ADDRESSING HORIZONTAL STEAM INJECTION COMPLETIONS CHALLENGES WITH CHEVRON'S HORIZONTAL STEAM TEST FACILITY

Steam injection profile control is a significant challenge for thermal recovery of heavy oil with horizontal wells. There is no reliable commercially available method for controlling two‑phase steam distribution in horizontal laterals and not even a commercial laboratory capable of testing such devices. To address this gap Chevron constructed a surface horizontal steam injection test facility in the Kern River Field located outside of Bakersfield, California. This facility is used for testing commercial and proprietary devices for improving control of steam distribution along a lateral in a horizontal well. The horizontal steam test facility is capable of testing the capabilities of a wide range of full sized down hole completion equipment (tubing and liner flow control devices tubing liner and annulus/liner isolation devices and logging equipment) at the surface under precise controlled conditions. This paper discuss the need for horizontal steam injection wells and steam distribution control. The current "State‑of‑the‑Art" of horizontal steam injection completions or more accurately the lack of steam profile control currently available. It will discuss the three areas critical for controlling the steam profile along a lateral: 1) liner‑open hole 2) liner and 3) tubing‑liner. It will also discuss the capabilities of the test facility, initial test results and a possible pathway to field deployment of promising technology.