Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ by guest on September 28, 2021 The geology of geomechanics: petroleum geomechanical engineering in field development planning M. A. ADDIS Rockfield Software Ltd, Ethos, Kings Road, Swansea Waterfront SA1 8AS, UK Tony.Addis@rockfieldglobal.com Abstract: The application of geomechanics to oil and gas field development leads to significant improvements in the economic performance of the asset. The geomechanical issues that affect field development start at the exploration stage and continue to affect appraisal and development decisions all the way through to field abandonment. Field developments now use improved static reservoir characterization, which includes both the mechanical properties of the field and the initial stress distribution over the field, along with numerical reservoir modelling to assess the dynamic stress evolution that accompanies oil and gas production, or fluid injection, into the reservoirs. Characterizing large volumes of rock in the subsurface for geomechanical analysis is accompa- nied by uncertainty resulting from the low core sampling rates of around 1 part per trillion (ppt) for geomechanical properties and due to the remote geophysical and petrophysical techniques used to construct field models. However, some uncertainties also result from theoretical simplifications used to describe the geomechanical behaviour of the geology. This paper provides a brief overview of geomechanical engineering applied to petroleum field developments. Select case studies are used to highlight how detailed geological knowledge improves the geomechanical characterization and analysis of field developments. The first case study investigates the stress regimes present in active fault systems and re-evaluates the industry’s interpretation of Andersonian stress states of faulting. The second case study discusses how the stress magnitudes and, potentially, stress regimes can change as a result of production and pore pressure depletion in an oil or gas field. The last case study addresses the geomechanical charac- terization of reservoirs, showing how subtle changes in geological processes are manifested in significant variations in strength. The studies presented here illustrate how the timely application of petroleum geomechanical engineering can significantly enhance field development, including drilling performance, infill drilling, completion design, production and recovery. Gold Open Access: This article is published under the terms of the CC-BY 3.0 license. Geomechanical analysis is based on a comparison of strains accompanying these deformations can con- rock mechanical properties and strengths with the trol the present day initial stresses and textures in stresses acting in situ. When the magnitudes of the many reservoirs. However, oil field developments stresses acting in the rock are lower than the yield lead to geomechanical changes, including the strength, the rocks behave elastically and deforma- following: tions are small. However, if the changes in stress (1) rock excavation during drilling results in well- resulting from excavation during drilling, or from bore stability and sand production problems; pore pressure or thermal variations exceed the com- (2) removing pore fluid and pressures from the pressive yield, peak or pore collapse strengths, the rock results in compaction and subsidence; rock will fail through shearing or compaction, lead- (3) injection into the reservoirs increases the pres- ing to non-linear irreversible deformation. If, on the sure and induces thermal changes, which result other hand, the stresses become tensile, fracturing of in rock fracturing or shearing to enhance the the formation can occur. natural geologically controlled permeability. A brief timeline of the important developments This is accompanied by significant changes in geomechanical engineering applied to oil and in the reservoir and overburden stresses and gas extraction (Fig. 1) shows that these issues have strains. been pursued since the earliest days of widespread hydrocarbon extraction, attracting the attention of In short, field development activities, from drilling some of the most notable figures in the industry. to stimulation, perturb the initial geological condi- The geological expression of the geomechanical, tions. It is the job of the petroleum geomechanical or structural, processes that are responsible for the engineer to characterize the initial stress regime development of many oilfields include folding, fault- and the material properties, including the strength ing, fracturing and diapirism. The stress regimes and of rocks, to predict and plan for any changes in From:Turner, J. P., Healy, D., Hillis,R.R.&Welch, M. J. (eds) 2017. Geomechanics and Geology. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 458, 7–29. First published online June 28, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP458.7 # 2017 The Author(s). Published by The Geological Society of London. Publishing disclaimer: www.geolsoc.org.uk/pub_ethics Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ by guest on September 28, 2021 8 M. A. ADDIS Bell & Gough, Geertsma Bradley, Reservoir Hottman et al. Bol et al. Compaction Mechanical Mechanical Borehole influence of Hubbert & Willis Instability drilling fluids is Hydraulic Kirsch recognised Terzaghi Fracturing Stress Biot Effective around a Poroelasticity Hubbert & Rubey Stress Morita et al., Alberty Present circular hole Overpressures & Mclean, Anderson and faulting Depletion & Wellbore Stress Stress Caging Instability Systems Antheunis et al. in industry Sand Hatchell for Faulting articles Production et al., Kenter 1959 ‘76 ‘79 1994 1990/ ‘03 et al. 4D Drill 1905 1925 1941 1957 Seismic fluids 2000 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 Fig. 1. Timeline of notable developments in the adoption of geomechanics in the oil and gas industry. Modified from SPE Distinguished Lecture by D. Moos (2014). either of the stress magnitudes or deformations The number of publications increased gradually accompanying the field development. The perturba- through the 1990s, with a significant increase tions can be small and linear in nature, going unno- around 2000, predating the successful development ticed in many developments. However, when large of shale gas in the USA in 2004 or the increase in US changes occur, the response of the formations may shale oil production after 2010. This measure of become non-linear, or plastic, leading to safety industry uptake does not take into account different breaches and lost production, costing billions of aspects of geomechanical analysis, such as compac- dollars in design changes in the worst-affected tion, hydraulic fracturing and wellbore stability, fields. As the industry pushes for increased effi- which have been used by the industry for a much ciency, greater safety and improved economics longer period than that indicated in Figure 2. Com- in increasingly challenging fields, all aspects of paction and subsidence has attracted considerable the development are expected to deliver improved activity and interest since the late 1950s, with the field performance, including the discipline of notable examples of the Wilmington, Ekofisk, Gro- geomechanics. ningen and the Central Luconia fields, demonstrat- The application of geomechanics to oil and gas ing the extent to which reservoirs are dynamic field development has become increasingly com- during the field development. Wellbore stability mon over the past 40 years, with asset teams in the and sand production have been a focus in the indus- more challenging and larger field developments try since the late 1970s, particularly after 1979 when adopting geomechanical engineers as a permanent four seminal wellbore stability papers were pub- part of the team. The growth of unconventional oil lished (Bradley 1979a, b; Bell & Gough 1979; and gas developments has accelerated this trend Hottman et al. 1979). These presaged a step change because the need to hydraulically fracture reservoir in drilling inclined, high-angle, extended and hori- formations, or to shear the natural fracture network, zontal wells, both onshore in the Austin chalk, to generate artificial reservoir permeability relies on the North Slope of Alaska, and offshore in the geomechanical knowledge of the mechanical prop- North Sea and Gulf of Mexico in the 1980s and erties and initial stresses, as well as on the evolution early 1990s. Figure 2 reflects the uptake of the now- of the reservoir stresses during field development. accepted discipline of geomechanics into field The continual adoption of geomechanical engi- development. neering in the industry is difficult to judge quantita- Numerous textbooks comprehensively address tively. However, a good indicator of the level of both the theory and application of geomechanical integration of petroleum geomechanics in the indus- engineering to field planning (Charlez 1991, 1997; try is the number of papers published annually by Fjaer et al. 2008; Zoback 2008; Aadnoy & Looyeh the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and 2011). This paper, in contrast, presents an individual stored in the SPE library containing the term ‘geo- view and geomechanical insights from significant mechanics’ in the publication title (Fig. 2). field developments, with emphasis on the geological Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ by guest on September 28, 2021 PETROLEUM GEOMECHANICAL ENGINEERING 9 50 'Geomechanics' in Paper Title 40 30 20 SPE Papers Published Per Year Year SPE Papers Published Per 10 0 2011 2011