The Importance of Wellbore Cleaning
The Importance of Wellbore Cleaning
A Deep Dive into the Value of Wellbore Cleanups
No matter the type of well, the proper cleaning of the wellbore is a vital stage to ensure a successful project. A poorly cleaned wellbore can cause damage to downhole equipment, cause production losses, and damage the formation. That’s why our Oilfield Product and Business Development Manager at Shrieve, Andy Moffat, has taken a deep dive into why you should properly clean your wellbore before production begins.
IT’S ALL IN THE PREPARATION
An effective wellbore clean-out trip should be a key step included in any well construction: After the massive investment of time, money, and effort to drill the hole intervals to reach the reservoir target, the final stage – preparing the well for the completion and production phase – should be a wellbore clean-out trip to remove any mud residue, swarf, drill cuttings and other debris (tie-wraps, tape, pipe dope etc) from the wellbore. The long-term sustained production of a well is dependent on this step being accomplished properly.
TIME IS MONEY
Debris left within the casing and liner of a well poses a significant risk to your well performance and its completion activity. Failure to clean the wellbore increases the risk of creating non-productive time in the long run, which will then create increased remedial costs for your company. By investing in a clean wellbore from the outset, you increase productivity and reduce the likelihood of premature equipment failure and expensive downtime later.
IT HELPS PRODUCTIVITY AND LONGEVITY
Wellbore debris is a recurrent problem in drilling operations: In addition to the mud components and drilled formation being transported up the annulus, there are other potential hazards: Metallic swarf is generated by drillstring rotation, and other obstacles can impact operations going forward. For example, pieces of float equipment may not have been drilled out entirely from the shoe track, and other unscheduled events can introduce fallen and dropped objects into the well (such as tong dies, gloves, handtools, and other items that conventional circulation does not remove). Running a wellbore cleanout string and pumping a wellbore clean out pill train provides an opportunity to both retrieve debris and confirm that the next operation (usually running the completion assemblies) can proceed with high confidence for a successful trip in hole. Wells differ greatly in geometry, offset and measured depth, but the outcomes of leaving debris downhole can be summed up simply as bad practice.
Investing in a cleanup before the completion phase can protect your well, ensuring that your wellbore maintains its integrity and improves production lifespan.
HOW CAN SHRIEVE HELP?
At Shrieve, we believe that when it comes to carrying out a wellbore clean up, you cannot compromise. That is why we have formulated the BIO-ADD Wellbore Cleaner (WBC) chemical product line. BIO-ADD WBC chemical products provide top tier cleaning performance with an excellent HSE profile that meets all current environmental requirements. They use a combination of powerful solvents capable of dissolving mud residues, together with a blend of surfactants to provide an outstanding cleaning performance within a single product.
Water? Seawater? Brines? You name it, our Wellbore Cleaner Chemicals will function in it, to maximum effect. BIO-ADD WBC can be added to any low, medium, or high viscosity or high-density push-pills, and be incorporated into an efficient wellbore cleaning sequence of your choosing.
If you’d like to hear more about how we can help you with your chemical cleaning needs please get in touch.