BP Exploration Operating Co. Ltd. has drilled the worlds longest extended reach well in Wytch Farm oil field on the U.K.s south coast.
Horizontal reach is 8,035 m.
BP said the well, which reached 8,700 m total measured depth, surpassed the recent record of Norsk Hydro AS, which achieved an extended reach of 7,869 m from Oseberg platform off Norway.
BP drilled its record setting MO5 well from wellsite M on the Goathorn Peninsula, which juts into Poole Harbour. The well was drilled into the Sherwood reservoir, which extends under Poole Bay.
BP used Halliburtons telemetry regulated angle control system (Tracs) in drilling the well.
Wytch Farm development previously broke new ground through extensive use of extended reach drilling to tap an offshore reservoir from land (OGJ, Jan. 3, 1994, p. 30). MO5 is Wytch Farms seventh extended reach well.
The target reservoir is so shallow that the well was drilled at a severe angle before bottoming out into a 2,709 m horizontal section in the reservoir. The well took 115 days to drill.
BP plans to drill another three or four extended reach wells from this site, although this probably will be the longest.
At Oil & Gas Journal presstime last week, the well was being completed for start of production at the end of October.
BP plans to perforate at the far end of the horizontal section to begin production. When the well begins to produce water, it will be recompleted nearer the surface location.
Wytch Farm, with initial reserves of 400 million bbl of oil, produces 100,000 b/d of oil. Copyright 1995 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.
