All operators want to save time and money when drilling. Drilling with casing, managed pressure drilling, logging while drilling, and multistage completions are typical approaches taken to at reduce operational time and get the well online as fast as possible.

Increased brownfield operations and cost-intensive deep and ultra-deep exploration mean spiralling upstream capex. With deepwater day rates reaching US $1million, every minute of rig time has to be justified.

Offshore deck space and accommodation are limited, so effective communication of logistics plans is essential. Late mobilization can result in costly suspended wellsite operations, while mobilizing too early increases well costs through extra rental charges and day rates.

The challenge

Well operations consist of two main components, wellsite planning and logistics scheduling. Operations dictate equipment and personnel requirements with project progress. Typically the wellsite company representative deals with operational matters, supported by the materials coordinator, who manages logistics. Offshore costs often are an order of magnitude higher than land-based operations, requiring more detailed planning with additional considerations such as sea conditions, deck space availability, and well complexity.

Wellsite planning must be streamlined to keep pace, ensuring equipment and personnel are constantly updated on operations and mobilizing equipment and engineers.

Wellsite planning

Wellsite plans outline step by step how the well will be drilled, completed, or worked over. Most operators use a rudimentary Excel spreadsheet look-ahead/forward plan for work scheduling. An activity list is created from the well-ops program, and time estimates are added. A simple formula shows the estimated start date and time for each activity. Upon completion, the actuals for that activity are input, which updates the forward plan. Alternatively, project management software is used with the same simple method.

The updated look-ahead is laboriously distributed daily as a read-only pdf. Service companies, partners, operator colleagues, and regulatory bodies can be copied.

This straightforward system has been in place for decades, but using an Excel-Project-Outlook approach poses disadvantages:

Historical data is available to all parties;

Only one person can update the plan at a time;

No multisite operations overview is possible;

Formula errors occur when inserting or deleting activities;

Reorganizing activities is cumbersome;

It is time consuming to create and distribute daily updates; and

Confusion ensues when the plan is revised.

Unanticipated conditions cause deviations from the well program, with issues such as lost circulation or excessive torque impacting drilling operations and causing unbudgeted delays.

Conversely, the well plan can be sped up if, for example, rate of penetration (ROP) is higher than expected or a cement bond log is canceled.

Offshore operations require accurate and up-to-date planning. (Image courtesy of Petrobras News Agency)

Constantly changing look-aheads are poorly reflected by daily or bi-weekly updates. A web-based application, on the other hand, allows personnel to access the latest plan at any time. Online look-ahead updates mean no clumsy Excel formulas and no risk of using and distributing the wrong look-ahead.

An online application allows operators to list all lookaheads and to view current activities at each location. Secondly, permitted users can collaborate online and agree on the plan ahead of time with rights to rearrange, add, or remove activities. Thirdly, plan modifications are instantly accessible to permitted users.

Time-consuming telephone/email updates are avoided with a web-based look-ahead application. Well-ops personnel can discuss the plan in a secure online forum, identifying unnecessary activities. For example, removing an unnecessary 24-hr wiper-trip brings all subsequent activities forward.

Logistics scheduling

As deck space and accommodation on rigs is limited, accurate logistics planning is essential. Often equipment and engineers are mobilized too soon. Additional rental costs and fees are absorbed in well costs and are rarely highlighted in the post-well review. But mobilizing too early or not backloading promptly can grow into a six-figure overspend. The costs from waiting on equipment or personnel are even more significant.

Service company equipment and personnel are in short supply, especially when oil prices and rig activity are highest. It is a challenge supplying multiple operators against constantly changing plans. Suboptimal logistics scheduling can necessitate extra boat or helicopter journeys, incurring extra expenditure and risk.

Online updates by each operator facilitate timely preparation. With online transportation schedules, everyone works from the same timetable, reducing equipment or personnel delays.

Online vs. Excel

Excel files, with their formula errors, macros, and inconsistencies, become massive on long projects. Tailor-made applications are more powerful, with activities easily reordered by drag-and-drop.

Built-in algorithms automatically recalculate error-free activity timings.

Interactive calendars display multiple weeks in one uncomplicated activity overview. Permissions-based recaps summarize recent operations.

Because web-based applications require Internet availability, it might appear that an Excel-based system is more reliable. But an Excel-based method also suffers from communications loss. In fact, a web-based application allows office-based personnel to keep the look-ahead updated and keep everyone in the loop.

Baker Hughes worldwide rig count. (Chart courtesy of Baker Hughes)

Welcoming the web

The oil industry often is reluctant to adopt new technologies, particularly those requiring new working practices. A new approach represents a challenge. Learning a new system and its perceived risk of failure are arguments against innovation.

E&P software often has too many features and too much flexibility. This can result in solutions that are difficult to use, and the “solution” becomes the problem.

The new web-based look-ahead application focuses on the well-ops end user. It requires no offsite training. The application is simple enough to use that it becomes quickly familiar after first log-in.

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