DEPARTMENTS • DRILLING & COMPLETION TECH DIGEST
Integrated cementing
solution saves 18 hours
on subsea well in US GOM
Using casing while drilling, Hunt Oil was able to reduce the number of runs
required on the Macoveiu 3900 well in Romania, leading to cost and time savings.
Hunt Oil and Odfjell Technologies set European depth
record for 20-in. casing while drilling in Romania
Odfjell Technology recently worked
with Hunt Oil to reach a European depth
record for 20-in. casing while drilling
(CWD) in its Macoveiu 3900 well, located
in Bazau, Romania.
CWD was selected as the solution to
mitigate possible surface hole hazards
like shallow gas, formations sensitive to
swabbing, tight hole and loss of circula-
tion, as well as to achieve time savings
for the surface section .
A cap was set on the maximum
achievable working flow rate due to
rig surface equipment limitations. This
flow rate ceiling was lower than what
was required for optimal operational
performance, so this scenario required
additional analysis of the drill bit per-
formance, wellbore hydraulics and hole
cleaning. The existing 20-in. casing by
24-in. bit design was analyzed, opti-
mized and validated for the expected
conditions. A CWD record-breaking depth of 798
m below rotary was recorded .
By implementing Odfjell Technology’s
CWD services, Hunt Oil reduced the num-
ber of runs required with significant
saving on time and cost thanks to the
elimination of conventional bottomhole
assembly handling and tripping times.
The operator was also able to achieve its
drilling objectives on this 24-in. section
by using Odfjell’s casing running tool ,
torque turn computers, manual handling
tools and hydraulic power tongs with
high-torque capacity and power packs.
There were also no recordable incidents
or accidents recorded during the opera-
tion. Expro recently completed a well cement
placement project for a large international
operator in the US Gulf of Mexico (GOM) .
Inner-string cementing was delivered for
a subsea well’s 22-in. surface casing in a
water depth of approximately 2,000 m in
the Mississippi Canyon area. That was
integrated with Expro's Cure technologies
to allow the operator to overcome ongo-
ing offset well challenges. These included
prolonged wait on cement (WOC) periods
when transitioning directly from the jet
string to the 22-in. surface casing, and
tasks associated with drilling out a 22-in.
shoetrack. The integrated cementing solution
helped save approximately 18 hours of
cement-related drill-out, clean-out and
WOC time compared with offset wells.
The Cure technologies also removed the
requirement for a shoetrack to be left
in the casing string, preventing cement
sheath-related challenges.
Transocean Norge semi
earns DNV notation for
greenhouse gas abatement
Late last year, the Transocean Norge
became the first semisubmersible to
receive DNV’s Abate (Power+) notation,
following upgrades designed to lower the
rig's greenhouse emissions during opera-
tion. The notation is designed to reflect
the best industry practices in greenhouse
gas abatement for offshore units and rep-
resents a comprehensive energy and emis-
sion management system aligned with
ISO 50001 standards. It emphasizes rigor-
ous monitoring of energy consumption
SLB, Nabors to scale adoption of drilling automation
SLB and
Nabors Industries
are embarking on a collaboration to enable
8 PRECISE or Nabors’ SmartROS rig oper-
ating system.
and the implementation of operational and
technical strategies to reduce emissions.
Transocean implemented several key
strategies to ensure the rig meets these
customers to integrate the companies'
“Our collaboration with Nabors will
standards : comprehensive monitoring
drilling automation applications and
provide E&P customers and drilling con-
of energy consumption, optimization of
rig operating systems . Customers will
tractors across the globe with greater
operational energy, use of closed bus ties
have access to a broader suite of drill-
access to high-performance drilling
to minimize the number of idle engines,
ing automation technologies and greater
capabilities, including Neuro autono-
and variable frequency drives in rotating
flexibility to utilize existing rig control
mous directional drilling,” said Jesus
machinery to optimally control the power
systems and equipment on either SLB’s
Lamas, President, Well Construction, SLB.
for large rotating machinery.
JAN UARY/FEB RUARY 2024 • D R I LLI N G CO N T R ACTO R
DRILLING & COMPLETION TECH DIGEST • DEPARTMENTS
Surge Energy uses Latshaw Rig 10 to drill 18,325-ft lateral in Permian in 12.5 days
Four years ago, Surge Energy worked
with Latshaw Drilling and Pro Directional
to drill what it said was the longest known
lateral in the Permian Basin at the time, at
17,935 ft. Now, the companies have exceed-
ed that lateral distance in another Permian
well. In Q4 2023, the companies drilled the
Succubus-Rougarou 24-37 7AH well in the
Wolfcamp A play in Borden County, Texas,
with a total horizontal displacement of
18,325 ft.
The well, which was drilled by Latshaw
Drilling’s Rig 10, was executed in 12.5 days
from surface to its total measured depth of
24,879 ft. This marked a six-day reduction
in drilling time from the 2019 well, where
the total measured depth of 24,592 ft was
reached in 18 days.
This drop in time was primarily enabled
by the elimination of a planned trip, said
Jeremy Christopherson, Drilling Manager
at Surge Energy. The 2019 well featured
a planned trip at 15,000-ft vertical sec-
tion because the operator was unsure if
the bottomhole assembly (BHA) could last
beyond that distance. The 18,325 -ft lateral
in the 2023 well was drilled in one conven-
tional directional BHA run – this marked a
company record for Pro Directional for the
longest lateral drilled in a single run with
motor and MWD.
“These rigs can only rack back so much
pipe in the derrick, and with the well in
Compared with a previous well with a 17,935-ft lateral that was drilled in 18 days, a
new well with an 18,325-ft lateral has been drilled by Latshaw Rig 10 in just 12.5 days.
This time reduction was primarily enabled by eliminating a planned trip at 15,000 ft.
2019, we felt that a 15,000-ft run in the lat-
eral was probably all the motor could take,
and we should trip and have a planned
trip to change out the bit and the motor,”
Mr Christopherson said. “We ended up
tripping back in, and it takes a long time to
round-trip from that depth. With the well
we just drilled, we just decided to keep
drilling with the BHA.”
Christopherson said. The total vertical
and counterclockwise to get weight on bit
depths (TVD) for wells drilled in the com-
during sliding operations to work slack-off
pany’s Midland acreage since entering the
weight down to the bit.
region in 2016 have ranged between 5,500
The operator is currently running three
and 8,100 ft. The 2023 well had a total ver-
rigs in its Midland Basin acreage – in addi-
tical depth 6,794 ft.
tion to Latshaw Rig 10, it’s also operating
“When we started drilling out there,
Latshaw Rigs 18 and 20 in Howard County.
we were drilling a lot of 1.5-mile, 2-mile
“I find Latshaw very easy to work with,”
laterals, and we slowly stepped out to
he said. “They have a rig type that’s very
drill longer and longer laterals. But it’s
suitable for our style of drilling, particular-
an area with very shallow TVDs. One of
ly being able to go back on existing pads.
the things that makes these longer later-
The rigs move quickly, and the company
als more challenging is that, when you’re
has really good hands . They’re the old-
Surge Energy holds more than 100,000
looking at around 6,000 ft of total vertical
school farm boys who can fix everything
net acres in the Midland Basin, with
depth, we might not have enough weight
with a wrench. You don’t have to get a
its core acreage located in Borden and
to push 18,000 ft of pipe to TD the well,” Mr
computer tech to fix a lot of stuff, and that
Howard counties. The acreage presents
Christopherson said. To address this, the
works really well for us.”
major drilling challenges because the res-
operator used standard friction reduction
ervoirs are located in shallow depths, Mr
tools and rocked the drill pipe clockwise
Drilling of the most recent well uti-
lized conventional mud motor and mea-
surement-while-drilling (MWD) technol-
ogy, and it was drilled 100% in zone. Surge
Energy also reported no lost time due to
downhole dysfunctions.
The well is expected to be completed and
brought online in the first half of 2024. DC
D R I LLI N G CO N T R ACTO R • JAN UARY/FEB RUARY 2024
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