Completions and Stimulation Aspects of Shale Plays

This course will introduce the audience to the engineering methodology of completing organic shale reservoirs. The fundamentals of hydraulic fracturing are reviewed. Designing and completing hydraulically fractured horizontal wells for optimum productivity is the focus of the course. Various measurement techniques to employ in the completion optimization exercise are reviewed. Classroom exercises to select lateral landing points, design perforation strategies, place perforations and design stimulation stages, determine fracturing fluid formulations are employed in order for the student to gain a personal understanding of the impacts of these parameters on stimulation effectiveness.

Upon completion of this training session the students will have acquired a fundamental understanding of the hydraulic fracturing process and key completion parameters required for organic shales production, and the measurement options available to quantify these parameters. They will also be able to utilize these parameters to identify appropriate lateral landing points, design the appropriate stimulation schedule including proppant and fluid design, customize horizontal well completions based on acquired measurements, and evaluate the effectiveness of the completion methodology. The students will also understand the operational completion techniques commonly employed in organic shale development.

• Agenda
• Audience

• Agenda

  Day 1

  Fundamentals of hydraulic fracturing

  • Rock mechanics, fracturing fluids and additives, proppants

  Day 2

  Hydraulic fracture design for tight  sands

  • Stress profiles, impact of tectonics, pore pressure
  • Modeling of fracture geometries

  Day 3

  Hydraulic fracture design for organic shales

  • Complex fracture geometries, impact of anisotropy

  Horizontal wells

  • Justification, design, construction, measurements
  • Completion systems, cementing, perforating

  Day 4

  Fluids, additives and proppants for organic shales

  Horizontal well completion design

  • Fracture staging, perforation placement

  Day 5

  Horizontal well hydraulic fracture design

  • Impact of stress anisotropy and natural fractures
  • Hydraulic fracture spacing, complexity prediction and modeling

  Evaluation of fracture stimulation treatments

  • Microseismic monitoring, tracer technologies, flowback analysis

• Audience

  Engineers and Geoscientists 

• Prerequisites