Special Features
Guest Editorial • Lessons Learned from 2008 • Sadad I. Al-Husseini, Consultant
The year 2008 may go down in history as the year of many
lessons learned but soon forgotten. For the oil industry, it is
important to reflect on what those main lessons were and what
their relevance is to the future.
Diverse International Crowd Spells Success for Conference
The future of the oil industry in Latin America and the Caribbean, technical issues for the industry at large, and areas for new reserves were the main topics at the 2009 SPE Latin American and Caribbean Petroleum Engineering Conference, held in Cartagena, Colombia.
Management • Drilling Failure Costs Quickly Add Up • Cliff Berry, Sales and Marketing Manager, Centek
Annual downtime during drilling or running casing is only marginally better than it was 20 years ago. Operators’ estimates suggest that drilling efficiency is approximately 50% when taking into account all rig activities from spud to completion, including running casing tubing.
Distinguished Author Series • The Role of Gas Processing in the Natural-Gas Value Chain • Robert Hubbard, University of Oklahoma
An integral and essential part of the natural-gas value chain is the midstream sector—the gathering, compression, and processing functions required between the wellhead and the transmission system. Robert Hubbard discusses the gas-processing portion of the midstream sector.
Legion of Honor
The society welcomes 129 members to the 2009 Legion of Honor, celebrating 50 years of consecutive membership in SPE.
Members Gain Professional Recognition Through Certification Program
Today’s complex oil and gas industry and the increased workload caused by strains on the talent base leave little room for error in ensuring the technical competence of the workforce. And while the US, the UK, and some other countries have registration programs for engineers, many countries do not. In response, SPE has developed a certification program for engineers that allows them to demonstrate their technical knowledge.
Formation Evaluation
Bob Harrison, SPE, Consultant Petroleum Engineer
Rock-Strength Data From Cores and Logs
This article, written by Senior Technology Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 121972, “Rock Strength From Cores and Logs: Where We Stand and Ways To Go,” by A. Khaksar, P.G. Taylor, Z. Fang, T. Kayes, A. Salazar, and K. Rahman, SPE, Helix RDS, prepared for the 2009 SPE Europec/EAGE Annual Conference and Exhibition, Amsterdam, 8–11 June. The paper has not been peer reviewed.
Estimating Permeability of Vuggy-and- Fractured Carbonates by Modeling Mud-Filtrate-Invasion Effects on Resistivity Logs
This article, written by Senior Technology Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 121136, “Modeling Mud-Filtrate-Invasion Effects on Resistivity Logs To Estimate Permeability of Vuggy-and-Fractured Carbonate Formations,” by Luis Javier Miranda, SPE, Carlos Torres-Verdín, SPE, and Jerry Lucia, SPE, University of Texas at Austin, prepared for the 2009 SPE EUROPEC/EAGE Annual Conference and Exhibition, Amsterdam, 8–11 June. The paper has not been peer reviewed.
Multiscale-Data Integration in Characterizing and Modeling a Deepwater Turbidite Reservoir
This article, written by Senior Technology Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 115305, “Multiscale-Data Integration in Characterizing and Modeling a Deepwater Turbidite Reservoir,” by Livio Ruvo, SPE, James Doyle, Mauro Cozzi, Simone Riva, Paolo Scaglioni, and Giuseppe Serafini, Eni, prepared for the 2008 SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, Denver, 21–24 September. The paper has not been peer reviewed.
Subsea Technology
Jacques B. Saliés, SPE, Drilling and Completion Manager, Petrobras America
Tahiti-Project System Qualification
This article, written by Assistant Technology Editor Karen Bybee, contains highlights of paper OTC 19859, “Tahiti-Project Subsea System Design/Qualification,” by Chris Hey, SPE, and James Rasmussen, Chevron, and Steve Tattersall, SPE, Cameron, originally prepared for the 2009 Offshore Technology Conference, Houston, 4–7 May. The paper has not been peer reviewed. Copyright 2009 Offshore Technology Conference. Reproduced by permission.
Efficiency Improvements for Subsea Operations in Deepwater Angola
This article, written by Assistant Tech nology
Editor Karen Bybee, contains highlights
of paper SPE 119651, “Improvements
in Efficiency for Subsea Operations
in Deepwater Angola,” by Jason Zook,
SPE, ExxonMobil Development Company,
and Arran Keith, Swift Technical Group,
originally prepared for the 2009 SPE/IADC Drilling Conference and Exhibition,
Amsterdam, 17–19 March. The paper
has not been peer reviewed.
Ormen Lange Subsea-Compression-System Pilot
This article, written by Assistant Technology Editor Karen Bybee, contains highlights of paper OTC 20028, “Ormen Lange Subsea-Compression Pilot System,” by Bernt Bjerkreim, Snorre Frydelund, John Arild Lie, Knut Ola Staver, and Karl Olav Haram, StatoilHydro; Bjørn Nystad, Shell; Håkon Skofteland, AkerSolutions; Hans Gedde, VetcoGray; Alberto Tesei, GE Oil and Gas; and Michel Postic, ConverTeam., originally prepared for the 2009 Offshore Technology Conference, Houston, 4–7 May. The paper has not been peer reviewed. Copyright 2009 Offshore Technology Conference. Reproduced by permission.
Health, Safety, and Environment
John Veil, SPE, Manager, Water Policy Program, Argonne National Laboratory
Restoring Sagebrush Habitat in the Pinedale Anticline Natural-Gas Field in Wyoming
This article, written by Senior Technology Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 120980, “Restoring Sagebrush Habitat in the Pinedale Anticline Natural-Gas Field in Wyoming,” by H. James Sewell, Shell E&P, and Richard S. Carr, C-M Environmental Group, prepared for the 2009 SPE Americas E&P Environmental & Safety Conference, San Antonio, Texas, 23–25 March. The paper has not been peer reviewed.
Evaluating Implications of Hydraulic Fracturing in Shale-Gas Reservoirs
This article, written by Senior Technology Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 121038, “Evaluating Implications of Hydraulic Fracturing in Shale-Gas Reservoirs,” by J. Daniel Arthur, SPE, Brian Bohm, Bobbi Jo Coughlin, and Mark Layne, SPE, ALL Consulting, prepared for the 2009 SPE Americas E&P Environmental and Safety Conference, San Antonio, Texas, 23–25 March. The paper has not been peer reviewed.
Behavioral Safety, Success Factors
This article, written by Senior Technology Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 118311, “Behavioral Safety at RasGas Company Limited Doha Qatar, Success Factors,” by Ramasamy Arunachalam, RasGas Company, prepared for the 2008 Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 3–6 November. The paper has not been peer reviewed.
Drilling Management
J.C. Cunha, SPE, Well Operations Manager, Petrobras America
Real-Time Drilling-Process Optimization
This article, written by Assistant Technology Editor Karen Bybee, contains highlights of paper SPE 119650, “Real-Time Optimization of the Drilling Process—Challenges in Industrialization,” by E. Cayeux, SPE, E.W. Dvergsnes, SPE, and F. Iversen, SPE, International Research Institute of Stavanger, originally prepared for the 2009 SPE/IADC Drilling Conference and Exhibition, Amsterdam, 17–19 March. The paper has not been peer reviewed.
HSE Management in a Drilling Environment
This article, written by Assistant Technology Editor Karen Bybee, contains highlights of paper SPE 117813, “HSE Management in a Drilling Environment,” by Andrew May, Alain Moonen, and Stewart Logan, Qatar Shell GTL, and Jackie Allinson, CW International, originally prepared for the 2008 Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 3–6 November. The paper has not been peer reviewed.
Multiparameter Autodrilling Capabilities Provide Drilling/Economic Benefits
This article, written by Assistant Technology
Editor Karen Bybee, contains highlights of
paper SPE 119965, “Multiparameter
Autodrilling Capabilities Provide Drilling/Economic Benefits,” by Fred Florence, SPE, Michael Porche, Randall
Thomas, SPE, and Ryan Fox, SPE, NOV
M/D Totco, originally prepared for the
2009 SPE/IADC Drilling Conference and
Exhibition, Amsterdam, 17–19 March. The
paper has not been peer reviewed.
