Independent global completions service company Tendeka and diagnostic specialists TGT have partnered to mitigate the costly consequences of sand control failure in wells
The remedial sand control collaboration known as ‘Find Fix Confirm’ will see TGT’s Sand Flow product used to accurately identify the locations of sand ingress within the wellbore. Then, Tendeka’s Filtrex thru-tubing sand control system is precisely situated to quickly repair the damage. Crucially, the service can confirm the effectiveness of the solution with the redeployment of TGT’s diagnostic product.
In mature basins, sand issues can account for up to 10 per cent of all shut-in wells either due to failure of the existing downhole sand control or onset of sand production due to pressure depletion and/or water production.
Launched in 2019, Tendeka’s Filtrex solution is a one-trip remedial system enabling sand-free production to be restored effectively and efficiently. TGT’s Sand Flow product precisely locates sand entry to the wellbore and provides a qualitative sand count, clearly identifying problem zones, even in turbulent flow conditions.
Paul Lynch, advanced completions director at Tendeka, said, “The management and control of sand production is an inherent problem in the oil and gas industry. Often, the first indication of sand issues downhole will be as a result of detrimental effects that can occur at surface, such as fill in separators or erosional damage to pipe work, ultimately resulting in a shut-in well. Existing solutions have been extremely limited due to their high cost and/or poor performance.”
Ken Feather, chief marketing officer at TGT, commented, “Proper diagnosis is the critical first step to any kind of well remediation planning and execution. But determining the precise location and extent of sand ingress downhole has challenged the industry for decades, as previous attempts were unable to reliably distinguish between sand and fluid flow.”
“Our Sand Flow diagnostics are powered by Chorus technology which captures and decodes the acoustic signature generated by sand particles entering the wellbore to reveal sand ingress locations and sand count. Equipped with that information, Filtrex can be targeted to repair the breach, then Chorus can be deployed again to confirm that the breach is fixed. Overall, Find Fix Confirm enables better use of resources and more reliable sand control outcomes.”
The ‘Fix’ aspect will see Filtrex deployed via coiled tubing into the well and positioned across the target area. By dropping a ball from surface, a simple two stage application of pressure firstly sets the anchor, and secondly releases the compression sleeve. Upon removal of the sleeve the matrix polymer expands to contact the wellbore and the deployment string can be retrieved from the well. Filling the annular gap with the open cell matrix polymer prevents further ingress of formation solids into the wellbore whilst still allowing passage of liquids or gases.
