METHOD FOR MINIMIZING LINER EXPANSION ISSUES IN HORIZONTAL THERMAL APPLICATIONS

Heavy oil is found in many parts of the world, but because of its high viscosity, traditional methods have been incapable of producing these wells. Thermal recovery methods have been used to exploit heavy oil and bitumen reservoirs, but they can create severe expansion problems on liner and production tubular equipment. This is particularly a problem in the case of horizontal sand face completion configurations used in steam flood, cyclic steam and steam‑assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) applications. With the increasing demand for energy, however, the industry has renewed its attention to finding solutions to the problems currently experienced with heavy oil production. This paper will present different wellbore configurations that are used with various thermal recovery methods, and particularly, the use of thermal expansion devices. Many single lateral and multi‑lateral horizontal heavy oil wells have been produced initially using the cold heavy‑oil‑production‑with‑sand (CHOPS) method of recovery where liner expansion is not a concern. However, with proper up‑front planning and engineering, these wells can be converted to thermal‑enhanced oil recovery (EOR) producers with the addition of thermal expansion devices placed within the liner assembly during initial completion. These expansion devices are engineered to activate with elevated temperatures once the thermal operation begins and do not require mechanical activation or well intervention. Since these devices are deployed with the liner assembly, they also have the capability to handle compression, tension and torque loading across the liner during the deployment phase. This technology can be deployed with the slotted liner/ sand‑screen applications, or be used with production or concentric tubing configurations. In addition to helping resolve expansion problems, the enhanced safety and economic benefits provided by the devices will be discussed.