E21B43/305

METHOD FOR DEVELOPING AN OIL BEARING FORMATION

Rows of horizontal production wells and rows of horizontal injection wells are drilled and alternating in a formation. The horizontal production wellbores and the horizontal injection wellbores are placed in the direction of a minimum horizontal stress in the formation. Within casing strings of the wells, at least two hydraulic frac ports are installed and multi-stage fracturing is performed through them in the production wells and in the injection wells in such way that fractures are formed along each production well and along each injection well in a direction perpendicular to the horizontal wellbore, the hydraulic fractures in the injection wells are offset from the hydraulic fractures in the production wells. The production and the injection wells are put into operation by injecting a fluid into the injection wells, a flow rate and/or a volume of the injected fluid are controlled in such a way that the injection pressure is below a fracturing pressure.

METHOD FOR DRILLING AND FRACTURE TREATING MULTIPLE WELLBORES
20170247990 · 2017-08-31 ·

A method includes completing multiple wellbores in a subsurface formation. The method includes a first wellbore having been drilled along a first selected trajectory through the subsurface formation. The first wellbore is fracture treated. A second wellbore is drilled along a second selected trajectory through the subsurface formation. The second trajectory is laterally spaced from the first trajectory. The second wellbore is fracture treated. A third wellbore is drilled along a third selected trajectory through the subsurface formation. The third trajectory is disposed between the first and second trajectories. The third wellbore is fractured treated such that a fracture network extending therefrom hydraulically connects to fracture networks extending from the first and second wellbores and hydraulically connects the first, second and third wellbores proximate an upper end thereof so that the first, second and third wellbores may all produce fluids.

Proximity calculation in a geoscience domain
09745842 · 2017-08-29 · ·

Systems, methods, and computer-readable media for planning a well are provided. The method includes defining a well in a representation of a domain, and identifying an offset well in the domain that is within a threshold distance of the well. The method also includes deconstructing the offset well into a plurality of offset bases, and determining that a first offset base of the plurality of offset bases is within the threshold distance of the well. The method further includes determining that a second offset base of the plurality of offset bases is not within the threshold distance of the well, and performing a proximity computation for the well with respect to the first offset base but not the second offset base.

Method for forming high efficiency geothermal wellbores

Wellbore synthesis techniques are disclosed suitable for use in geothermal applications. Embodiments are provided where open hole drilled wellbores are sealed while drilling to form an impervious layer at the wellbore/formation interface. The techniques may be chemical, thermal, mechanical, biological and are fully intended to irreversibly damage the formation in terms of the permeability thereof. With the permeability negated, the wellbore may be used to create a closed loop surface to surface geothermal well operable in the absence of well casing for maximizing thermal transfer to a circulating working fluid. Formulations for the working and drilling fluids are disclosed.

ASSESSMENT AND PRODUCTION OF MINERALS BY DIRECTED HORIZONTAL DRILLING
20170241266 · 2017-08-24 ·

Systems and methods for extracting minerals from an underground mineralization zone located below the surface at an oil and gas drilling site. The system includes a vertical drilling means for drilling a vertical bore extending from the surface at the oil and gas drilling site into the mineralization zone, a second horizontal drilling means for drilling at least one horizontal production bore into the mineralization zone. The first horizontal drilling means and the second horizontal drilling means are configured to return material from the mineralization zone to the surface where the mineral content of the material is analyzed and a separator separates minerals, waste and drilling mud from the material. The method includes steps of drilling a horizontal assessment bore, analyzing assessment material for a desired mineral, drilling a horizontal production bore, producing production material containing the desired mineral, and separating the desired material from waste and drilling mud.

Pulsing Pressure Waves Enhancing Oil and Gas Extraction in a Reservoir
20170241247 · 2017-08-24 · ·

A method and system are shown that conditions an underground reservoir to cause oil and gas to increase flow, excites the conditioned underground reservoir with pressure waves to further increase flow, and recovers the oil and gas with the increased flow. The excitation may be done via one or more production wells in synchronism with excitation done via one or more conditioning wells so as to cause constructive interference of the pressure waves and further increase flow.

Continuous circulating concentric casing managed equivalent circulating density (ECD) drilling for methane gas recovery from coal seams
09732594 · 2017-08-15 ·

A method of drilling multiple boreholes within a single caisson, for recovery of methane gas from a coal bed, including the steps of drilling first and second vertical boreholes from a single location within a single caisson; drilling at least one or more horizontal wells from the several vertical bore hole, the horizontal wells drilled substantially parallel to a face cleat in the coal bed; drilling at least one or more lateral wells from the one or more horizontal wells, the lateral wells drilled substantially perpendicular to one or more face cleats in the coal bed; continuously circulating water through the drilled vertical, horizontal and lateral wells to recover the water and entrained methane gas from the coal bed; applying friction or choke manifold to the water circulating down the well bores so that the water appears to have a hydrostatic pressure within the well sufficient to maintain an equilibrium with the hydrostatic pressure in the coal bed formation; and drilling at least a third vertical borehole within the single caisson, with one or more horizontal boreholes and one or more lateral boreholes for returning water obtained from the lateral wells into a water zone beneath the surface.

Geothermal heat mining system
11428441 · 2022-08-30 · ·

A geothermal heat mining system can operate within a single primary borehole in a geothermal reservoir. A primary fluid loop can include a cold working fluid line leading into the primary borehole and a hot working fluid line coming out of the primary borehole. A secondary fluid loop can be located down the primary borehole, where the secondary fluid loop is in thermal contact with the geothermal reservoir and is entirely subsurface. A downhole heat mining device can control a rate of heat transfer from the secondary fluid loop to the primary fluid loop by selectively controlling fluid flow through the primary fluid loop, the secondary fluid loop, or both.

SYSTEM FOR PRODUCTION OF A HYDROCARBONACEOUS FLUID
20170226830 · 2017-08-10 ·

Embodiments of the disclosure pertain to a system for production of a hydrocarbonaceous fluid, the system having a tubing string deployed within a wellbore; a first pump system having a pump assembly operably engaged with a motor; and a control system operably engaged with the first pump system. The pump assembly includes a housing with a stator and rotor disposed therein. The first pump system is operable to aid in production of the hydrocarbonaceous fluid from the wellbore to a production facility.

SW-SAGD with between heel and toe injection
11428086 · 2022-08-30 · ·

Single well SAGD is improved by having one or more injection segments and two or more production segments between the toe end and the heel end of a flat, horizontal well. The additional injection points improve the rate of steam chamber development as well as the rate of production, as shown by simulations of a central injection segment bracketed by a pair of production segments (-P-I-P-), and by a pair of injection segments with three production segments (-P-I-P-I-P). Although the completion of the single well costs more, this configuration allows the development of thin plays that cannot be economically developed with traditional SAGD wellpairs.