Huff-n-Puff Process for Enhancement Heavy Oil Recovery for the Tertiary Reservoir in the Qaiyarah Oil Field Northern Iraq

Cyclic steam injection prolific effect on the thermal recovery of heavy oil reservoirs. This strategy was first performed in the 1950’s. Later, it was applied worldwide successfully for both heavy and light oils. This method is attractive due to its quick payout with a relatively high success level. The Qaiyarah oil field has been characterized by its extra heavy oil (16° API), therefore, the main objective of this study is to develop the Tertiary reservoir of the Qaiyarah oil field utilizing the uncompetitive thermal method, namely, cyclic steam injection for improving the recovery of the field using five spot pattern of huff-n-puff wells. Also, predicting the future performance of the field under thermal conditions, was the more attractive step through this work. Performing thermal five-spot patterns in severe heterogeneous reservoirs like the Qaiyarah oil field represents a huge challenge and a highly prolific fingerprint. In consequence, this work can be represented as a spot point for future studies in this field. The conceptual methodology in this work has been oriented to develop a 3-D model of the field under study, which was consisted of 13 wells. The development plan was performed by five spot haff-n-puff injection pattern to predict and enhance the production performance over the next 11 years utilizing well QY-66 that penetrated the Euphrates Formation. The results showed that the cumulative water production has been increased slightly for the first five years, and then it was decreased again to reach the minimum value at 2035 about 16 %. The oil deliverability showed a peak of production recording 1270 bbl./day at the beginning of the production phase and then it was declined gradually.