
Dynamic perf pup
sut
Base Nuiq Frac sleeve
Swell packer
19% 17%
14%
7% 7% 8% 10% 7% 6%
4%
1% <1%

Mechanical-Diversion Dynamic-Diversion
(89%) (11%)

Fig. 20—Tracer results from partial mechanical-diversion and partial dynamic-diversion fracturing. Dynamic perf represents pre-
perforated pup joints for dynamic-diversion fracturing.

Mechanical-Diversion Fractured Inflow

19,000-ft MD
13,00-ft MD

Top Nuiqsut

sut Tracer carrier

Base Nuiq Frac sleeve
Swell packer

11% 14% 14%

10% 9% 9% 10% 7%
6% 7%
3%

Mechanical-Diversion

Fig. 21—Tracer results from complete mechanical-diversion fracturing.

Coupled with the mechanical diversion, high-quality proppant References

is used to obtain the oil-flow rates necessary to justify development
in this challenging reservoir. Durable fracture conductivity across
shale layers is critical to effectively drain the thick interval, as well
as maximum conductivity at the wellbore where reservoir fluids
converge. The 16/20-mesh LDC proppant has been consistently
and successfully placed to meet these requirements, consistent
with other high-performing wells on the North Slope of Alaska.
Tracer technology was used to confirm that mechanical-diver-
sion fracturing provided superior production results compared
with dynamic diversion. Individual oil and water tracers were in-
stalled in each stage of two wells and provided insights into flow
contributions along the wellbore, both qualitatively and quantita-
tively. They continue to be used for troubleshooting.
Future improvements include full-mechanical-diversion frac-
turing on an injection well, the use of scale-inhibitor-infused
proppant on producers to mitigate scale deposition upon water-
flood breakthrough and use of resin-coated proppant in both injec-
tors and producers. The results of these tests will be the subject of
a future paper.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank Caelus Natural Resources Alaska and Eni Pe-
troleum US, their working interest partner, for permission to pub-
lish this paper.
Andresen, C. Williams, B., Morgan, M. et al. 2012. Interventionless Sur-
veillance in a Multi-lateral Horizontal Well. Presented at the IADC/
SPE Drilling Conference and Exhibition, San Diego, California, USA,
6–8 March. SPE-151241-MS. http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/151241-MS.
Bond, A., Zhu, D., and Kamkom, R. 2006. The Effect of Well Trajectory
on Horizontal Well Performance. Presented at the SPE International
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104183-MS. http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/104183-MS.
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Exhibition, Anaheim, California, USA, 11–17 November. SPE-
109761-MS. http:/dx.doi.org/10.2118/109761-MS.
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MS. http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/35697-MS.
Pearson, C. M., Bond, A. J., Eck, M. E. et al. 1992. Optimal Fracture Stim-
ulation of a Moderate Permeability Reservoir, Kuparuk River Unit.
Presented at the SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition,
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dx.doi.org/10.2118/106050-MS.
Andrew Bond is a Senior Subsurface Manager for Caelus
Energy Alaska. He leads the subsurface team in developing
the Oooguruk and Nuna fields on the North Slope. Bond has
more than 30 years of experience in the Alaska oil and gas
industry with Arco, Phillips, ConocoPhillips, Pioneer, and, now,
Caelus. He is a 30-year SPE member, serves on SPE the Well
Completions subcommittee, has coauthored more than 15
technical papers, and holds two patents.
Rami J. Jasser is a Senior Staff Completions Engineer at Caelus
Energy Alaska. Previously, he worked for Pioneer Natural
Resources and ConocoPhillips Alaska as a completions engi-
neer. Jasser holds a BS degree in mechanical engineering
from the Oklahoma State University.
Vernon Johnson is a Senior Drilling and Completions Manager
with Caelus Energy Alaska. He has more than 16 years of expe-
rience in Alaska, leading extended-reach and multilateral dril-
ling and completions projects. Johnson holds a BS degree in
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mathematics from Dalhousie University and a BS degree in
mechanical engineering from the Technical University of Nova
Scotia.
Mike Morgan is a technical adviser at Caelus Energy Alaska.
Previously, he worked for Pioneer Natural Resources, Conoco-
Phillips Alaska, and Arco. Morgan holds a BS degree in petro-
leum engineering from the Colorado School of Mines.
Mike Martin is a stimulation specialist with Northern Solutions.
Previously, he worked 31 years for Schlumberger as a senior
technical engineer. Martin holds a BS degree in geology from
Michigan Technological University.
Terry Palisch is the Global Engineering Director for Carbo
Ceramics. He has been with the company for more than 10
years, having previously worked for Arco. Palisch leads a team
of product champions and technical experts who support the
development and marketing of new and existing products
and technologies. He is a 35-year SPE member, has coau-
thored more than 30 SPE papers, serves on the Board of Direc-
tors of the SPE Dallas Section, and is the Technical Program
Chair of the 2017 SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhi-
bition in San Antonio, Texas, USA.
Brock Williams is the general manager for Resman’s North
American operations. He joined Resman in 2010. Before Res-
man, Williams spent 28 years working for BP in a variety of posi-
tions in Lafayette, Louisiana; Aberdeen; Anchorage; and
Houston.
2017 SPE Drilling & Completion