Introduction 

:
Oil and gas play a very important and capital role in the industry of countries around the
world. Until now, drilling has remained the only way and the only method to extract and
exploit these sources of energy.
At one time, it was assumed all oil wells were essentially vertical or the bottom of the hole
was directly under the drilling rig. The petroleum industry did not become fully aware of
deviated well problems until the development of the Seminole, Oklahoma field. The wells in
this field were drilled very close together and as a result wells were drilling into one another,
and ones which were already producing. Deviations as high as 46º from vertical were
measured in the Seminole wells. The average deviation from vertical was approximately 13°.
Directional drilling began emerging in the late 1920's when curvey instruments were
developed that could measure both inclination and azimuth.

Directional drilling has become a very important tool in the development of oil and gas
deposits. Current expenditures for hydrocarbon production have dictated the necessity of
controlled directional drilling to a much larger extent than previously.
Furthermore, the most important aspect of controlled directional drilling is that it enables
producers all over the world to develop subsurface deposits that could never be reached
economically in any other manner.

And, in order to understand very well the subject, we ask these following questions that we
will take them step by step deeply in this research.

What do they mean by a directional drilling?

And what’s the various types of wells and applications of directional wells?
 Historical Development of Directional Drilling:
Directional drilling was initially used as an operation restorative,
for a sidetrack around a poison (correction of the verticality of a
well).
In 1930, the first controlled directional well was drilled in
Huntington Beach, California, USA.
The well was drilled from an onshore location into offshore oil sands. Controlled directional
drilling had received rather unfavorable publicity until it was used in 1934 to kill a wild well
near Conroe, Texas, USA.
As a result. Directional drilling became established as one way to overcome wild wells, and it
subsequently gained favorable recognition from both companies and contractors.

Modern directional drilling techniques have refined this process by using

drill bits that can bend to better accommodate non-vertical angles.
Additional technologies, such as the use of hydraulic jets that adjust and
guide the drill direction, have further improved the efficiency and reliability
of this process.
Today, drill operators can use computers to adjust the angle of the drill bit
in real-time, and can even use GPS signals to pinpoint the exact location of
an oil and gas field. Using advanced software programs, engineers can
create 3-D models of the oil fields to determine the optimal location for the
well, as well as the best possible entry point for directional drilling.
Furthermore, directional drilling can be much more cost-effective. Oil rigs
and their staff sometimes have day rates that are upwards of hundreds of
thousands of dollars. With directional drilling, one rig alone may be able to
work up to five or ten square miles (compared to having a dozen or more
vertical rigs).

Definition of Directional Drilling:

Directional drilling is the science and the art of deviating a wellbore along from a starting
location in the surface to a target location in the reservoir such as both defined with a given
coordinate system; in other words Directional drilling is the technique for following a
trajectory given until the imposed objective is reached (a planned target according to the
reservoir).

The main benefit of directional drilling is that it enables companies to

exploit multiple oil reservoirs with a single well, thereby reducing the total
cost of drilling while also limiting the
environmental impact of drilling.

How do we do a Directional Drilling

(Description of a directional drilling):
Drilling a directional well basically involves drilling a
hole from one point in space (the surface location) to
another point in space (the target) in such a way that
the hole can then be used for its intended purpose.

From the picture we can see that a typical directional well starts off with a vertical hole, then kicks off
(kick off point) so that the bottom hole location may end up hundreds or thousands of feet or meters
away from its starting point.

Directional well Applications:

1- Sidetracking:
Sidetracking was the original directional drilling technique used to get past fish (obstructions).

Also, the most common type of sidetracking, are performed when there are unexpected changes in
geology and obstructions in the path of the wellbore.

In other words, sometimes there is an obstruction or some materials fail in the hole like the Dp or
any failure of Dp, or drill string, So due to this problem we can’t reach the reservoir, as consequence
we decide to make a Sidetracking with an angle to avoid this issue and reach the target without
closing the hole.

2- Inaccessible Locations  :
Inaccessible locations such as targets located beneath cities, rivers or environmentally sensitive areas
make it necessary to locate another drilling rig some distance away from the target and decide to
make a directional drilling so we can reach the reservoir.
 3- Salt Dome Drilling:
A salt dome is a mound or column of salt that has intruded upwards into overlying sediments.
Salt domes can form in a sedimentary basin where a thick layer of salt is overlain by younger
sediments of significant thickness.
The development of salt domes can deform rock units into traps that hold oil and natural gas.
So we use a directional drilling to reach the trapped reservoir to prevent the problems
associated with drilling a well through the salt formation such as washouts, lost circulation,
and corrosion.

4- Fault controlling:
Some fault surfaces contain relatively coarse rubble that can act as a conduit for migrating oil
or gas, whereas the surfaces of other faults are smeared with impermeable clays or broken
grains that can act as a fault seal. So, we drill a directional well into faulted subsurface
formations without crossing the fault line.

5- Multiple Exploration Wells from A Single Wellbore:

Multiple exploration wells from a single wellbore use a single
hole to drill multiple new wells by deviating away from the
original well at a certain depth. It allows the exploration of
structural locations without drilling another complete well so
that will save a lot of time and money and people.
 6- Relief Wells  :
When the well is kicked out as uncontrolled well then the well is blowing and there is a fire
on it so it requires to shut down this well, as consequent a carefully planned directional well
must be drilled with great precision to locate and intercept the blowing well’s borehole.

7- Onshore Drilling to offshore Drilling:

This case happen when we have a reservoir which is located below a large bodies of water, so
to avoid drilling with an offshore rig, we make a directional drilling to reach the target and to
save more money.

8- Offshore Multiwell Drilling  :

Offshore multiwell drilling is the most economical way to develop offshore fields.

Several directional wells are drilled in "clusters" on a single multiwell offshore platform.

9- Multilateral Wells  :
Multilateral wells have several wellbores running laterally and originating from one original hole. So
here we can produce from the same layer from the right to the left with a single land rig.

10- Horizontal wells:

Horizontal wells are used to intersect a producing formation horizontally to better produce the
reservoir by increasing the surface area of a producing formation.

Features of a directional well profile:

A directional well profile is the planned well trajectory from the surface to the final drilling depth by
projecting the wellbore onto two plotted planes. In order to determine the best geometric well
profile from the surface to the bottom hole target, the following information must be known:

 The true vertical depth (TVD).

 The position of the target location (reservoir).
 The position of the surface location (Rig, wellhead installation).
Kickoff Point (KOP): The kickoff point is the location at a given depth below the surface where the
wellbore is leaving the verticality and deviated in a given direction.

Well Inclination: The well inclination is the angle by which the wellbore deviates from the vertical.

End of Buildup (EOB): The end of buildup is the location where the wellbore has finished increasing.

Hold Angle: The hold angle occurs where the inclination of the borehole is held constant.

Tangent Section: The tangent section (hold section) occurs after a buildup where the inclination of
the borehole is held constant for a certain distance.

Start of Drop: The start of drop is the location where the wellbore starts dropping inclination.

End of Drop (EOD): The end of drop is the location where the wellbore finishes dropping inclination.

Target Displacement: The target displacement is the lateral distance from the surface location to the
target.

Target Location: The target location is a point defined in space by geographical coordinates at a given
true vertical depth.

Drop off Rate (DOR): The drop off rate is the rate at which the inclination decreases. The rate is
usually expressed in degrees per 100 Ft or degrees per 30 m of the course length.

True Vertical Depth (TVD): TVD is the vertical distance from the well surface reference point to the
station of interest.

Measured Depth (MD): MD is the distance from the well surface reference point to the station of
interest along the actual well path.

Horizontal Displacement (HD): The horizontal displacement is the distance between any two points
along a wellbore projected onto a horizontal plane or plan view.

Azimuth: The azimuth is the angle in the horizontal plane measured from a fixed reference direction
(such as True North).

R: radius of curvature.

DLS (dog leg): indicate the rate of angle buildup in (°/100 Ft). The DLS increase when R
decrease.

We resume all of these definitions in this picture to understand more:

 Types of Directional Well Profiles:
TYPE I WELLS:

Type I wells are made up of a kick off point, one buildup section and a tangent section up to the target.
They are also called Build and Hold Trajectory or L Profile Wells (as it is L - shaped). These wells are
drilled vertically from the surface to kick-off point at a relatively shallow depth.

From the kick off point, the well is steadily and smoothly deflected until a maximum angle and the
desired direction are achieved (BUILD).  Then, if desired, casing is run and cemented.  Further, the
established angle and direction are maintained (HOLD) while drilling up to the target depth.

Usually this method is employed when drilling shallow wells with single producing zones.
TYPE II WELLS
Type II wells are made up of a vertical
section, a kick- off point, a build-up
section, a tangent section, a drop-off
section and a hold section up to target.
They are also called S Profile Wells
(as they are S - shaped). Like Type I
Wells, the Type II wells are drilled
vertically from the surface to the kick-
off point at a relatively shallow depth.
From the kick off point, the well is
steadily and smoothly deflected until a
maximum angle and the desired
direction are achieved (BUILD). The angle and direction are maintained until a specified
depth and horizontal departure has been reached (HOLD). Then, the angle is steadily and
smoothly dropped (DROP) until the well is near vertical. Finally the angle and direction is
maintained till we reach the target depth.
This type of well is drilled to improve the efficiency of the well and to assist in the location of
a blown-out well. In offshore drilling, S-type wells can ensure accuracy in bottomhole spacing
when multiple wells are drilled from the same platform.

TYPE III WELLS

Type III wells are made up of a vertical section, a deep kick off and a build up to target. They are also
called Deep Kick off wells or J Profile wells (as they are J - shaped). They are similar to the Type I well
except the kickoff point is at a deeper depth. The well is deflected at the kickoff point, and inclination is
continually built through the target interval (BUILD). The inclinations are usually high and the
horizontal departure low.
This type of well is generally used for multiple sand zones, fault drilling, salt dome drilling, and
stratigraphic tests. It is not used very often.
TYPE IV WELLS
Type IV wells are made up of anyone of the above profiles plus a horizontal section within the
reservoir. They are also called Horizontal wells or Horizontal Directional Wells.
A horizontal well is a well which can have any one of the above profiles plus a horizontal section
within the reservoir.
The horizontal section is usually drilled at 90 degrees and therefore the extra maths involved is quite
simple as we only need the measured length of the horizontal section to calculate the total well
departure and total measured depth.
Horizontal drilling is used to produce thin oil zones with water or gas coning problems, used to
increase productivity from low permeability reservoirs by increasing the amount of formation exposed
to the wellbore, used to maximize production from reservoirs which are not being efficiently drained
by vertical wells and to connect the portions of the reservoir that are productive. 

Advantages and Disadvantages of Directional Drilling:

 Directional drilling can be especially useful in situations where the
underground reservoir has an abnormal shape and vertical entry is
considered impractical.

 Directional drilling may also be preferable if there have been concerns

expressed by residents living near the surface drill sites.

 By limiting the number of surface wells used, directional drilling reduces soil
disturbance and can make the oil extraction process less disruptive to nearby
residents and other stakeholders in the vicinity. By reducing the fractures to
existing rock formations, directional drilling also reduces the contamination of
groundwater pollution, further protecting the ecosystem and adjacent areas.

 Because directional drilling can permit a single location to be used to access

multiple underground reservoirs, it can enable oil companies to explore
smaller and less-proven reserves that would otherwise not be economical to
access. Depending on the location, directional drilling can produce greater
amounts of oil and gas.

 In addition to allowing companies to access reserves that might otherwise be

inaccessible, directional drilling can also contribute to site safety. By creating
boreholes far in advance of the mine face in question, directional drilling can
allow companies to reduce the risk of gas ruptures while developing a new
well.

On the other hand, directional drilling can make operating wells more complex,
particularly if the well is dug at an inclination of 40 degrees or greater. In addition, as
with all construction equipment, directional drilling damages the existing ground
(although the impact can be minimized). Many directional drilling rigs are very
heavy, run on tracks, and tend to damage the areas where they traverse and travel.

Challenges of Direction drilling:

Directional drilling does require a higher level of technology than is normally associated with straight
hole drilling. Equipment must be available to determine the direction and angle of the hole. Usually,
this means that some telemetry devices must be installed in the BHA. One problem with directional
wells is a frequent change in direction – either vertically or horizontally. Too many changes in the
vertical direction can result in the wellbore penetrating the top or bottom shale, penetrating a gas cap,
or penetrating a water leg. There is also a problem in severe cases of pulling the BHA back through the
wellbore. A directional driller is added to the rig crew to supervise interpretation of data received from
the BHA and make adjustments to keep the well on track and prevent too many doglegs in the well.
The rig crew and drillers need additional training to drill without unexpected problems. The wells are
much more difficult to plan and require expertise to properly engineer the program and well path. With
expensive equipment in the hole, stuck pipe and other problems are much more expensive. The
equipment rental for telemetry and directional driller expenses increase the daily rig costs. Downtime
or time not spent drilling must be minimized to achieve economic benefits from directional drilling.

How Far Can Directional Drilling Go?

The maximum length and diameter of directional drilling are determined by

the specific site where the drilling is taking place. However, some
horizontal drilling rigs have an outside range of up to 9,843 feet.

Equipment used in Directional Drilling:

Specialised drillbits are used to improve performance and reduce the chance of failure. Schlumberger
supply directional PDC drill bits for both push- and point-the-bit rotary steerable systems. Horizontal
Technology, Inc. provides ‘Varel High Energy Series bits’ designed for the unique, rigorous
conditions of horizontal directional drilling.
Mud Motors :
Downhole steerable mud motors get positioned near the drill bit, which has a bend in it. What happens
is that at the correct depth the drillstring stops rotating, then drilling fluid is pumped through the mud
motor so that the drill bit starts to turn just due to the force of the liquid.
Rotary Steerable Systems (RSS) :
Directional drilling by using the mud motor means
that often the drill pipe needs to be slid forward while
the drill is motionless. A rotary steerable system can
drill and steer at the same time. This means that the
inaccessible formations can be accessed.
Bottom Hole Assembly (BHA) 
Multi-Shot cameras are fitted inside the drillstring.
They’re set to take regular pictures on a time-lapse
setting. Then these images are sent to the surface
control.
Custom whipstocks that work with downhole motors don’t need removing in between drilling. These
are a significant advance on the old fashioned ones previously mentioned. More time can be spent
drilling, and less time removing the drill bit and conventional whipstock