1. Research Perspectives: Maximizing Oil Recovery by IOR/EOR
The Future of Solutions: Technologies for Increased Oil Recovery (IOR)
Monday 30th April, 08:00 – 10:30 AM Monarch Room (24th floor), The Westin Galleria Houston,
Research Perspectives: Maximizing Oil Recovery by IOR/EOR
Arne Skauge
Managing Director
CIPR – Centre for Integrated Petroleum Research
Uni Research and University of Bergen

2. Facts about CIPR
CIPR is the Norwegian Centre of Excellence focusing on
maximizing oil recovery
CIPR conducts applied research into increased oil recovery and
energy efficient utilization of CO2
Key research areas are:
Improved Oil Recovery / Enhanced Oil Recovery
Reservoir Simulation
Geoscience
70 researchers (many with extensive industry experience)
30 PhD students
40 master students
CIPR is a cooperation between the University of Bergen and Uni Research

3. Vision
Develop new exploration and increased recovery technology to make NCS a leading technology driven petroleum province in 2020.
Goal
Develop new technology to add 7.7 billion bbl o.e.

4. Maximizing oil recovery for offshore oil and gas fields
Challenges
Identify undrained area
Well distance
Well placement
Logistics

5. Maximizing oil recovery for offshore oil and gas fields
Challenges Actions
Identify undrained area 4D seismic and EM
Well distance drill cheep/fast new wells
Well placement sidetrack injectors into the oil zone
Logistics minimize the amount of chemicals for EOR

6. Contributions to closing the production gap
Time
Oil Production Rate A B
Incremental
Oil Recovery
Contributions to closing the production gap
Reservoir description
Best reservoir model
Reservoir communication
Simulation methods
Better predictions
Surfactant
Polymer
Water
Oil
Alkaline
Foam
Enhanced oil recovery methods
Move trapped oil
Sweep improvement
Monitoring
Find best drilling targets

7. Dynamic Reservoir Characterization
Find best well target

8. Average 1,68

11. Some selected Enhanced Oil Recovery technologies
Status
Mechanisms
Technology
Prognosis
Prediction
Upscaling
WAG
Foam
Surfactant flooding
Microbial IOR
Low salinity polymers
Goal
Mechanisms
Technology
Prognosis
Prediction
Upscaling
WAG
Foam
Surfactant flooding
Microbial IOR
High salinity polymers
Proven technology Progress needed Unsolved

12. FAWAG – Foam Assisted WAG
Snorre field
Oil production (Sm3/d)
Ref: Skauge, A., Aarra, M.G., Surguchev, L., Martinsen, H.A., Rasmussen, L.,
SPE 75157, ”Foam-Assisted WAG: Experience from the Snorre Field”, 2002

13. Conventional Chemical Methods for Enhanced Oil Recovery
Surfactants to lower the interfacial tension between the oil and water or change the wettability of the rock
Water soluble polymers to increase the viscosity of the water
Polymer gels for blocking or diverting flow
Combinations of chemicals and methods

14. International status of EOR
Polymer (Daqing, Dahlia, Marmoul, Captain, ..)
(possible on Mariner, Rassey, Grane, etc.)
ASP, SP (Daqing, 20+ pilots)
New processes (10+ pilots)

15. Daqing Polymer Injection
Lessons Learned:
Higher initial water cut results in lower incremental gains in recovery (see figure to left)
The total cost of polymer flooding ($6.60/bbl inc. oil) is actually less than for waterflooding ($7.85/bbl inc. oil) due to decreased water production and increased oil production.
More heterogeneous reservoir:
larger increase in sweep efficiency
shorter response time to polymer flooding
strongest influence on recovery is connectivity of pay zones
To obtain higher recovery with polymer flooding:
lower producer WHP
stimulate producers
increase polymer concentration
increase polymer molecular weight
Daqing Polymer Injection
Project Description:
Over 2000 wells now injecting polymer at Daqing
Typical slug size is 0.6 PV
Most well patterns are 5-spot
about 30-50% of injected polymer is produced
maximum produced polymer conc. is approx. 2/3 of injected

16. Example of hybrid EOR methods
New trends – hybrid EOR
Example of hybrid EOR methods
WAG
FAWAG (Foam Assisted WAG)
SAGD (Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage)
Low salinity - surfactant
Low salinity - polymers
Low tension gas

17. New combination of EOR methods
Low salinity waterflood may give only modest improved oil recovery for many sandstone reservoirs Cost of reducing water salinity may be a show stopper Recent research has made a combined low salinity and surfactant flooding a way of boosting oil recovery and improve the economy of this EOR process
Source: Alagic and Skauge (CIPR): “Change to Low Salinity Brine Injection in Combination with Surfactant Flooding,” presented at 15th European Symposium on Improved Oil Recovery — Paris, France, 27 – 29 April 2009

18. Combined low salinity and surfactant injection
LSS LS
Skauge, A., Kallevik, G., Ghorbani, Z., and Delshad, M., Simulation of Combined Low Salinity Brine and Surfactant Flooding,
paper the EAGE IOR Symposium 12th – 14th April 2011 in Cambridge, UK.

19. Example of game changer
Polymer flooding
Traditionally polymer is injected for sweep improvement
Old rules of tumbs
Poor injectivity (a lot of positive results on injectivity arre now available)
Little effect after extensive waterflooding (new results disprove this statement)
Have to modify the viscosity ratio extensively (new results disprove this statement)
Additional news
Effect on microscopic displacement (lower Sor)
(viscoelastic effects, etc)

20. Water- and polymer flood of viscous oils
Skauge, A., Ormehaug, P:A., Gurholt, T., Vik, B., Bondino, I., and Hamon, G., 2-D Visualisation of Unstable Waterflood
and Polymer Flood for Displacement of Heavy Oil, SPE , paper prepared for presentation at the
Eighteenth SPE Improved Oil Recovery Symp. Tulsa, 2012 20

21. Waterflooding at adverse mobility ratio
Mohanty et al 2012
Skauge, A., Ormehaug, P:A., Gurholt, T., Vik, B., Bondino, I., and Hamon, G., 2-D Visualisation of Unstable Waterflood
and Polymer Flood for Displacement of Heavy Oil, SPE , paper prepared for presentation at the
Eighteenth SPE Improved Oil Recovery Symp. Tulsa, 2012

22. Oil mobilization during polymer flood
Red: increased oil saturation
Light blue: increased water saturation
Skauge, A., Ormehaug, P:A., Gurholt, T., Vik, B., Bondino, I., and Hamon, G., 2-D Visualisation of Unstable Waterflood
and Polymer Flood for Displacement of Heavy Oil, SPE , paper prepared for presentation at the
Eighteenth SPE Improved Oil Recovery Symp. Tulsa, 2012

23. Low salinity polymer
2012

24. Low salinity polymer
Source: Behruz Shaker and Arne Skauge, 2012

25. Prediction for the coming years
We will see more advanced flood sequences…
Polymer - new development and possibilities (Yes)
Low salinity (?)
Classical surfactant flooding (?)
Hybrid EOR – YES
LSS – LSP – LSASP - LSLTG
Foam-Polymer – Nano stabilized foam- Low Tension Gas – WAG – Foam Assisted WAG (FAWAG) and more…..

26. Thank you