Saudi Bop Well Control Manual
Abstract Effective blowout preventer (BOP) requirements and well control policies are crucial in maintaining safe drilling and workover operations. These requirements/policies generally are tailored to the individual oil and gas operator's specific drilling environment. Changes in well profile, depth, temperature, pressure, hydrogen sulfide concentration, and safety margin may require changes in BOP equipment and well control. Saudi Aramco has recently revised their equipment requirements and well control policies in an effort to further optimize drilling safety and efficiency in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
This paper discusses changes in BOP stack arrangements, kill/ choke line requirements, replacement part criteria, elastomer application limits, and use of variable bore rams and shear blind rams. Also included are requirements for number of isolation barriers, pressure testing/maintenance, and minimum overbalance. A new tripping policy and shut-in procedure are also discussed, with the introduction of a new trip sheet and kill sheets. Specific well control policies are provided. Background and Introduction In 1994, Saudi Aramco resumed the Khuff gas development and Pre-Khuff exploration programs, which had been discontinued in the late 1980s. The associated activity level increased from one deep drilling rig in 1994 to twenty-two deep gas rigs at present.
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These gas wells range in total depth from 14,000' to 19,600' with bottom-hole temperatures of 300 to 350 degrees F. Bottom-hole pressures in some formations require as high as 162 pcf mud weight, while 90 to 100 pcf is typically needed to control the gas reservoirs. Shut-in wellhead pressure is approximately 6,000 psi. Hydrogen sulfide (H 2S) concentrations in Khuff wells can reach 20% in some areas. The first Khuff gas horizontal well was drilled and completed in 1997. Thereafter, both horizontal and vertical wells have comprised the deep gas program.
In 1998, two well control incidents occurred and prompted an in-depth operational review. As a result of this study and the continued emphasis on drilling deep gas, BOP and well control policies were revised. A320 flight manual.
Additional revisions were also made as part of an ongoing optimization effort. BOP Stack All standard BOP stacks were reviewed to ensure the equipment complied with accepted industry practices and provided proper well control safety for all drilling/workover applications. Major stack design considerations were evaluated. Among these were pressure rating, component selection and arrangement.
1) Pressure Rating Pressure ratings of the standard BOP stacks are 10,000 psi (high pressure), 5000 psi (medium pressure), and 3000 psi (low pressure) as shown in Figures 1 through 5. Selection of the proper stack is determined by the ‘worst case' pressure containment, which occurs when all the drilling fluid has been evacuated from the annulus and only low-density formation fluid remains. Working pressure rating of the BOP and burst rating of the casing strings (with a 1.33 minimum design factor) were re-verified for all pressure applications to ensure a shut-in capacity greater than the worst pressure condition that could be imposed during a well control incident. No changes were required in the BOP pressure ratings or pressure applications.
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2) Component Selection Main components of the standard BOP stacks include the annular preventer, fixed pipe rams, variable bore rams (VBR), blind rams, shear blind rams (SBR) and drilling spool. Components are selected by the maximum anticipated surface pressure, wellhead temperature, and H 2S concentration.