Exploring Hydrocarbon Reserves in Mature Oil Fields by Interpreting the Subsurface and Using Dynamic Modeling

Abstract An effectiveness study of building strategy nondrained oil reservoir blocks to increase hydrocarbon production from mature oil fields—dynamic modeling techniques with subsurface interpretations and sharply adjacent well data—offers new development well placements for oil recovery and field life extension. The study combines production data, pressure surveys, and detailed subsurface studies— including well log interpretations—to develop proper understanding of the behavior of the reservoir for its performance estimation. Dynamic modeling techniques are applied in the estimation of optimal well placement. This multi-disciplinary approach is normally aimed at accurate reservoir characterization and making strategic decisions on the development of new wells in non-drained blocks. Its effective implementation may require studies by the geologist, engineer, and data scientist concerning comprehensive data analysis in formulating solutions. Important results were that new development wells increased oil production by up to ∼15% in total field production. The approach has been of high value with limited risks/costs; characterized by a short payout period and good opportunities for reinvestment of the savings. It, therefore, identifies the potential for residual capacity unlocking from low-productivity or shut-in wells in the pursuit of maximizing an asset's value. This paper substantiates the effectiveness of strategic drilling through real field empirical evidence by featuring a convincingly logical workflow applicable to similar mature oil fields, hence lending practicality with respect to production enhancement and field life extension. Its effective implementation must be based on multi-discipline teamwork in order to complete an adequate analysis of the data available and formulate solutions. This paper contributes new insights into the efficiency of production optimization strategy execution in mature oil fields. The combination of dynamic modeling with detailed subsurface interpretation enables the provision of valuable empirical evidence to a research study and mapping out the constructs of a systematic workflow that improves hydrocarbon recovery, extends the productive life of mature fields, and advances current knowledge in the petroleum industry.