HRH Limited Introduction to Drilling

SECTION 8
DRILLING DEVIATED HOLE

8.1 REASONS FOR DRILLING DEVIATED HOLES

Technically speaking, all wells can be described as “controlled direction wells” since there
are many factors that will cause even planned vertical wells to deviate away from their
intended course. A controlled well path should follow a specific inclination from vertical and
a specific azimuth measured from true north until it reaches it’s desired target (usually a
reservoir rock).

The wellsite engineer responsible for ensuring that this occurs is called the directional
driller. The directional driller is a service company employee. The well path itself is
conceived prior to the commencement of drilling, with the required path being set out by
either the oil company’s well planners or by consultant service personnel.

The simplest (and also cheapest) well to drill is the vertical well, but circumstances often
dictate that such a well may be impractical or even impossible.

VERTICAL SECTION HORIZONTAL SECTION

KOP = 500ft MD
0º (N)

Build Rate = 2.00 º/100ft

Maintain 27.1º @ 1891ft MD

South 19º West

180º (S)

TD 27.1º @ 5436ft

Figure 8-1: Deviated Well Plan

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8.1.1 Offshore Production Wells

On land, production is often achieved by siting many individual wells at different locations
above the reservoir formation. These may then be simply drilled vertically.

Offshore production costs are greatly reduced by siting all the wellheads in a central location
(production platform), and then drilling from here to each zone in the reservoir. To do this a
high degree of sophistication in well planning is required to ensure that the wells do not
intersect each other close to the wellhead. As many as forty well slots may be available from
each platform.

8.1.2 Inaccessible Locations

Even onshore wells may face difficulties in terms of siting the wellhead immediately above
the target, perhaps due to the existence of pre-existing structures in the best location such as a
farmhouse or residential area. Offshore wells are often deviated from jack-up or semi-
submersible exploration rigs because a pipeline runs across the ideal area.

8.1.3 Well Control

Following a blow-out, it is imperative that the flow of hydrocarbon to the surface is stopped
quickly for safety, environmental and financial reasons. If the wellhead itself is relatively
undamaged, it is possible to replace the valves on the wellhead and close the well from the
surface. This is the preferred option, but is impossible where the wellhead has been totally
destroyed and the area around the wellsite has cratered. This is true in both onshore and
offshore situations.

Where surface control is impossible, a directional well called a relief well is drilled from a
rig located at a safe distance from the wild well. The plan here is to try and drill into the
original well and pump high-density fluid into the wellbore from the relief well. Once
sufficient fluid has entered the blow-out well, hydrostatic pressure of the kill fluid should halt
the flow. The success of such a well will depend on the accuracy of the drilling of the relief
well. If actual interception of the blow-out well does not occur, it may still be possible to
pump fluid through the formation between the wells. This will depend also on the
permeability of these formations.

8.1.4 Maintaining Vertical Section

Factors such as strongly contrasting rock matrix across a steeply inclined bedding plane can
cause the bit to deflect away from the vertical through refraction. The bit will always attempt
to follow the path of least resistance as it penetrates the rocks, and so will deviate towards the
weaker matrix.

This and other deviating effects must be recognised and controlled to allow the directional
driller to follow the desired wellpath.

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8.1.5 Sidetracking
Sidetracking is carried out where the current well path has either strayed too far from the
desired path, or where the current well path has become blocked (by junk or stuck drill
string).

With a sidetrack, the azimuth may not be as important as inclination. The deviated section
will not be particularly long, especially where the purpose is simply to move around an
obstruction.

8.1.6 Fault Planes

Fault planes can cause deviation through refraction effects as in the steep-dipping bedding
planes discussed above.

Fault planes may also be unstable, and so threaten damage to any wellbore passing through
them in the event of fault slippage.

The well path may be adjusted to avoid passing through a fault plane.

8.1.7 Salt Cap Rocks

Halite (rock salt) forms an excellent cap rock above a reservoir formation due to it’s lack of
permeability. This can also cause excessively high formation pore pressures to be generated
in the event of fragments of more permeable rock such as dolomite becoming encased within
the salt after the salt has moved (diapirism).

To avoid drilling through the cap rock, the rig may be located at the margins of a salt dome.
The well is then drilled vertically before finally being deviated to drill into the reservoir
under the cap rock.

8.1.8 Production From Multiple Target Formations

If a reservoir is formed from relatively thin steeply-dipping formations separated by
impermeable layers, it will be impossible for a single vertical well to drain all the reservoir
units simultaneously. A well drilled at an angle to vertical can be designed to penetrate all the
different reservoir units and so improve production rates for each well.

8.1.9 Horizontal Drilling

To improve production rates, it is desirable to expose as long a section as possible of the
producing reservoir rock. Since the hydrocarbon-water contact is horizontal in almost all
cases, a horizontal well path should be the most effective drain.

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If a rock incorporates vertical fractures, these can be used to enhance production by drilling
through as many fractures as possible in each well.

Vertical wells create cones as water from below the oil zone is drawn upwards, or gas from
above the oil zone is drawn downwards as production proceeds. Where producing horizons
are thin, this will either interrupt oil production entirely, or will increase processing costs by
introducing the need for fluid separation at the surface. By paralleling the hydrocarbon water
contact a horizontal well will greatly reduce this effect.

8.2 DRILL STRING DESIGNS

Deliberately changing the direction of a well path, and subsequently ensuring that it travels to
the desired location, requires significant changes in drilling practice not least in drill string
design.

Conventional drill strings are formed using a drill bit located below a section of heavy drill
collars to apply weight to the bit, with stabilisers located along the drill collars' length to
ensure that the string remains central in the well. Above the drill collars, heavyweight drill
pipe acts as an interface between the rigid drill collars and the weaker, more flexible drill
pipe.

To deviate a well from vertical, the base of the drill collars section is modified to introduce a
deviating force into the drill string. This force will determine the rate at which the bit will
drill away from the vertical.

collars Neutral Point

HWDP
Neutral Point HWDP
collars

Fig 8-2: Drill Collar Comparison Between Straight and Horizontal Holes
The application of this force until recently meant that rotation from the surface was
impossible. The most convenient way of deviating the well required the introduction of a
bend into the BHA just above the bit. Surface rotation of a bent assembly simply causes a
hole of diameter greater than the drill bit to be created, without any angle change. A system
capable of rotating the bit at the bottom of the hole without any need for surface rotation is

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therefore required. This rotation is provided by a mud motor, located above the bit but below
the bend.

To ensure that the well travels according to the well plan, a monitoring system must be
incorporated to check both the inclination from vertical and azimuth from north. Modern
equipment uses Measurement While Drilling (MWD) systems which measure the
orientation of the tool against the magnetic and gravitational fields of the Earth itself.
Commonly a coded pulse is introduced into the pressure generated by the circulating drill
fluids, which can be decoded at the surface by a computerised processing system linked to the
circulating pressure and depth tracking systems on the rig. This tool will be located
immediately above the bend in the drill collars. The directional driller therefore can track the
well path from the drill floor to the measuring tool.

The measuring tool is used initially to orient the drill bit so that it will travel along the correct
azimuth. This parameter is called the toolface. The directional driller will allow the
inclination from vertical to increase until the bit is at the required angle. This may be any
angle between vertical and horizontal.

Once the desired angle has been achieved, the well will continue at the same angle by
replacing the bent system with a conventional rigid (straight) bottom hole assembly.

If small alterations are required to the well path, the directional driller will usually rotate at
surface with the bent assembly, thus preserving the angle but accepting the larger diameter of
hole produced. To resume angle change, the surface rotation is stopped, the bit re-oriented,
and rotation at the mud motor only will be carried out. Thus the well is drilled as a
combination of “rotating” and “sliding” sections. A drilling assembly capable of such
activity is referred to as a steerable system (section 8.5.1).

More recent developments to improve directional drilling include the introduction of rotary
steerable systems (section 8.5.1).

8.2.1 Horizontal Well Drill String Design

To provide weight to the bit in conventional assemblies, the drill collars are located
immediately above the bit. At angles away from vertical, the effective weight on the bit will
be reduced since the weight is due to the gravitational attraction of the Earth on the drill
string. Gravity acts through the vertical.

In horizontal applications the effective weight would be zero if the drill collars were to follow
the drill bit into the horizontal section. By adding drill collars continually, so that there are
always some collars in the non-horizontal section, one would create drill string weights that
would exceed the capability of the rig when tripping out of the hole.

The collars in horizontal wells are therefore placed in the drill string in such a way that they
remain in the non-horizontal section of the well throughout the anticipated life of the drill

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Tensile
Drill Pipe Loading

Neutral
Point
Fig 8-3: Horizontal Well
Bottom Hole Assembly
Drill
Collars
Compressive Loading Below
Neutral Point to Drill Bit

MWD Survey Mud Motor

HWDP Bit
Tool
Drill Pipe

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bit. Below the drill collars it becomes necessary to employ much lighter pipes than would be
suitable for vertical well drilling.

The action of gravity on the drill collars causes them to exert a downward force that is
transmitted through the pipe below the collars and along the horizontal section to the drill bit.

Item Description OD ID Weight Length

(in) (in) (kg/m) (m)
PDC Bit (DS111) 6.125 195.00 0.17
4 3/4" SperryDrill Lobe 4/5 4.750 2.794 58.77 8.32
4 3/4" Slimphase 4 w/DGR & EWR Phase 4 (LWD Tool) 4.750 2.000 73.93 21.34
6 x HWDP 3.500 2.063 37.64 55.00
93 x DP 4.000 3.340 24.37 848.33
8 x HWDP 4.000 2.563 44.19 74.56
Drilling Jar (Black Max) 4.750 2.000 73.93 2.96
16 x HWDP 4.000 2.563 44.19 149.12
18 x Drill Collar 4.750 2.500 65.47 166.20
4 x HWDP 4.000 2.563 44.19 37.44
Total Length 1363.44

Table 8-1: Example BHA for Drilling Horizontal Section

8.3 FACTORS INFLUENCING WELL DESIGN

The basic factors to be considered are discussed below.

8.3.1 Size and Shape of Target

A smaller target is harder to hit, whether in well-drilling terms or in terms of firing a rifle at a
target. It follows that the well planner must set an achievable target and so should attempt to
determine the well path that will afford the greatest margin for error. Thus a vertical well,
although likely to be cheaper to drill, may not be the best option in terms of locating the
desired formation at TD.

The nature of the target itself, i.e. the trap structure, can also dictate the well path. For
example, it is undesirable to drill through thick accumulations of salt. However, the target
formation may be capped by an overhanging portion of a salt dome. In such circumstances a
deviated well path that allows the well to avoid the salt domes may be a better choice.

The well-path required to give optimum production rates, or to yield maximum useful
geological information, is the primary factor in designing the well as a whole. The well
planner must then create as efficient a well-path as possible to link the surface rig location to
this optimum path.

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8.3.2 Location of Target Relative to Rigsite

Some locations may be impossible to reach via vertical well-paths due to the activity present
at the surface location immediately above the target. In land applications the most favourable
rig location may be where a building already exists. This may be impractical to remove,
necessitating the acquisition of an alternative site and drilling a deviated well into the target.
However, detailed understanding of the structure of the subsurface formations is necessary
before choosing the surface location, as the physically closest location may require drilling
through some complex feature such as a fault plane, for example.

8.3.3 Nature of Formations Through Which Well Must Pass to Reach

Target
Any likely problems such as reactive clays, over-pressured zones, fractured formations, etc.
must be considered. These problems may cause the time required to drill the well to increase
through dealing with problems, may cause a more complex casing program to be required, or
may influence the mud bill.

Some formation types are more conducive to drilling build sections than others.

For example a poorly-cemented, low-pressure, sandstone would be highly subject to erosion

as the well is drilled. This is especially true where the pipe is in contact with the high side of
the hole, and the drill string is being rotated from the surface. This encourages the occurrence
of key-seating.

Low-pressure formations subjected to higher mud densities are more likely to suffer from
higher degrees of drilling fluid filtration. This in turn leads to development of thicker filter
cakes and greater risk of differential sticking.

If high filtration is coupled with key-seating, then the likelihood of differential sticking taking
place increases still further.

To avoid formations like this, the well planner may have to use a well path that kicks off
below the low-pressure sand and builds more rapidly to reach the target. This is both more
difficult and more costly to achieve.

8.3.4 Hole Sizes

Hole-size is an important factor in the hydraulics required to clean the hole, and to make
optimum ROP. The energy expended at the drill bit is expressed as a factor of the bit size.
The total energy at the bit (in hydraulic horsepower) is divided by the cross-sectional area of
the bit. Thus the parameter optimised by the directional driller becomes HHP/in2.

Insufficient energy will fail to dislodge and transport the drill cuttings, especially in high
angle sections. This leads to the development of cuttings beds, where the effective diameter
of the hole is reduced causing potential for stuck drill pipe to develop.

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Reducing hole size increases annular velocities of drilling mud at any given flow rate, thus
improves the hole cleaning effect.

Unfortunately, hole diameter also restricts the degree of bend that may be transported through
the hole. The bend in the directional assembly is essential to the rate at which hole angle can
be built (the dog-leg severity).

8.4 WELL PROFILE

The shape of the well is decided upon after considering the circumstances presented in each
individual case.

8.4.1 Vertical Wells

The simplest option is the vertical well. This is usually selected for exploration and appraisal
well drilling from mobile platforms. Here the wellhead can be positioned directly above the
target formation. There is no requirement to deploy directional drilling tools or personnel,
reducing the well cost significantly.

Vertical wells are only discarded when it is impossible to use the location due to the presence
of some pre-existing structure such as a building. Offshore exploration and appraisal wells
may sometimes be deviated due to the presence of pipelines or other sea-bed facilities at the
optimum location.

8.4.2 Deviated Wells

Well Radius
The rate at which angle is to be increased together with the distance to be travelled, defines
the radius of the well. The terminology associated with the well radius is displayed in Table
8-2 below.

Build Rate (°/100ft) Radius (ft)

Long 2-8 2865-716
Medium 8-30 716-191
Intermediate 30-60 191-95
Short 60-200 95-28

Table 8-2: Well Build Terminology

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Type 1 Well
The simplest deviated well plan is the type 1 well. In this case the well deviates from the
vertical at the kick-off point (KOP) and builds to the desired angle while still at a relatively
shallow depth.
Surface

Vertical Section

Kick-Off Point (KOP)

Build Section

Maintain Section (Tangent)

Lateral Displacement
(Departure)

Figure 8-4: Type 1 Well Profile

Wells of this type can be drilled to moderate depths without intermediate casing through the
build section. Deeper targets will require casing through the build section to protect the hole
from mechanical damage during drilling.

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Figure 8-4 shows the basic profile of the type 1 well.

The build section of both type 1 and type 3 well profiles can be extended to reach horizontal.
The tangent section simply maintains the final angle as before.

Horizontal wells are used regularly in production to increase the exposed producing
formation and hence improve daily production rates. Careful positioning of the well path
within the oil or gas zone can reduce the impact of gas or water production. Steeply dipping
layered reservoirs, or reservoirs characterised by vertical fracturing are also improved
through the use of horizontal well paths.

Type 2 Well (“S” Well)

Vertical Section

Build Section

Maintain Section

Drop Section

Vertical Section

Lateral Displacement

Figure 8-5: Type 2 Well Profile

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This profile is more complex in that it requires an additional curved section called the drop
section. Calculation of the displacements of the well are therefore more complicated in that
the length of the maintaining section between build and drop must be correctly determined to
ensure that the drop section returns the well to vertical at the point where the well must enter
the target.

As with the type 1 well above, the kick-off point and initial build section of this well profile
take place at relatively shallow depth.

A well of this type may be drilled to enter the reservoir vertically as in a conventional
exploration well. The justification for this can be related to the expected permeability of the
reservoir unit, or to the stresses experienced by the reservoir formations.

Wells to be fractured or gravel packed, or to be completed in weak formations benefit from

near-vertical trajectories rather than extended sections.

Horizontal or near-horizontal layered reservoirs will also require near-vertical well paths at
the point of reservoir entry.

Type 2 wells allow the rig-site to be displaced some distance laterally from the target.

Type 3 Well Profile

The shape of the type 3 profile is effectively that of the type 1 well, but the kick-off point is
located at some depth in the well-bore. This is often used when the cap rock is an
overhanging salt dome through which the well planner would prefer not to drill.

Selection of type 3 over type 1 can also be influenced by the nature of the formations in
which the well is expected to turn. Poorly consolidated formations will not resist the drilling
actions as effectively as compacted formations, so the build rate required may only be
possible at greater depth.

The casing programme must also be considered when designing the well in that the casings
are required to control pore and fracture pressure regimes, and/or to isolate problem
formations such as low pressure permeable rocks (e.g. sandstones) or water-swelling clays.
Thus the casing program cannot be altered to fit the well path. For geological reasons it may
therefore be better to use type 3 rather than type 1 profiles.

The well should not be cased during a build section as this introduces unnecessarily complex
engineering issues. Better to complete the turn before setting casing, allowing the well
section following the casing shoe to be drilled at constant angle. Detailed knowledge of the
formation types and properties throughout the well is therefore required to ensure that all
directional changes are planned to coincide with the most suitable formations.

Clearly this information will not be available in strictly exploration well situations, so the
plan should be as flexible as possible. This is another reason for selecting a vertical well path
in the majority of exploration and appraisal wells.

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In very variable formation sequences, it may be unavoidable to exclude all problematic zones
from the build section. However, the build section can be staged to allow rotary drilling
through problems zones with a return to sliding in the more suitable formations below.
Surface

Vertical Section

Build Section

Maintain Section

Figure 8-6: Type 3 Well Profile

Azimuthal Correction
The well azimuth must also be engineered. This may appear straightforward on paper, but
geological situations can cause the well to alter it’s azimuth as it proceeds. This phenomenon

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is called walk. A well-path designed to take the most direct route from beginning to end will
therefore require continual steering adjustments to compensate for this walking tendency.

At an early stage in the drilling of a prospect, this tendency will be unknown, but after several
wells it may become possible to plan the well-path to use the walk tendency to bring the well
to the correct target point by itself, or with minimum correction.

8.5 KICK OFF

The process by which the well is initially deviated away from the vertical is called kicking
off. The depth at which this occurs is the kick-off point (KOP).

The kick off assembly will have a suitable bit, followed by a mud motor to provide rotation
using the flow of drilling fluid through the motor. The next section may be a small drill collar
incorporating a bend, or may be a more specialised steerable system. The size of bend angle
will depend on how quickly the directional driller wishes the angle to change. This rate of
change of angle is called build (or dog-leg severity). The diameter of the hole will also affect
the degree of bend that will fit into the well.

To maximise the angle available, some mud motors currently in use have the bend
incorporated in them, since greater angle is available as the bend gets closer to the bit.

Of course, the drill string components must be flexible enough to bend around the hole
created.

If the kick off is intended at the bottom of the hole, the directional driller will simply rotate
the drill string at the surface until the MWD toolface indicates that the bit is orientated in the
correct direction. The bend in the BHA will force the bit against the side of the hole in that
direction, thus the bit will begin to drill away from the vertical.

In wells where the reason for deviating is due to hole problems, the bottom of the well will
not be available. The cement engineer will inject a plug of cement, perhaps 100 m long, such
that the top of the plug coincides with the top of the desired kick off window. For this to
succeed the cement plug must be harder than the formation that is to be side-tracked into.

Once this plug is set, the directional driller will kick off against the plug in the same way as
described for conventional kick off above.

8.6 BUILDING AND DROPPING ANGLE

8.6.1 Bent System

The original bent systems incorporated a specialised short length of drill collar (the bent
sub). This was located above the bit and motor so that the bend forced the bit to travel in the
required direction. The motor allowed the drill string above the bend to remain fixed so that
the biasing force was continually applied in the same direction. Unfortunately, once the

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correct angle had been created, it was necessary to replace the deviating assembly with a
straight assembly to maintain this angle.

MWD Tool

Bent Sub

Motor

Bend Angle
Bit

Figure 8-7: Bent Sub Deviation Assembly

8.6.2 Bent Steerable System

The location of the bend with respect to the bit controls the rate at which angle can be built,
for any given degree of bend.

The modern steerable system places the bend within the housing of the mud motor itself, thus
placing the deviating point much closer to the cutting face. This is done to minimise the bend
angle required to produce the desired build rate. By placing a full-gauge bit on the end of the
BHA, there is a limit to the degree of bend possible that will pass through the diameter of the
already-drilled hole.

A smaller bend angle placed closer to the bit presents a smaller apparent diameter and so
passes more easily through the hole.

The directional driller can alter the angle of the well relatively easily if a steerable bent
system is used in the well. Simply stopping drilling and re-orienting the toolface in the new
direction (using MWD signals) allows him to kick off again. In this way the bit can be made
to travel upwards, downwards, to the left, or to the right (sliding mode). This is known as a
steerable system.

Once the desired angle has been produced, the driller then rotates the drill string from the
surface (rotating mode). This causes the bit to rotate off-centre and thereby removes the
biasing effect created by the bend. Without this bias the well is drilled maintaining the last
angle produced by the deviating process.

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Stabilisers
MWD Tool

Bit

Bend in Motor Housing

Figure 8-8: Steerable Bent System

8.6.3 Rotary Steerable System

Bent systems revolutionised directional drilling by replacing both the need for whipstocks to
initiate hole-build and the need to trip out of the hole to change angle. However, it has now
become obvious that in some wells the bent system technology increases costs and restricts
the eventual distance that may be drilled through excessive torque and drag effects.
This has been addressed by the directional drilling tool manufacturers, with the introduction
of rotary steerable systems during the period since 1997. These include the Baker Hughes
Inteq AutoTrak system, and the Schlumberger PowerDrive system. Rotary systems mean
that there is no need to rely on downhole motors for hole build sections of the well (sliding).
The drill string can be rotated continually at surface, agitating the drill cuttings on the bottom
of the hole and so improving hole cleaning.

Additional advantages include the absence of ledges in the wellbore caused by the alteration
of hole diameter associated with the transition from surface rotation (higher diameter "over-
gauge" wells) to downhole-only rotation (in-gauge wells). Greater ROP can be achieved since
there is no need to modify drilling fluid hydraulics to create angle. Thus the bit can be
optimised for ROP.

The alteration of hole angle is achieved by passing the rotary drive system through a fixed
(non-rotating) sleeve in the AutoTrak system. This sleeve incorporates three stabiliser pads
that are extended or retracted by the action of computer controlled pistons. This forces the bit
in the desired direction. The stabiliser pads can be adjusted by mud pressure signals initiated
at the surface.

The PowerDrive tool has a rotating stabiliser whose pads are continually operated to maintain
the necessary biasing contact against the borehole walls.

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Integral MWD System

Near Bit
Inclination
Sensor

Downhole
Computer

AutoTrak PDC
Drill Bits

Figure 8-9: Baker Hughes Inteq AutoTrak Rotary closed Loop drilling
System

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8.6.4 Stabiliser Position

There are alternatives to running with a bent assembly, however. Stabilisers can be used to
change the angle depending on their relative positions in the BHA.

Upward Tending
Force

Near Bit Stabiliser

Fulcrum
Gravitational Attraction
Point

Figure 8-10: Building Angle Through Stabiliser Position

Angle can be increased using stabilisers by placing one stabiliser just above the bit (near bit
stabiliser) and one close to the top of the BHA, with none in the middle. Gravity will pull on
the section of collars between the stabilisers. The near bit stabiliser acts as fulcrum point,
driving the bit upwards.

In a well where the angle is already large, it may become necessary to return closer to
vertical. By locating stabilisers close to the top of the drill collars, but having none closer to
the bit, a fulcrum effect is set up. The action of gravity will pull the bit and drill collars
located below the bottom stabiliser downwards. The bottom stabiliser acts as the fulcrum
point. The bit is therefore encouraged to drill downwards. An advantage of this system is that
all rotation can be performed at the surface, negating the need to rent an expensive mud
motor system.

Neither of the above systems would be suitable for kick off purposes.

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Fulcrum
Point

Downward Tending
Force

Gravitational Attraction

Figure 8-11: Dropping Angle Through Stabiliser Position

8.6.5 Adjustable Stabilisers

A significant cost saving in hole angle control was introduced when adjustable stabilisers
were created. The first company to produce these tools was Andergauge, in the mid-1980's.

Fig 8-12: Andergauge Adjustable Stabiliser

The diameter of the stabiliser blades can be altered remotely through a combination of
tension on the tool coupled with the circulating pressure in the system. The tool locks in place
at the desired diameter. Thus the fulcrum point can be switched between stabilisers within the
BHA in response to adjustments in the adjustable system.

Since there is no need to retrieve this BHA, the number of trips required to control well angle
is significantly reduced, while no motor system need be used.

8.6.6 Whipstocks
To avoid the use of a motor for kick off, a device called a whipstock can be inserted into the
well. This can be oriented such that the toolface is in the desired angle in much the same way
as the bent assembly is oriented. The whipstock is essentially a wedge located at the bottom

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of the well, against which the bit and drill collars will slide. The slope of the wedge guides
the drill staring away from the vertical.

Once the well is no longer vertical, angle can be further modified using stabilisers as
described above. Some whipstocks are retrievable, while others are not.

The disadvantage of re-positioning stabilisers in the BHA is that the drill string must be
tripped out of the hole to perform the required changes. This can be expensive in rig time.

8.7 SURVEYS
Drilling deviated hole is worthless unless the precise location of the bit with respect to drill
floor and target location is known at all times. Survey tools allow the directional driller to
monitor the inclination of the well measured in degrees from vertical (0° represents vertical)
plus also the azimuth of the well measured from magnetic north. The latter is recalculated
into azimuth from true north during the data processing.

A variety of tools are available which can deliver single measurements or multiple
measurements. Where time is critical, for example during a build section, the measurements
can be delivered at the surface virtually instantaneously, or can be obtained by retrieving the
tool from the BHA during a tripping operation.

8.7.1 Magnetic Single Shot

This tool provides toolface orientation, inclination and azimuth data.

A mule shoe assembly inside the tool’s collar is designed to orient the measuring device with
the scribed line on the drill collar representing toolface direction. The tool itself is lowered
down the inside of the drill pipe until it reaches the mule shoe. The shaped tool is then guided
into the correct location in the collar. Orientation of the tool can now be equated with
orientation of the toolface itself.

Inclination from vertical is measured using a pendulum assembly, and azimuth is read from
a magnetic compass card located beneath the pendulum. The card is free to rotate within it’s
housing inside the tool. A tool of this type requires a non-magnetic drill collar (e.g. monel).
A photograph of the pendulum position superimposed onto the magnetic card is taken when
the string is static in the well. A template indicating degrees from vertical of the tool relative
to the pendulum is also incorporated into the photo.

Toolface is also displayed against the compass card.

Where magnetic interference cannot be avoided (for example if the tool is inside casing, or
the well path is very close to an adjacent well), an indirect survey can still be made using this
equipment. Basically in this situation the compass card data is ignored. Inclination is
unaffected by magnetic effects. Tool face is related to high side in this case rather than to
north, since the pendulum bob will always reveal the direction of the high side of the hole.

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8.7.2 Magnetic Multi-shot

This tool allows measurements to be made at a number of depths in the well. The tool can
either be landed into a location within the drill string via a wireline, or can be run in open
hole as a wireline tool. In both cases measurements are made as the tool is brought out of the
hole.

The operating principle of the measuring system is basically that of the single shot tool, with
the added facility to replace the films and take more photos. Typically a tool is designed to
take one picture per minute, although alternative settings are available. The engineer
operating the tool employs a stop-watch which allows him to determine when each photo is
being taken. The depth of each photo can then be related to the photo itself by keeping careful
records at the surface based on the length of sting pulled, or the wireline speed

The muli-shot tool enables the directional driller to see an accurate profile of the full well
path. The disadvantage of this is that it cannot be used as part of the well correction
procedure as the multi-shot is only run at bit trips, or even at casing point.

Measurement While Drilling (MWD) tools allow easy access to the same, or greater, volume
of data as provided by the multi-shot tool, with the added advantage of being available at the
time when course correction can be applied.

8.7.3 Gyroscope
Since no relationship to the earth’s magnetic field is required in a gyroscopic tool, this type of
survey is useful where data inside casing are required. In this case the compass card is set up
at surface to refer to a known direction. The gyroscope is maintained during operation by a
small electric motor. Photos of the pendulum bob, toolface, etc are taken and interpreted as
with the magnetic tool described above. Note that if a controlling wireline is incorporated in
this system, an additional benefit is that a surface readout of inclination and azimuth becomes
available.

8.7.4 Wireline Steering Tool

A tool of this type is only practical when a downhole motor is in use and no surface rotation
will be required. The wireline is connected to the survey tool in the BHA directly, either
down the annulus or down the inside of the drill string, depending on the manufacturer of the
tool.

Where the wireline is intended to go down the string, the steering probe is lowered down the
inside of the drill string and seats in a mule shoe. The wireline enables toolface, inclination
and azimuth data to be transmitted to the surface where it can be displayed. A major
advantage of this data is that reactive torque effects on well path can be recognised and
easily compensated for. Reactive torque means that when rotation of the bit commences, a
twist effect will deviate the bit from the originally orientated direction. The directional driller
is aware of this phenomenon, and uses charts, or more recently software, to allow for the
degree of twist based on the weight on bit and rotary speed applied to the bit. However this

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compensation is theoretical, and may require further correction when the drilling operation
commences to ensure that the well follows the planned path.

The advantage of the annular mounted wireline is that the tool can be installed in the string
when the BHA is made up, so need not waste time being lowered into the string when
connections are required.

8.7.5 Measurement While Drilling

Figure 8-13: Geolink MWD Tool and Surface System

Measurement While Drilling tools are easily the most economical in terms of rig time as the
tool is built into the BHA as the string is run into the hole, and need not be retrieved after
each survey.

The tools incorporate three mutually perpendicular magnetometers and three mutually
perpendicular accelerometers to determine the tool’s orientation to the earth’s magnetic and
gravitational fields respectively. The tool processing system evaluates the strength of the
field lines in each plane, and converts this into a numerical value. Tool temperature is also
measured and encoded. Tool face is based upon the orientation of the tool with respect to an
engraved scribe line on the tool collar.

Data is transmitted to the surface in a variety of ways, depending on the tool design. The
most commonly used method involves introducing alterations into the circulating pressure
in the system, which are measurable at surface. At a fixed pump speed, the circulating
pressure (or standpipe pressure, SPP) should remain constant when the drill sting is stationary
in the hole. The string must be kept stationary, and especially not rotated, during the survey

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to allow the field strengths in each plane to be accurately measured. Once the data is encoded,
a pulser system causes a jet nozzle linking the tool inside the BHA with the annulus to close.
The closure of this additional jet means that fluid passage through the system becomes more
restricted, so the circulating pressure will rise while the nozzle is closed. Such a tool is
called a positive pulse system.

Some companies use a system where the pulses created cause reductions in pressure
(negative pulse systems). The preference in the industry tends to be towards the alternative
positive pulse systems. To produce a negative pulse, the jet is run normally in the closed
position, and opened only to create the pulse. In the positive pulse system the jet is normally
run open, and only closed when a pulse is required.

Regardless of how the pulse is formed, it is the time interval between pulses which denotes
the numerical value being transmitted, ie larger numbers are represented by longer time
intervals between pulses. To keep the number of digits being transmitted as small as possible,
they are usually quoted in a number system such as hexidecimal (base 16).

Surface detection requires a pressure-measuring device to be located at the standpipe

manifold that is capable of detecting accurately variations of a few hundred psi. The sensor
output is fed into the surface computer system, where variations in pressure caused by
phenomena such as pump noise can be filtered out, and the data pulses enhanced. The time
between pulses can then be accurately assessed, and the resulting digits converted into
decimal (base 10) data outputs of inclination from vertical (gravitational field), azimuth from
north (magnetic field strength) and also tool temperature and tool face.

Additional processing to convert magnetic north azimuth to true north azimuth is also
carried out at this time.

The entire process, from stopping drilling to begin the survey until the final results are printed
out at the surface, can be as little as two minutes.

8.8 COMPLEX WELL-PATHS

8.8.1 Late Stage Production Wells

Further consideration must be given to the location of pre-existing wells in the area between
the surface location and target. This is generally a production well problem that introduces
greater need for steering operations to be carried out at several different points in the well.

This is said to increase the tortuosity of the well-path.

8.8.2 Extended Reach Drilling

Wells are sometimes required to progress at very high angle over extreme lengths. Such wells
are termed extended reach wells. The classification of extended reach wells is based on the
ratio of TVD to reach.

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TVD

Reach

Figure 8-14: Extended Reach Well Profile

Classification Reach/TVD Ratio

Conventional Directional Drilling <2
Extended Reach 2-3
Extreme Extended Reach >3

Table 8-3: Suggested Classification of Extended Reach Wells

Limiting factors on the distance that may be drilled include torque and tension on the drill
string, together with the capabilities of the drilling rig itself.

Consequently, advances in drilling fluid additives and drill string design have led to torque
reductions allowing ever-greater departures to be made. Improved drilling fluid hydraulics
also ensures that cuttings are removed more effectively, thus reducing the tightening of the
hole caused by the formation of cuttings beds.

For the purposes of hole cleaning, flow rates must be used in the well that would be
unacceptably large in conventional well drilling. The onset of turbulence improves hole
cleaning by dislodging cuttings from the low side of the hole. The faster fluid velocities are
also more capable of propelling these cuttings into the non-horizontal sections of the well and
hence out of the hole.

Rotary steerable systems such as the Baker Hughes Inteq AutoTrak or Schlumberger
PowerDrive also lead to improvements in reach through the removal of alterations in hole
size associated with the more conventional rotate and slide patterns of bent-motor steerable
systems.

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8.8.3 Designer Wells

These have all the difficulty of extended reach wells, with the added problems associated
with azimuthal steering to enable the well to penetrate multiple targets inaccessible in a
straight line, or to follow curved structures to maximise production from the minimum of
well-bores.

A good example of a designer well with complex directional requirements was discussed in a
paper by Tribe et al (2001) presented at Offshore Europe in September 2001. In this well cost
was a significant factor in the success of the well. No hole problems, particularly stuck pipe,
could be tolerated. Side-tracking was considered to be economically disastrous to the wells
profitability.

The well was designed to follow a structure whose crest curved laterally, necessitating a
significant alteration in azimuth of the near horizontal well-bore. A further small target was
to be penetrated after the well departed the main target zone.

To reduce torque and drag, improve the shape of the well, and avoid the development of
cuttings beds where the hole gauge is altered when moving from rotation to sliding mode, a
rotary steerable system was selected. LWD tools were to be used to geo-steer the well using
resistivity to locate and follow the “sweet spot”, i.e. the level within the reservoir where the
hydrocarbon type was most desirable. By keeping top within a meter of the roof of the
structure, it was hoped to minimise production of water through coning.

As the well approached the target, the angle was increased, while the LWD real time data
informed the surface team of the changes in formation. The desired resistivity response
indicating the pay zone was located several metres deeper than the initial well plan had
predicted. Once the pay was identified, the well was steered using the resistivity responses to
locate and follow the pay zone.

The LWD density tools were capable of measuring formation density both above and below
the tool. By comparing the peaks created by changes in formation cementation (hardness), the
dip of the beds could be calculated by combining the MD offset of the density peaks for the
same formation with the orientation of the LWD tool itself.

The formation model was continually re-assessed by the wellsite team together with a shore-
based team receiving the drilling and LWD data in real-time via satellite communications.

The quoted results of the well exceeded the initial plans considerably. Had a conventional
drilling assembly been used without the ability to geo-steer the well, the pay zone would have
been intercepted by the original planned well path several hundred metres MD later than was
actually the case.

No hole problems were encountered, and torque and drag were well within acceptable limits.

Thus a greater investment in state-of-the-art technology in this case allowed a strictly

marginal prospect to be drilled and completed as a profitable target.

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8.8.4 Example Well Program

The well program below represents a typical offshore well drilled in the deeper waters of the
North Sea. This well has been selected to show some of the more complex program situations
that may be required with offshore drilling. All of the considerations required for land-based
drilling are also covered in this plan.

The well is scheduled to kick off at 1725m MD in the 17 1/2" section. Angle is then built to
the required value and the well then drilled maintaining this angle into the target. This is
therefore a type 1 well as discussed above. If the kick-off were deeper, then this could have
been of the type 3 profile.

13 3/8” casing is to be set at 2225m MD in this well, i.e. after the build section has been
completed. The casing will then protect the potentially fragile sandstones between 1600m and
2200m from the wear expected in a build section. It is therefore more likely that 13 3/8”
casing is set for well stability reasons related to the directional portion of the well rather than
for pore pressure or fracture pressure reasons.

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DIL-SLS-GR-CAL
LDL-CNL-GR
OBDT, RFT, VSP, CST as
required

Figure 2-5: Typical Well Plan

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