Smart Gas Lift Decreases Gas Injection Volumes by up to 50%, Improves Production in a Mature Field

Reduce consumption of buyback gas for gas lift operations in a mature field with 150 wells in South Texas.
Optimize injection rates for an intermittent gas lift system.
Maintain or increase fluid production.
Keep expenditures to an absolute minimum.

Weatherford artificial-lift engineers used proprietary production optimization programs to assess production rates, gas-to-liquid ratios, and artificial lift systems throughout the field.
Weatherford recommended the Smart Gas Lift solution—including the WellPilot^® controller—as a rigless, low-cost solution that continually calculates and injects gas to deliver the optimal amounts to each well.
They implemented intermittent gas lift without changing existing continuous-lift valves. The Weatherford WellPilot controller monitored casing and tubing pressure.
The controller also regulated and recorded gas inflow and outflow.

The Weatherford Smart Gas Lift solution with the WellPilot controller enabled the operator to decrease gas injection volumes by up to 50% in each well.
WellPilot monitoring and reporting enabled the operator to concentrate oversight and maintenance only on wells showing signs of impending problems and reduce lifting costs by up to 50%.
The WellPilot controller maintained or increased production in the majority of wells, and the operator realized a return on investment in one to three months per well.
Minimal installation expenditures were quickly repaid through savings in OPEX and increases in production.

Details

Location

South Texas

Well Type

Onshore, oil and gas

Depth

10,000 ft (3,048 m)

Products/Services

Tubular Running Assurance