What is Dry Hole?

Tecnically, dry hole means either discovers no oil

or, uneconomic discovery.
If there is inconclusive well test or there is no well
test, whilst there are oil and/or gas shows reported
or the well contains bypassed zones, then the well
status should be classified as dry hole with
hydrocarbon indication.

Bachtiar et al, 1996

 Is A Post Mortem Urgent?

VS

a) Directionless exploration without a b) The basin model is pivotal at all

strategy for using results of data stages of efficient, cost-effective
acquisition to achieve the exploration exploration: it drives the exploration
objective is costly and inefficient. cycle.

Duff & Hall, 1996

Detailed Exploration Cycle

Duff & Hall, 1996

 Why Do Some Prospects Fail?
Inaccurate
Correlation

Failure to Improper
Integrate All Mapping
Data Technique

Dry
Hole?
Invalid
Failure to
Structure
Use All Data
Analysis

Did Not Map

All Pertinent
Geological
Geological Problems = 97.5% Horizon Tearpock, 2006
 Causes of Dry Hole
No structural or trapping condition found
Reservoir section absent or tight
Objective section lacks hydrocarbon accumulation
Discovery lacks a commercial accumulation of
hydrocarbon
Mechanical problems (drilling or completion) =
2.5%

Tearpock, 2006
 What We Evaluate

Charge Trap Reservoir

presence presence presence

of source of closure of
maturity presence reservoir
of source of seal quality of
migration (top & reservoir
of HC lateral)

Ofstad et al, 2000

 what methods which we are used to analyze
post mortem ??

Pressure GEOCHEMICAL
Mud log analysis Test Verification
analysis ANALYSIS
Gas show Mud weight water salinity Geochemical
Oil show data analysis analysis refers
to laboratory
LOT under-
analysis of well
Formation balanced cuttings or
pressure data reservoir test hydrocarbon
(swab) samples
tool failure
 the Implication and result of post
mortem
A. There are many implications from well postmortem to
increase exploration strategy. For an instance,
1. modification of dry hole status,
2. mapping components of petroleum system and
3. increase in drilling success ratio.

B. Result can be plotted to get a geographic relationship of the

petroleum system of the study area