Maximizing Production Rate

A west Texas E&P producing a well with traditional gas lift was still getting 1,400 bfpd after producing for more than two-and-a-half years. To accelerate revenue, at high commodity prices, without hampering the well’s economic return, the operator wanted to see how best to employ an ESP. Note: the well had a water cut of approximately 95 percent, so there would need to be a significant increase to boost income.

The Process

Believing in competition, the E&P asked five ESP providers to bid on pump sizes and procedures to do this in the most efficient manner. Four of them simply recommended an ESP size that approximated current gas lift production, a 2000 barrel per day unit.

The fifth company, Extract, employed its XSIZE software to compare ESP sizes and discover the well’s true potential. This method revealed that a 3000 bpd pump, double what was coming from gas lift and 50 percent higher than other recommendations, would be the right choice.

The Result

Even with the small oil cut, 3000 bpd equaled more than $100,000 per month of additional revenue. This rate appeared to be sustainable through the time the well would be depleted to 50 percent, a period estimated to be more than 12 months based on the large size of the reservoir—more than $1 million for the year.

The Conclusion

As more and more E&Ps embrace the benefits of big data in decision making, XSize does exactly that. It incorporates and manages extensive well data, then compares that with its deep database of pump information to show operators a range of options, from which they can then make an informed decision.

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About the Company:

Extract is a leading independent provider of electric submersible pump (ESP) and surface pumping technology to the upstream US oil and gas industry.  A combination of reliable equipment, responsive service, and differentiated technology, including XSize NODAL software, helps operators maximize operating cash flow from production assets while reducing emissions.‍

About the Author:

Erik L. Block is VP of Design and Optimization forExtract Companies.  He has over 20 years of oilfield engineering experience focused in drilling, completions, production, and exploitation. At a previous stop, Block developed, marketed, and successfully licensed a gas lift design program utilized by multiple artificial lift vendor companies.

Since joining Extract in 2018 he has primarily focused on developing his gas lift program into XSize. It is now a fully integratedNodal-based sizing package equipped to compare multiple artificial lift types under a wide array of analyses. He has also brought a new perspective to the company, based on his deep experience and technical expertise as an E&P operator.

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