Evaluation of economic benefits of heavy oil development in Tahe Oilfield
Author of the article:QIN Fei1, WANG Xiwen2, DING Baodong1, CAO Chang1, GAO Chenhao2, GUO Jixiang2
Author's Workplace：1. Petroleum Engineering Technology Research Institute, Sinopec Northwest Oilfield Company, Urumqi, Xinjiang, 830011, China; 2. Institute of Unconventional Oil and Gas Science and Technology, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing, 102249, China
Key Words：Tahe Oilfield; Wellbore fluid viscosity reduction; Economic evaluation; Heavy oil development
Abstract：Tahe
Oilfield reservoir is characterized by“two super and three high”(super deep, super thick, high gum asphaltene, high
salinity, high hydrogen sulfide), which makes production and development very
difficult. After many years of production practice in Tahe Oilfield, several
kinds of wellbore viscosity reduction technology have been tested and applied
on the basis of dilution and viscosity reduction technology, but the economic
benefits after application are still unclear. In order to improve the project
economics of heavy oil field development projects and improve the scientific
understanding of the applied technology, an economics evaluation model using
the ratio of input versus output as the evaluation index was established to
analyze the economic benefits on a typical block of Tahe Oilfield after the
application of wellbore fluid viscosity reduction technology. This was done by
comparing the characteristics of wellbore fluid after application of viscosity
reduction technology with the frontline production data of Tahe Oilfield.
Through the evaluation and discussion of the application effect and economic
benefits of wellbore fluid viscosity reduction technology in Tahe Oilfield, it
is shown that the application effect and economic benefits of heating using
mineral insulated cable and watersoluble
and oil-soluble chemical viscosity reduction are relatively
significant. The study findings provide valuable references for the effective
development of heavy oil reserves.