Abstract
The maturation of gas fields requires solutions to sustain optimal production flow rates. The decrease of pressure in gas reservoirs, excluding dry gas reservoirs, brings about the great challenge of unloading liquid accumulated in the bottomhole, known as gas well deliquification, in order to prevent the decrease of gas flow rate due to the back pressure set up by the liquid column.
Wells' production history normally shows, after an initial period, a regular decline in the gas flow rate and a steady liquid flow rate, resulting in a decreasing gas liquid relationship. This causes the multiphase flow regime to change throughout the life of the well. At some point, below the critical gas flow rate, liquid loading will result in an important gas flow rate reduction, and invariably will end up killing the well.
This work presents an experience of performance optimization of the completion design, which had been run during completion without killing the well.
Several alternatives were evaluated and opted for the one which offered greater versatility. Two main objectives were established:
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Use of regular and well-known bottomhole tools, to decrease the possibility of mechanical failure
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Use of regular tubing diameter and flow passages, with two purposes: to decrease the possibility of plugs formation by any mean and to keep the possibility of monitoring downhole behavior through slick line measurements
Shows the implementation of an innovative, economical, autonomous design (doesn't require energy), which demands low bottomhole dynamic pressure, and which allows the constant discharge of liquid from a large casing section.
