Emerson is constantly working to solve problems that stand in the way of some of the most exciting developments of the future. One of these developments is enhanced oil recovery (EOR) with gas injection, which is dramatically increasing oil recovery rates. Enhanced oil recovery is changing the profitability curve in the Eagle Ford and is positioned to greatly enhance the production levels in the developing West Texas shale plays as well. In a recent presentation, Jared Edwards, sr. field sales representative, Emerson, discussed this application.
The amount of liquids obtained from shale is lower than traditional plays because of the nature of the tight rock it is found in. Improved fracking technologies have doubled the capture rate in the Eagle Ford from 6 percent to 12 percent. That still leaves roughly 90 percent of the oil in the play -- lots of room for improvement.
Injecting natural gas instead of flooding with CO2 is a developing method that is already showing promise. Companies have gone public saying that initial testing done in 2017 showed additional liquid oil gains of 30-70 percent in multi-year-old Eagle Ford wells. Injecting produced natural gas back into the already fracked well essentially is applying a solvent to oily rock. The solvent washes out the lighter liquids that often are trapped by asphaltites flowing into the cracks caused by production after hydraulic fracturing. Knowing how much natural gas is injected is a crucial part of the process.
While huge oil recovery is potentially possible from the gas injection process, the impact of unplanned, high-pressure releases from the well where the recovery is underway can be substantial and even catastrophic. These include the risk of bodily harm from direct fluid impact, substantial environmental pollution, and loss of production due to catastrophic failure.
Injecting natural gas accurately at 10,000 psi requires a highly engineered flowmeter to meet very demanding process conditions:
As a classic example of the Emerson “Consider It Solved” tagline at work, Emerson’s Lifecycle Services team pulled together a Rosemount 3051SHP DP transmitter, a custom DP flow element, and a Rosemount 3144P temperature transmitter to provide a drop-in solution that has been lab hydrotested to withstand 10,000 psi. Field assembly of parts designed to withstand this pressure is dangerous, so this drop-in flowmeter is exactly what these producers are asking for. In addition, the solution offers low installation, commissioning, and maintenance cost, and is custody transfer ready in Canada (TX Railroad Commission waiver expected soon).
The EOR results on these wells is impressive:
For approximately a $650K investment, that’s an additional $3.8M over three years x15 wells = $57M, and it’s made possible by a flowmeter.
This custom flow meter provides a safe solution for this new application. Lab tests of Permian Basin shale rock suggest this new EOR method shows a capture rate improvement from 12 percent to 60 percent. That equals 5x the best recovery rates of yesterday and is an absolute game changer. With these numbers and the proven reserves in Texas, the USA wouldn’t need to drill another oil field for 1,000 years!
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