A large independent crude oil and natural gas producer with significant interests in the Clearwater Formation in Northern Alberta was operating wells initially established in the late 1990s using CHOPS (Cold Heavy Oil Production with Sand). The horizontal sections of the wells extended beyond 2,400 meters and each well was completed with 0.250-in. straight slotted liners. As the profile of the well formation changed over time, there was an increase in the level of water production and the operator turned to polymer flooding as its primary Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) strategy.

A major oil sands operator located in Calgary, AB approached RGL with evidence of a SAGD producer well showing uncharacteristically low production rates. 

A Joint Venture Company located in the Orinoco Oil Belt—East Venezuela, has been exploiting and developing an extra-heavy oil field since 1999 using a production scheme based on natural depletion, or “cold production”.

An operator used RGL’s Q-Selector™ flow control device to maintain oil production, well length, and cSOR. The outcome ended thermal loading issues by eliminating crossovers and increased profitability.

Over the past few years, flow control devices (FCDs) have been provided to steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) operators in Alberta to improve steam chamber conformance, restrict steam breakthrough, and increase oil production rates. For the retrofit wells of an operator working in the Grand Rapids formation, the reservoirs are challenging in that the pay thickness is non-uniform and there are hot spots along the horizontal sections. The operator trialed RGL’s Q-Controller™ to cure the hot spots, improve production rates, and obtain a return on investment as quickly as possible.