COIL TUBING DEPLOYED ESP INSTALLATION

TEMBUNGO OFFSHORE PROJECT IN PETRONAS CARIGALI, MALAYSIA

By: Brad Seals, Abdulsalam Alaini, Adel Al Haygana, Anton Shakirov

Abstract: - Increased fluid production and net oil

This paper presents a case study of Alternative
Deployed ESP System Installation performed by
PETRONAS & Alkhorayef Petroleum Company
for an Offshore Project in Tembungo within
PETRONAS’s Fields in Malaysia, during 2009.
WSP WEST-COIL Deployed Systems represent
innovative technologies and require high
expertise levels and multidisciplinary team
work. In this particular case the downhole
assembly was RIH on coil tubing and fluids were
produced through the coiled tubing while
power cable was clamped to the outside of the
coiled tubing (WEST-COIL External Cable
System). This configuration makes ESP
installation rigless, faster and requires less
personnel than ESP systems installed on
conventional tubing joints. The utilization of
WEST-COIL results in significant savings,
especially for Offshore Operations. The
successful installation and commissioning of the
Tembungo Project was a result of outstanding
team work managed by PETRONAS.
Introduction:
gain
- Pressure equalization at the well head
- Well optimization and increased oil
reserve recovery
- No major Capex compared to other
types of AL systems
However, there was one disadvantage to be
considered:
- Some of the platforms do not have
sufficient space or electric power
currently available
Area Maps are shown in the following
Figure 1. In Figure 2 the Tembungo Project
platform is presented.
Figure 1 – PETRONAS Carigali Location Map

The WEST-COIL installation @ Tembungo was

undertaken to convert a Gas Lift System to an
ESP System deployed on Coiled Tubing. The
advantages of this solution were found to be as
follows:

- More efficient type of AL systems in

such applications
- Lower operating cost, compared with
Gas Lift
Figure 2 – Tembungo Project Platform
Tembungo Well A9

The Well A9 is a very gassy well. Its production

is comingled from several zones with different
characteristics. Due to this there is no way to
measure production from the separate zones at
the time of production. Due to low inflow, the
first installation was pulled out and a downsized
unit was installed and is successfully producing.

ESP Design:
Figure 4 – Amount of Free Gas at Intake
ESP design was performed using the latest IHS
SubPUMP software. Detailed sensitivity
analyses were performed to overcome the
uncertainties and possible changes in future
well performance.

Fluid Data:

Figure 5 – Pump performance at TDH

The selected equipment was as follows:

UT PUMP 538 SERIES WE 1500

LT PUMP 538 SERIES WE 1500
GPU PRO-MAX 538 SERIES
The following figures present Tembungo Well GAS SEPARATOR 2B ROTARY TYPE
A9 ESP Design considerations. 540 SERIES PROSEAL BB HIGH LOAD
UT 560 SERIES MOTOR 183HP/2414V/46A

Due to the expected high volume of free gas at

the pump intake it was decided to use a Rotary
Gas Separator together with a highly
engineered Gas Processing Unit (GPU). The
Rotary Gas Separator is a device which is
commonly used to separate heavy phase (fluid)
from light phase (gas) whereas the GPU is a high
speed, multistage centrifugal gas processor that
effectively reduces the size of the gas vapor
Figure 3 – Inflow Performance Relationship
bubbles and keeps them in solution, facilitating
their production through the electric
submersible pump without gas locking.

The selected downhole Motor was an XT1 type

to withstand high ambient temperatures up to
325 deg F (163 deg C) and to avoid motor
overheating under low cooling fluid velocity.
The Motor performance curve is presented on
the following Figure 6.
560 XT1 60 HZ Motor
Performance Curves

3600

3500
RPM

3400 90
Eff

3300

80

PF
110

100 70
EFFICIENCY AND POWER FACTOR PERCENT
NAME PLATE AMPS PERCENT

80 Amperage 60

60 50

Figure 7 –Well Completion Diagram

40 40
System Features:
0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2
LOAD FACTOR

 The Coil Tubing 2 7/8 inch, 5400 ft

Figure 6 – 560 Series XT1 Motor Performance length
- To produce fluids and to deploy
Well Completion: downhole assembly

The Final Well Completion proposal was

 Special CT Clamps
developed according to expected flow
- To support and protect ESP power cable
assurance needs as presented on the following
Figure 7.

Figure 8 – CT Cable Clamp
 Auto Flow Valve
- To by-pass the ESP when the well is
naturally flowing and drain the fluid
when the unit is shut down
Figure 9 – Auto Flow Valve
 DH Sensor Sub Discharge
- To monitor pump Discharge Pressure
along with the readings from the
standard downhole sensor (Intake
Pressure, Intake and Motor
Temperature, Vibrations)
 Cable Spooler
- Electrically powered and hydraulically
operated
Figure 10 – Cable Spooler
 CT Wellhead Equipment (Injector Head,
Goose Neck, Jacking Frame, Coiled
Tubing Reel, Control Cab, Skid Beam
System)
- To operate and control the Coil Tubing
Installation and Pull-out
Figure 11 –CT Wellhead Equipment
 ESP Surface Equipment
- Skid Mounted
- Power Generators
- Variable Speed Drive
- Transformer
- Sensor Surface Readout
 - SCADA system
Figure 12 – ESP Surface Equipment
Process Innovations
- Jacking frame
- Skidding System
- Coiled Tubing Stabbing System
- Estimation of Lifting Injector Head
during workover
- GS for Landing and Pulling Hanger
- Split Hanger System saves time
Results
The currently installed string has been running
for over 5 months as of Apr-2010.
The following Figure 13 presents real time
pressure monitoring data taken from the
downhole sensor. As can be seen, the unit is
running stable even at low intake pressures
while daily measurements are showing the gas
factor always at around 1500 scf/bbl (estimated
percent of free gas at intake is over 80%). Most
shutdowns seen on the below diagram are
related to planned servicing of the generators.
A-9 CT Deployed - Pressures Data (March, 2010)
2500
Intake and Discharge Pressure (psi)
2000
1500 Pi
Pd
1000
500
Figure 13 – Pressures data
Gas Lift converted to ESP CT
Summary table of well produced by Gas Lift
which were converted to ESPCT are shown
below. Oil gain at the Well A-9 has been found
around 250 bblpd.
Figure 14 – Oil Gain with CTESP
Conclusions:

 CT Installation requires less space than

conventional joint tubing deployed
installation as there is no workover Rig
required
 CT Wellhead Equipment is more readily
available than Offshore Rigs and as a
result there is less downtime involved
 Savings of up to 30% have been realized
due to reduced workover time
 Significant Oil Gain has been realized
due to Gas Lift conversion to ESP