8 Classic SAGD gas injection installations

Trying to squeeze more from SAGD with less cost? Non-condensable gas injection (NCGI) is the answer. How do you leverage everyone else's experience?

Taking a class is fine. Skimming a text book is great. Reading a few technical papers is okay. Attending a lecture might help.

But if you really want to divine the entrails of NCGI you need to read SAGD applications. They report progress on this issue to the regulator. Each application is ground truthed to actual UWIs. Each application is adjudicated by a picky regulator.

Here are eight classic applications that will help you step to the front of the line.

1. First Installation

The earliest application of non-condensable gas injection was submitted by an operator that hoped it would reduce steam-oil-ratios and insulate steam heat from dissipating through the cap rock. Very well written, his application documents and negotiation with the regulator are very instructive on many benefits of gas injection.

If you are operating or planning to inject gas into your thermal scheme, you must read this and 7 other classic polymer applications.

You can get his application documents for less than $100 -- self serve. Just click on the link below to go to our secure check out.

2. Methane and steam injection primer

When his steam chambers reach 60% recovery, one SAGD operator proposes to completely replace steam injection with methane. He describes thermal gas injection with primer-like detail.

3. Methane reduces steam oil ratios

One operator is experimenting with NCG injection later in the life of wells. The application also describes the modifications to their production and injection systems.

4. Gas injection as a fence

One operator proposes injecting methane and steam around a pilot to re-pressurize the area. He's using non-condensable gas injection as a fence treatment to keep the SAGD operation in pattern.

5. Methane injection during blowdown

This operator not only wants to co-inject non-condensable gas with steam in his SAGD scheme, he wants to use it as an important part of this blowdown strategy. In his project, he intends to replace SAGD steam injection with a non-condensable gas (like methane).

6. Non-condensable gas injection and SAGD infills

Injecting non-condensable gas and drilling infills in the same patterns is creating some excitement for this SAGD operator. He believes these combined with his special sense of timing will improve resource recovery by another 30%.

7. SAGD NCG with CSS Infills

One operator is experimenting with noncondensable gas injection in a SAGD pair and adding infill producers. But the infill producers are operated on a cyclic steam huff and puff.

8. Methane or Propane?

What is the future of bitumen recovery? Primary or thermal? SAGD or CSS? Inject methane, propane or surfactant? Some operators are experimenting with each in the same field.

All these have been passed the theoretical phase and lab test phase. Each has been implemented in the field.

Each have been ground truthed with injector UWIs. You can read their application, then check out the actual results by looking at their patterns in Accumap.

Tags: Thermal, Heavy Oil

Granger Low   23 Feb 2017

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