OIM (offshore installation manager)

Nbsp;        OIL WELL   An oil well is a term for any perforation through the Earth's surface designed to find and release both petroleum oil and gas hydrocarbons.

Life of a well

The creation and life of a well can be divided up into five segments:

• Planning
• Drilling
• Completion
• Production
• Abandonment

Drilling

The well is created by drilling a hole 5 to 30 inches (13–76 cm) diameter into the earth with an oil rig which rotates a drill bit. After the hole is drilled, a steel pipe (casing) slightly smaller than the hole is placed in the hole, and secured with cement. The casing provides structural integrity to the newly drilled wellbore in addition to isolating potentially dangerous high pressure zones from each other and from the surface.This process is all facilitated by a drilling rig which contains all necessary equipment to circulate the drilling fluid, hoist and turn the pipe, control downhole pressures, remove cuttings from the drilling fluid, and generate onsite power for these operations.

Completion

After drilling and casing the well, it must be 'completed'. Completion is the process in which the well is enabled to produce oil or gas.In a cased-hole completion, small holes called perforations are made in the portion of the casing which passed through the production zone, to provide a path for the oil to flow from the surrounding rock into the production tubing. In open hole completion, often 'sand screens' or a 'gravel pack' is installed in the last drilled, uncased reservoir section. These maintain structural integrity of the wellbore in the absence of casing, while still allowing flow from the reservoir into the wellbore. Screens also control the migration of formation sands into production tubulars and surface equipment, which can cause washouts and other problems, particularly from unconsolidated sand formations in offshore fields.

After a flow path is made, acids and fracturing fluids are pumped into the well to fracture, clean, or otherwise prepare and stimulate the reservoir rock to optimally produce hydrocarbons into the wellbore. Finally, the area above the reservoir section of the well is packed off inside the casing, and connected to the surface via a smaller diameter pipe called tubing. This arrangement provides a redundant barrier to leaks of hydrocarbons as well as allowing damaged sections to be replaced. Also, the smaller diameter of the tubing produces hydrocarbons at an increased velocity in order to overcome the hydrostatic effects of heavy fluids such as water.

In many wells, the natural pressure of the subsurface reservoir is high enough for the oil or gas to flow to the surface. However, this is not always the case, especially in depleted fields where the pressures have been lowered by other producing wells, or in low permeability oil reservoirs. Installing a smaller diameter tubing may be enough to help the production, but artificial lift methods may also be needed. Common solutions include downhole pumps, gas lift, or surface pump jacks (e.g., the "nodding donkey" pumps dotting the countryside in old oil fields in Texas and Oklahoma). The use of artificial lift technology in a field is often termed as "secondary recovery" in the industry. Many new systems in the last ten years have been introduced into the well completion field. Multiple packer systems with frac ports or port collars in an all in one system installation have cut completion costs and improved production, especially in the case of the horizontal well. These new systems allow you to run casing into the lateral zone with proper packer/frac port placement for optimal hydrocarbon recovery.

Production

The production stage is the most important stage of a well's life, when the oil and gas are produced. By this time, the oil rigs and workover rigs used to drill and complete the well have moved off the wellbore, and the top is usually outfitted with a collection of valves called a "Christmas Tree". These valves regulate pressures, control flows, and allow access to the wellbore in case further completion work needs to be performed. From the outlet valve of the Christmas Tree, the flow can be connected to a distribution network of pipelines and tanks to supply the product to refineries, natural gas compressor stations, or oil export terminals.

As long as the pressure in the reservoir remains high enough, this Christmas Tree is all that is required to produce the well. If the pressure depletes and it is considered economically viable, an artificial lift method mentioned in the completions section can be employed.

Workovers are often necessary in older wells, which may need smaller diameter tubing, scale or parrafin removal, repeated acid matrix jobs, or even completing new zones of interest in a shallower reservoir. Such remedial work can be performed using workover rigs – also known as pulling units – to pull and replace tubing, or by the use of a well intervention technique called coiled tubing.

Enhanced recovery methods such as waterflooding, steam flooding, or CO₂ flooding may be used to increase reservoir pressure and provide a "sweep" effect to push hydrocarbons out of the reservoir. Such methods require the use of injection wells (often picked from old production wells in a carefully determined pattern), and are used when facing problems with reservoir pressure depletion, high oil viscosity, or can even be employed early in a field's life; in certain cases – depending on the reservoir's geomechanics – reservoir engineers may determine that ultimate recoverable oil may be increased by applying a waterflooding strategy early in the field's development rather than later. The application of such enhanced recovery techniques is often termed as "tertiary recovery" in the industry.

Abandonment

Finally, when the well no longer produces or produces so poorly that it is a liability to its owner, it is abandoned. In this simple process, tubing is removed from the well and sections of well-bore are filled with cement as to isolate the flow path between gas and water zones from each other as well as the surface. Completely filling the well-bore with concrete is unnecessary and cost prohibitive

 

 

TYPES OF WELLS

Oil wells come in many varieties. By produced fluid, there can be wells that produce oil, wells that produce oil and natural gas, or wells that only produce natural gas. Natural gas is almost always a byproduct of producing oil, since the small, light gas carbon chains come out of solution as it undergoes pressure reduction from the reservoir to the surface (similar to uncapping a bottle of pop where the carbon dioxide effervesces out.) Unwanted natural gas can actually be quite a disposal problem at the well site. If there is not a market for natural gas near the wellhead it is virtually valueless since it must be piped to the end user. Until recently, such unwanted gas was burned off at the wellsite, but due to environmental concerns this practice is becoming less and less common. Often, unwanted (or 'stranded'; gas without a market) gas is pumped back into the reservoir with an 'injection' well for disposal or repressurizing the producing formation. Another solution is to export the natural gas as a liquid. Of course, in locations such as the United States with a high natural gas demand, pipelines are constructed to take the gas from the wellsite to the end consumer.

Another obvious way to classify oil wells is by land or offshore wells. There really is very little difference in the well itself; an offshore well simply targets a reservoir that also happens to be underneath an ocean. Also, due to logistics, drilling an offshore well is far more costly than an onshore well. By far the most common type of well is of the onshore variety. Another way to classify oil wells is by their purpose in contributing to the development of a resource. They can be characterized as:

• production wells when they are drilled primarily for producing oil or gas, once the producing structure and characteristics are established
• appraisal wells when they are used to assess characteristics (such as flowrate) of a proven hydrocarbon accumulation
• exploration wells when they are drilled purely for exploratory (information gathering) purposes in a new area
• wildcat wells when a well is drilled, based on a large element of hope, in a frontier area where very little is known about the subsurface. In the early days of oil exploration in Texas, wildcats were common as productive areas were not yet established. In modern times, oil exploration in many areas has reached a very mature phase and the chances of finding oil simply by drilling at random are very low. Therefore, a lot more effort is placed in exploration and appraisal wells.

At a producing well site, active wells may be further categorized as:

• oil producers producing predominantly liquid hydrocarbons, but mostly with some associated gas.
• gas producers producing virtually entirely gaseous hydrocarbons.
• water injectors injecting water into the formation either to maintain reservoir pressure or simply to dispose of water produced with the hydrocarbons because even after treatment, it would be too oily and too saline to be considered clean for dumping overboard let alone into a fresh water source, in the case of onshore wells. Frequently, water injection has an element of reservoir management and produced water disposal.
• aquifer producers intentionally producing reservoir water for re-injection to manage pressure. This is in effect moving reservoir water from where it is not as useful, to where it is more useful. These wells will generally only be used if produced water from the oil or gas producers is insufficient for reservoir management purposes. Using aquifer produced water rather than sea water is due to the chemistry.
• gas injectors injecting gas into the reservoir often as a means of disposal or sequestering for later production, but also to maintain reservoir pressure.

Lahee classification

• New Field Wildcat (NFW) – far from other producing fields and on a structure that has not previously produced.
• New Pool Wildcat (NPW) – new pools on already producing structure.
• Deeper Pool Test (DPT) – on already producing structure and pool, but on a deeper pay zone.
• Shallower Pool Test (SPT) – on already producing structure and pool, but on a shallower pay zone.
• Outpost (OUT) – usually two or more locations from nearest productive area.
• Development Well (DEV) – can be on the extension of a pay zone, or between existing wells (Infill).

 

WELL TYPE	TRANSLATION (+ definition)
1. development	Эксплуатационная скважина (добывающая)
2. discovery	Скважина, открывшая новое месторождение \ вскрывшая новый пласт
3. prospect	Поисковая скважина
4. wildcat	Поисково-разведочная скважина ( на новой недостаточно разведанной площади)
5. relief	Наклонная скважина, пробуренная для глушения другой скважины (в случае открытого фонтанирования пожаров); вспомогательная скважина; разгрузочная скважина
6. exploration	Эксплуатационная скважина
7. production	Продуктивная скважина
8. appraisal	Оценочная скважина, пробуренная для подтверждения присутствия \ оценки углеводородов в пласте- коллекторе, который был открыт на малоисследованной территории
9. step-out	Вновь пробуренная скважина (при постепенном разбуривании месторождения); отдаленная скважина
10. confirmation	Доразведочная скважина, подтверждающая скважина (вторая пробуренная продуктивная скважина на месторождении)
11. recovery	Поисковая \ разведочная скважина (бурится для обнаружения ранее неизвестного месторождения новых коллекторов, залегающих на других горизонтах, который был открыт на малоисследованной территории )

 

 

TERMS

 

Borehole \ bore well (hole made by the drill bit)	Буровая скважина
Wellhole (general term to describe both cased and open hole))	Буровая скважина
Well in operation	Действующая скважина
Well off	Простаивающая скважина
Well out of control	Скважина фонтанирование которой не удается закрыть
Well under control	Скважина с закрытым фонтанированием
Abandoned well	Ликвидированная скважина
Adjoining well	Смежная скважина
Barren (dry \ non-productive ) well	Безрезультативная скважина ( не дающая промышленного количества нефти)
Beam well	Скважина, эксплуатирующаяся глубинным насосом
Belching well	Пульсирующая скважина \ скважина периодически выбрасывающая жидкость
Brought in well	Скважина, вступившая в эксплуатацию
Borderline well	Краевая скважина
Cable tool well	Скважина, бурящаяся канатным способом
Cased well	Обсаженная скважина
Cased through well	Обсаженная до забоя скважина
Commercial well	Скважина, имеющая промышленное значение
Completed well	Скважина, законченная бурением \ освоенная скважина
Controlled directional well	Наклонно- направленная скважина
Dead well	Заглохшая (истощенная) скважина
Drowned well	Обводненная скважина
Dually completed well	Двухпластовая скважина
Edge well	Краевая (приконтурная) скважина
Exhausted well	Истощенная скважина (дебит которой ниже экономического предела эксплуатации )
Infill well	Скважина, пробуренная при уплотнении первоначальной сетки размещения скважин
Injection (input) well	Нагнетательная скважина
Intake well	Нагнетательная скважина (для нагнетания жидкости в пласт )
Junked well	1) скважина, засоренная железным ломом; 2) скважина, заброшенная вследствие безрезультатной ловли оборванного инструмента
Key well	1) опорная скважина; 2) нагнетательная скважина, скважина для нагнетания сжатого воздуха \ газа
Line wells	Скважины, расположенные вдоль границ участка
Marginal well	Малодебитная (близкая к истощению) скважина
Natural well	Скважина, выдающая нефть без кислотной обработки, гидроразрыва, прострела без применения насосов
Offset well	Соседняя скважина, скважина пробуренная вблизи другой скважины
Off-structure well	Скважина, пробуренная за пределами нефтеносной структуры
On-structure well	Скважина, расположенная в нефтеносной структуры
Paying well	Окупающая себя скважина (экономически выгодная)
Pinch out well	Скважина, определяющая границу нефтяной залежи \ малопродуктивная скважина на границе залежи
Prolific well	Малодебитная скважина
Sand (ed) well	1) скважина, в которой нефтеносным коллектором являются песчаники; 2) скважина, в которую вместе с жидкостью поступает из пласта много песка
Service well	Вспомогательная скважина
Stripper well	Малодебитная скважина, дающая менее 1.5м3\сут нефти
Test well	Разведочная скважина
Twin well	1) скважина, пробуренная в тех же условия, что и другая скважина того же участка; 2) нефтяная скважина, эксплуатирующая два горизонта 3) скважина, пробуренная близко к соседней скважине
Wild well	Некартированная скважина

 

COMPANIES AND PEOPLE

Drilling a well is a complicated job. It is so complex, in fact, that no single com­pany is diverse enough to perform all the required work. Instead, many com­panies and individuals are involved. The companies include operating com­panies, drilling contractors, and service and supply companies.

OPERATING COMPANIES

An operating company, or an operator, has the right to drill and produce petro­leum at a particular site. The operator buys or leases that right from the owner of the rights to the subterranean oil or gas. Rights can be owned by individu­als, companies, or, in some cases, by the federal or state government.

An operator can be a major, such as Exxon, Mobil, British Petroleum, Shell, Chevron, or Texaco. A major oil com­pany produces oil and gas and trans­ports them from the field to the refinery and plant. It also refines or processes the oil and gas and sells the products to consumers.

.An operator can also be an indepen­dent. An independent operator is an individual or a relatively small company that produces and sells, oil and gas but does not transport, refine, or marketthem. Operating companies, whether major or independent, pay for the drilling of a well. They usually hire a drilling contractor to drill it.

DRILLING CONTRACTORS

In the United States and Canada, drill­ing contractors do virtually all the drill­ing. Operators have found it more cost-effective to hire a firm that specializes, in drilling than to maintain their own rigs. A drilling company may be small or large; it may drill mainly in one country or it may have rigs working all over the world.

In any case, a drilling company's job is to drill a hole. It must drill the hole to the depth and specifications set by the operating company. An operating com­pany usually several contractors to bid on a job. Often, the operator awards the contract to the lowest bidder, but not always. Sometimes a good work record may override a lower bid.

SERVICE AND SUPPLY COMPANIES

The drilling of any well involves several service and supply companies. Supply companies sell expendable equipment and material, such as drilling bits and mud, to the operator and drilling contractor. They also sell items such as pipe, fuel, lubricants, fire extinguishers, and spare parts. Moreover, they market safety equipment, rig com­ponents, paper, water, tools, computers, paint, grease, rags, and solvents. Think of any part or commodity that a rig needs to drill a well, and you'll find a supply company on hand to fill it.

Service companies offer special sup­port to the drilling operation. Like supply companies, they exist to nil the special needs of the drilling project. For example, a mud logging company logs, or monitors, the drilling mud as it returns from the well. The returning mud carries cuttings and any formation fluids, such as gas or oil, to the surface. The operator can gain much knowl­edge about the formations being drilled by analyzing the returning drilling fluid.

Another kind of service company provides casing crews. A casing crew runs large pipe into the well to line, or case, it . Casing protects forma­tions from contamination and stabilizes the well. After the casing crew runs the casing, another service company— a cementing company—cements the casing in the well. Cement bonds the casing to the hole. In many cases, when a well reaches a formation of interest (usually, a forma­tion that may contain oil or gas), the operator hires a well logging company. The well logging crew runs sophisti­cated tools into the hole. These instru­ments measure and record formation properties. By looking at the record, or well log, the operator can often deter­mine whether the well will produce oil or gas.

PEOPLE

While it is true that you can't drill a well without a drilling rig and several companies to back up the rig, it is equally true that you can't drill a well withoutskilled people. Personnel run the rig and keep it running until the well reaches its objective. Let's look at some of the people involved in drilling.

COMPANY MAN is a representative of an oil-drilling company. Other terms that may be used are Company Representative, Foreman, Drilling Engineer, Company Consultant, or Rigsite Leader.

Oil-drilling companies typically rent or lease rigs from another company that owns the rig and the majority of the personnel on the drilling rig. The company man is the on-site representative of the drilling company and is directly in charge of most operations pertaining to the actual drilling and integrity of the wellbore. However, other domains such as rig maintenance and crew upkeep are often attended to instead by the Toolpusher.

Thus, the Company man is not a supervisor in the traditional sense. In matters where safety may be questioned the oil rig workers, who may not be employed by the same company as the Company Man, may refuse to perform an action requested by the Company Man. In recent years it has become standard safety policy that anyone can "Stop the Job" if they feel there is a hazard that has not been properly addressed. This can be found in most contractor safety manuals and is generally encouraged by the drilling company also.

The Company man is usually knowledgeable in the area of drilling operations and to some extent completion operations. While the well is being drilled, the Company man must rely on the wellsite geologist (or mudlogger) to inform him if the well is dry or if it is going to be a producer. Though a few Company men are informed as to the producing horizons in the area of the well, the real expert (from an investor's standpoint) is the mudlog geologist. Most Company men have favorite mudlog geologist that they rely on religiously.

In the modern era, most Company men are degreed Petroleum Engineers (or some other discipline of engineering) with broad experience in a variety of oilfield jobs. Some go on to jobs in banks, government, university teaching, or consulting. Others go back to school and pursue jobs in investment and operating their own oil companies if they can partner with a suitable geologist.

"Company Man" also is a term relating to a "Yes" Man, or someone who will do anything demanded of them by those who are supervising them. This term originated in the military where groups or divisions of soldiers were called "companies," thus the term Company. The term has since been used in the private sector as a term to demean someone who is well liked by their superiors and often gets better or lighter jobs than the rest of their co-workers.

DRILLING CREWS

Drilling crews work for the drilling con­tractor. Typically, the contractor hires a rig manager, or a superintendent, for each rig. This rig manager is usually called the toolpusher. The toolpusher supervises two or three crews that oper­ate the rig 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Besides the toolpusher, each rig has drillers, derrickhands, and rotary help­ers (also called floorhands or roughnecks). Sometimes the driller designates the most experienced rotary helper as a motorhand. The motorhand performs routine service and maintenance on the rig's engines

TOOLPUSHER

The toolpusher is the contractor's top hand on the drilling location. This per­son oversees the drilling crews that work on the rig floor, supervises all drilling operations, and coordinates operating company and contractor affairs. Dur­ing the time the rig is drilling, the tool­pusher usually lives in an on-site trailer or portable building and is on call at all times. The tool pusher is the person responsible for all operations on a land drilling rig. They are also known as rig managers.

On drillships and offshore oil rigs, toolpushers are Department Heads, in charge of the drilling department. They report to the Master or OIM (depending on the company) who in turn report to a shore-based rig manager. Other department heads include the Chief Mate and Chief Engineer.

Tool pushers are in charge of keeping the rig in all necessary tools and equipment, supplies, etc. They work closely in conjunction with the company man in regards to the actual drilling of the well. In recent times, toolpushers also have taken on somewhat of an administrative role, also, as they frequently do paperwork related to the rig crew regarding payroll, benefits, etc. Third party companies for services related to the drilling of the well are called by the "pusher" also. Usually a tool pusher has started at the bottom and worked his way up and has been in the industry for a number of years.

DRILLER

The driller supervises the derrickhand and the rotary helpers with direction from the toolpusher. From a control console on the rig floor, the driller manipulates the controls that keep the drilling operation under way. This person is directly responsible for the drilling of the hole. The Driller is a team leader in charge during the process of Well drilling. The term is commonly used in the context of an oil well Drilling rig.

The Driller is in charge of his crew, and running the rig itself. Most of the time, his job is simply to monitor the rig's activity, while the Automatic Driller runs the breaks and drills the hole. He is responsible of interpreting the signals the well gives regarding gas and fluids with high pressure. In an emergency he is also responsible for taking the correct counter measures to stop an uncontrolled well control situation from emerging. The driller will watch for gas levels coming out of the hole, how much drilling mud is going in and other information. While tripping, the driller will run the floor and work the rig.

In the context of an offshore Oil platform, the Driller will be the one in charge of real time decisions. According to, the hierarchy on an oil platform correspond to the timescale of which the sections operate. The automatic drilling equipment work on the timescale of seconds and both report to and get its orders from the driller, who operates on a timescale of several seconds to hours. He report and get his or her orders from those planning the current drilling operation, on a timescale of days and weeks. The chain extends to those who are in charge of managing the whole oil field, on a timescale of decades.

DERRICKHAND

When crew members run drill pipe into the hole (trip in), or when they pull pipe out of the hole (trip out), the rig needs a derrickhand. The derrickhand handles the upper end of the pipe from the monkeyboard (fig. 10). The monkey-board is a small platform in the derrick. A drilling crew can trip pipe in or out of the hole one length, or joint, at a time. Usually, however, they trip pipe in stands to speed up the process. Since a stand is two or more lengths of pipe, the job goes faster than tripping them one joint at a time. Each stand of pipe is either about 60 feet long or about 90 feet long (about 18 or 27 metres). The contractor therefore mounts the monkeyboard in the derrick at a height of either 50 or 80 feet (15 or 24 metres), depending on how long the stands are. When the bit is drilling and the pipe is in the hole, the derrickhand climbs down from the monkeyboard and works at ground level on the drilling mud, making sure it meets the specifi­cations for drilling a particular part of the hole.

       

The Derrickhand or Derrickman position varies greatly from one drilling rig to another. He almost always reports directly to the driller. The name derrickman comes from the position that he normally occupies, which is at the top of the derrick. From this position he guides the stands of drillpipe (typically 90 ft long) into the fingers at the top of the derick while tripping out of the hole. When tripping into the hole he will pull the pipe out of the fingers and guide it into the top drive or the elevators. Traditionally the derrickman also works closely with the mud engineer (see drilling fluid) when not tripping pipe since he is not needed in the derrick. In this capacity it is his responsibility to monitor the mud weight (density), add sacks of chemicals (25-100 lb each) to the mud to maintain properties, and monitor the mud level in the mud pits to aid in the well control. He may also be responsible for the shale shakers on smaller rigs.

Mud Engineer (sometimes referred to as the "Mud Man", though women also do this job today) works on an oil well drilling rig, and is responsible for the drilling fluid, also known as drilling mud which lubricates the drill bit and clears cuttings from the borehole. It is a well-paid job because of the importance of maintaining the drilling fluid in efficient drilling.

The mud engineer is usually a technical graduate, who has been on a special training course, known as "mud school". Prior to drilling, a program will be worked out according to the expected geology. As the hole gets deeper, more mud is required, and the mud engineer is responsible for making sure that it is made up to specification. The chemical composition of the mud will be designed so as not to destabilize the hole. It is sometimes necessary to completely change the mud to drill through a particular subsurface layer.

As drilling proceeds, the mud engineer will get information from the mud logger about progress through the geology and will make regular physical and chemical checks on the drilling mud. In particular the Marsh funnel viscosity and the density are frequently checked. As drilling proceeds, the mud tends to accumulate small particles of the rocks which are being drilled through, and its properties change. It is the job of the mud engineer to specify additives to correct these changes, or to partially or wholly replace the mud when necessary. He or she must also keep an eye on the equipment which is used to pump the mud and to remove particles, and be prepared if the geologists' predictions are not entirely correct, or if other problems arise.

It is sometimes necessary to stabilize the wall of a borehole at a particular depth by pumping cement down through the mud system, and the mud engineer is in charge of this process.

The mud engineer is well supported by the mud supply company with computer aids and manuals dealing with all known problems and their solution, but it is his or her responsibility to get it right in a situation where mistakes can be very costly indeed.

Mudlogger in the modern oil field typically works for a service company contracted by the oil company (or operator) and is tasked primarily with gathering data and collecting samples during the drilling of a well to identify possible indications of hydrocarbons. They then organize this information in the form of a graphic log, showing the data charted on a graphic representation of the wellbore.

The oil industry representative or Company Man provides mudloggers their instruction. The mudlogger is told when to start well-logging activity and what services to provide. Work may begin on day one, known as the "spud in" date. It is more likely to be at some later time (and depth) as gleaned from the oil industry geologist's research. The mudlogger may also possess logs from wells drilled in the surrounding area. This information (known as "offset data") can provide valuable clues as to the characteristics of the particular geo-strata that the rig crew is about to drill through.

Mudloggers have to connect various sensors to the drilling apparatus and install specialized equipment before they can monitor or "log" drill activity. This can be quite strenuous and challenging, especially when having to be done during drilling activity. Much of the equipment will require precise calibration or alignment by the mudlogger to provide accurate readings.

Mudloggers observe and interpret the indicators in the mud returns during the drilling process. At regular intervals the mudlogger logs properties such as drilling rate, mud weight, flowline temperature, natural gas content and type, oil indicators, pump pressure, pump rate, lithology (rock type) of the drilled cuttings, and various other items of interest. The job of a mudlogger requires a good deal of diligence and attention. Sampling the drilled cuttings must be performed at predetermined intervals, and can be difficult during rapid drilling. The Mudlogger must also supply the data engineer with regular cups of tea, throughout the shift. The Data Engineers job requires intensive evaluation of drilling parameters which means that all refreshment and housekeeping responsibilities ultimately fall to the Mudlogger

Despite the difficulties inherent in the position, this continues to be one of the poorest paying jobs in the drilling industry. Famously, mudloggers can often be the most highly educated people involved in the drilling process yet be paid less than the galley hand on an offshore installation. This has led to a huge downwards pressure on the service and it is now hard to find a mudlogger who has any long term experience. This is symptomatic of the general malaise typified by the CRINE^[3] initiative in the North Sea throughout the Nineties where cutting costs and not retaining and training personnel was seen as the ultimate goal of senior management.

Another important task of the mudlogger is to monitor gas levels and notify other personnel on the rig when gas levels may be reaching dangerous levels, so appropriate steps can be taken to avoid a dangerous well blowout.

This is not to be confused with the MWD Hand who logs data in a similar manner but whose data is vastly different in source and content. Most of the data logged by a MWD Hand comes from expensive and complex tools that are downhole.

OIM (offshore installation manager)

The OIM is the most senior member of management on many larger drilling rigs, particularly large jack-up rigs and some semi-submersibles. On smaller rigs the Tool Pusher will usually be the most senior member of management, but will work under the OIM when one is present. Next in line of command would be the Driller (oil), who is in charge of the Roughnecks and Roustabouts.

The "OIM" is responsible for all matters of Health and Safety on board the installation and assumes the role of "On Scene Commander" in the event of an emergency. This means that he/she is responsible for managing the response to any emergency. In addition to this key emergency responsibility the OIM also manages all day to day aspects of the Oil and Gas production operation generally including; Budgets, Personnel, Production, Maintenance, Logistics (helicopters/supply boats/dive vessels etc).

On production installations the deputy OIM would generally be the Offshore Team Leader/Operations Engineer/Operations Superintendant, although on FPSO's this deputy position may be held by the Marine Superintendant - who must hold a master mariner qualification.

Roughneck

Roughneck (or ruffneck) is a slang term for an unskilled or slightly skilled laborer in a number of industries. In particular, it is the official name of a semi-skilled role on a North American oil rig. In Australia, a roughneck is known as a Driller's Offsider.

Originally the term was used in the traveling carnivals of 19th century America, almost interchangeably with roustabout. By the 1930s the terms had transferred to the oil drilling industry.

In the United Kingdom oil industry (1970s onwards) the term roughneck was specifically for the moderately skilled people who worked on the drill floor of a drilling rig, actually handling the specialized equipment for drilling, pressure control, etc. By contrast, a roustabout would perform more general labor, such as loading and unloading cargo from crane baskets, and being assistants to the welder, mechanic, electrician or other skilled workers. Usage in America appears to have been similar, and the terms had spread to the rest of the world at least by the mid-1990s.

              Roughneck.

In the North American oilfields, roughneck is one of several roles in the hierarchy on an oil rig. A roughneck's duties could include anything involved with the connecting and "tripping" of pipe down the well bore, and the roughneck is the person when it comes to general work around the rig. The roughneck is part of the crew.

Roustabout (Leasehand): is a laborer typically performing temporary, unskilled work. The term has traditionally been used to refer to traveling-circus workers or oil rig workers. A variation in spelling, roustabout, is commonly used in Australia and New Zealand to refer to workers handling wool after it has been taken from the sheep's back during annual shearing operations

"Roustabout" is also an official classification of oil rig personnel. Roustabouts working in the North American oil fields typically perform various jobs requiring little training. However, they frequently turn out to be long term employees and take on more difficult and sometimes dangerous jobs as they gain experience. Most go on to at least become roughnecks.

Motorman is the person who operates an electrified trolley car, tram, light rail, or rapid transit train.

The term refers to the person who is in charge of the motor (of the electric car) in the same sense as a railroad engineer is in charge of the engine. The term was (and, where still used, is) gender-neutral. Though motormen have historically been male, females in the position (such as in the U.S. during the World Wars) were usually also called motormen as a job title.

The term has been replaced by more neutral ones, as gender-specific job titles have fallen into disuse, and because many systems employ large numbers of women in the position. On the New York Subway, the position is now called train operator (T.O.), but it is still called motorman in Chicago.

The operator of an electric locomotive or an electric multiple unit train on a commuter or mainline railroad is typically called an engineer.

In the oilpatch, a motorman is the member of the drilling crew who is responsible for the maintenance and operation of the engines on an oil rig. On a four-man drilling crew the motorman is also the chainhand.

Floorhand (Chainhand): Works the "make-up" tongs on the Driller side of the drilling floor while tripping in the hole. On older rigs, and even newer ones, when equipment breaks, it "throws chain". Throwing chain is considered dangerous by OSHA and is against its regulations. Most roughnecks see it otherwise.

Leadhand (Worm): Also a floorhand, usually the lowest member of the drilling crew. Works the "break-out" or lead tongs on the off-driller side of the drilling floor.

Ginsel: The worms helper. Also derogatory insult given from roughneck to roughneck. Also called the fifth hand.

ROTARY HELPERS

Depending on the size of the rig, its equipment, and other factors, a con­tractor usually hires two or three rotary helpers for each work shift. On small rigs drilling shallow wells, for example, two rotary helpers on a shift can safely and efficiently perform the required duties. On large rigs drilling deep holes, the job may require three rotary help­ers, but not always. In any case, rotary helpers handle the lower end of the drill pipe when they are tripping it in or out of the hole. They also use large wrenches called tongs to screw or unscrew (make up or break out) the individual stands of pipe. Besides handling pipe, rotary helpers also maintain the rig, help repair it, and keep it clean and painted.

DRILLING CREW WORK SHIFTS

While a few jobs in the oil patch maybe of the 8-to-5 type, not many are because of the nature of the business. Drilling goes on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all over the world. Rigs may be near a town or city or they may be in a remote area, such as on the North Slope of Alaska or-in the jungles of Indonesia. In addition, rigs and rig hands ply their trade more and more in the oceans and seas of the world, as oil and gas that is accessible from land becomes ever more difficult to find. Because of the rig's location, economic factors, and other reasons, the number of days and the number of hours per day that a drilling crew works vary a great deal.

Regardless of the length of their work­day, drilling crews call their shifts "tours." (Tour is pronounced "tower.") In some areas, contractors employ 8-hour tours. In other areas, such as off­shore, along the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana, and in remote land locations, they use 12-hour tours.

If the crews work 8-hour tours, then the contractor usually hires three drill­ing crews and one toolpusher for each rig. Three drillers and derrickhands, and six or nine rotary helpers—three full drilling crews—split three tours per day. One crew works the daylight tour from, say, 7:00 am to 3:00 pm. The second crew works the evening, or afternoon, tour, from 3:00 pm to 11:00 pm. The third crew works the morning tour, from 11:00 pm to 7:00 am. The toolpusher is on the site all the time.

If the crews work 12-hour tours, then the contractor may hire four drilling crews and two toolpushers for each rig.

One toolpusher, two drillers and derrickhands, and four or six rotary helpers—two full drilling crews—split two tours per day. The two tours may work, say, from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm and 8:00 pm to 8:00 am. With two 12-hour tours, the crews on duty each may work seven days and then take off seven days. Probably just as frequent as the 7-on-and-7-off scheme is a 14-and-14 sched­ule. Two crews work 14 days and then are off for 14 days. Some contractors have rigs working abroad, such as in the North Sea or in Southeast Asia. In such cases, the contractor often employs a 28-and-28 schedule. Two crews are home for 28 days while the other two work 12-hour tours for 28 days.

 

 

In some cases, a contractor whose crews work 12-hour tours may hire only three crews to staff the rig. If so, their work schedule is often 8 days on and 4 days off. The three crews work overlap­ping schedules as shown in the table.

 

 

l

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

1

2

3

4

I2-hour

day tour

A

A

А

А

C

С

C

C

С

С

C

C

B

В

B

B

В

В

В

B

I2-hour

night tour

В

В

В

В

B

В

B

B

А

А

А

А

А

А

А

А

С

С

С

C

day off

С

С

С

С

А

А

А

А

В

В

В

В

С

С

С

С

А

А

А

А

 

The first 20 days of an 8-and-4 work schedule; three crews. а , B , and C, are available. Two crews are on duty while the third is off. In this example, crew a works the 12-hour daylight tour for the first 4 days the rig drills, crew B works the 12-hour nighttime tour, and crew C is off. On days, crew a takes off, crew B continues to work at night, and crew C takes over the daylight tour. This alternation continues until the rig finishes the well, which is usually several weeks or months. Note that each crew switches from daylight to nighttime and back after their days off.

OTHER RIG WORKERS

Besides the drilling crew, many other persons work at the rig site. They may, be there during the entire Time the well is being drilled, or they may come out only when their expertise or equipment is needed.

THE COMPANY REPRESENTATIVE

The operating company customarily has its own person on the drill site to supervise its interests. The company representative, like the toolpusher, usu­ally lives on the rig site in a traileror, portable building, and is in charge of all the operator's activities on the location.

This person helps plan the strategy for drilling the well, orders all the needed supplies and services, and makes on-site decisions that affect the well's progress. The company representative and the toolpusher usually work closely together.

 

 

      DRILLING

 

Prepare to drill

Once the site has been selected, it must be surveyed to determine its boundaries and environmental impact studies may be done. Lease agreements, titles and right-of-way accesses for the land must be obtained and evaluated legally. Once the legal issues have been settled, the crew goes about preparing the land:

1. the land is cleared and leveled and access roads may be built;

2. because water is used in drilling, there must be a source of water nearby. If there is no natural source, they drill a water well;

3. they dig a reserve pit, which is used to dispose rock cuttings and drilling mud during the drilling process, and line it with plastic to protect the environment. If the site is an ecologically sensitive area, such as a marsh or wilderness, then the cuttings and mud must be disposed offsite –tucked away instead of placed in a pit.

 

Once the land has been prepared, several holes must be dug to make way for the rig and the main hole. A rectangular pit, called a cellar, is dug around the location of the actual drilling hole. The cellar provides a work space around the hole, for the workers and drilling accessories. The crew then begins drilling the main hole, often with a small drill truck rather than the main rig. The first part of the hole is larger and shallower than the main portion and is lined with a large-diameter conductor pipe. Additional holes are dug off to the side to temporarily store equipment – when these holes are finished, the rig equipment can be brought in and setup.

 

 

survey (v)	исследовать; производить съемку
boundary	граница
environmental impact studies	исследование влияния на окружающего среде
lease agreement	договор об аренде
titles	права на собственность
right-of-way	доступ к территории
obtain (v)	получать, приобретать
evaluate (v)	юридически оценить
settle the legal issue	урегулировать правовые/ юридические вопросы
go about (v)	приступать к чему-либо; начать работать над чем-то
level (v)	выравнивать
access road	подъездной путь
dispose (v) ()	отделять (обломки пород)
line smth (v) with	обивать что-либо
ecologically sensitive area	экологически уязвимая территория
marsh	болото
wilderness	пустыня, дикая местность
be disposed offsite	быть расположенным за пределами территории
truck away (v)	увозить на грузовике
cellar	шахта под вышкой, амбар
drilling accessories	буровая арматура
conductor pipe	кондуктор, первая колонна обсадных труб
dig off (v)	выкопать, вырыть
store (v)	хранить
bring in (v)	приносить
bring in a well	приготовить к эксплуатации

 

Setting up the rig

Once the equipment is at the site, the rig is set up. Here are the major systems of a land rig:

1. Power system

· Large diesel engines – burn diesel fuel oil to provide the main source power;

· Electrical generators – powered by the diesel engines to provide electrical power;

2.Mechanical system

• Hoisting system – used for lifting heavy loads; consists of a mechanical winch (drawworks) with a large steel cable spool, a block-and-tackle pulley and a receiving storage reel for the cable;
• Turntable – part of the drilling apparatus

Rotating equipment

• Swivel – large handle that holds the weight of the drill string; allows the string to rotate and makes a pressure- tight seal on the hole;
• Kelly – four\six-sided pipe that transfer rotary motion to the turntable and drill string;
• Turntable (rotary table) – drives the rotating motion using power from electric motors;
• Drill string – consists of drill pipe (connected sections of about 30ft\10m) and drill collars (large diameter, heavier pipe that fits around the drill pipe and places weight on the drill bit);
• Drill bit – end of the drill that actually cuts the rock; comes in ma shapes and materials that are specialized for various drilling tasks and rock formations

4. Casing – large-diameter concrete pipe that lines the drill hole; prevents the hole from collapsing and allows drilling mud to circulate

5. Circulation system – pumps drilling mud (mixture of water, clay and weighting material and chemicals; used to lift rock cuttings from the drill bit to the surface) under pressure through the Kelly, rotary table drill pipes and drill collars:

· Pump – sucks mud from the mud pits and pumps it to the drilling apparatus;

· Pipes and hoses – connects pump to drilling apparatus;

· Mud-return line – return mud from hole;

· Shale-shaker – shaker \sieve that separates rock cuttings from the mud;

· Shale slide – conveys cuttings t the reserve pit;

· Reserve pit – collects rock cuttings separated from the mud;

· Mud pits – where drilling mud is mixed and recycled;

· Mud-mixing hopper – where new mud is mixed nand then sent to the mud pits

 

6.  Derrick –support structure that holds the drilling apparatus: tall enough to allow new sections of drill pipe to be added to the drilling apparatus as drilling progresses

7. Blowout preventer - high-pressure valves (located under the land rig) that eal the high-pressure drill lines and relieve pressure when necessary to prevent a blowout (uncontrolled gush of gas or oil to the surface, often assaociated with fire).

                                    Fig. Drilling rig components

 

 

 

crown block mast monkeyboard traveling block hook swivel elevators kelly kellybushing masterbushing mousehole rathole backup tongs drawworks weight indicator driller’s console doghouse rotary hose accumulator unit pipe ramp pipe rack substructure mud return line choke manifold mud-gas separator degasser reserve pit mud tanks desilter desander centrifuge mud pumps dry mud components storage water storage engines and generators blowout preventer stack

 

 

                                   Fig. Diagrammatic view of a drilling rig

Drilling rig

A drilling rig is a machine which creates holes (usually called boreholes) and/or shafts in the ground. Drilling rigs can be massive structures housing equipment used to drill water wells, oil wells, or natural gas extraction wells or they can be small enough to be moved manually by one person. They sample sub-surface mineral deposits, test rock, soil and groundwater physical properties, and to install sub-surface fabrications, such as underground utilities, instrumentation, tunnels or wells. Drilling rigs can be mobile equipment mounted on trucks, tracks or trailers, or more permanent land or marine-based structures (such as oil platforms, commonly called 'offshore oil rigs'). The term "rig" therefore generally refers to the complex of equipment that is used to penetrate the surface of the earth's crust.

Drilling rigs can be:

• Small and portable, such as those used in mineral exploration drilling and environmental investigations.
• Huge, capable of drilling through thousands of meters of the Earth's crust. Large "mud pumps" circulate drilling mud (slurry) through the drill bit and the casing, for cooling and removing the "cuttings" while a well is drilled. Hoists in the rig can lift hundreds of tons of pipe. Other equipment can force acid or sand into reservoirs to facilitate extraction of the oil or mineral sample; and permanent living accommodation and catering for crews which may be more than a hundred. Marine rigs may operate many hundreds of miles or kilometres offshore with infrequent crew rotation.

Oil and Natural Gas drilling rigs can be used not only to identify geologic reservoirs but also to create holes that allow the extraction of oil or natural gas from those reservoirs. An oil or gas pumping rig, sometimes called a derrick, is used to retrieve oil / gas from a reservoir.

Drilling rig classification

There are many types and designs of drilling rigs, with many drilling rigs capable of switching or combining different drilling technologies as needed. Drilling rigs can be described using any of the following attributes:

By power used

• electric - the rig is connected to a power grid usually produced by its own generators and uses electric motors to drive individual components such as drawworks, mud pumps and rotary tables.
• mechanical - the rig uses torque converters, clutches, and transmissions powered by its own engines, often diesel
• hydraulic - the rig primarily uses hydraulic power
• pneumatic - the rig is primarily powered by pressurized air

By pipe used

• cable - a cable is used to raise and drop the drill bit or drill string
• conventional - uses metal drill pipe of varying types
• coil tubing - uses a giant coil of tube and a downhole drilling motor

By height

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