Abandonment of an Iraqi well, justifications and feasibility study

Abstract EN

At the beginning of petroleum industry evolving the regulation did not focus onenvironmental issues, it was, mainly, looking to natural resources (oil and gas) productionand protection.

By the time, environmental and safety implications started to be the highestpriority, as a result of undesirable impact of oil operations on plant.

Huge numbers of drywells were abandoned according to environmental regulations to prevent side effects whichinvolved contamination of shallow water aquifers, surface seepage of hydrocarbon (whetheroil or gas) or salty water, potential hazardous of explosion or soil contaminations, and watercontamination at offshore unplugged wells.

Based on the hazards above, the main objectivesof plugging and abandonment operations is to achieve isolation and protection of all freshand near fresh water zones, and all future commercial zones, as well as prevent leaks inperpetuity from or into the well and remove surface equipment and cut pipe to a mandatedlevel below the surface.

In this paper, an Iraqi oil well was studied as a case study of abandonment processes.

Thewell represents a danger to people, environment and subsurface fresh water; due to unusualraised pressure in different annuluses and copious surface leak from wellhead componentswhile production.

Worthily to say that, it is seldom in Iraq to abandon the wells in currenttime, according to good reservoirs situation.

The reasons and justifications of this wellplugging, depending on economic analysis and investigation were studied, and explained, according to international practices and procedures of such treatments.

The workover optionis most economic option, but it was eliminated due to failure in ensuring the well safety andsevere environmental impact which expected.

According to investigation, pressure andlaboratory tests were revealed that P&A is mandatory for this well as soon as At the beginning of petroleum industry evolving the regulation did not focus onenvironmental issues, it was, mainly, looking to natural resources (oil and gas) productionand protection.

By the time, environmental and safety implications started to be the highestpriority, as a result of undesirable impact of oil operations on plant.

Huge numbers of drywells were abandoned according to environmental regulations to prevent side effects whichinvolved contamination of shallow water aquifers, surface seepage of hydrocarbon (whetheroil or gas) or salty water, potential hazardous of explosion or soil contaminations, and watercontamination at offshore unplugged wells.

Based on the hazards above, the main objectivesof plugging and abandonment operations is to achieve isolation and protection of all freshand near fresh water zones, and all future commercial zones, as well as prevent leaks inperpetuity from or into the well and remove surface equipment and cut pipe to a mandatedlevel below the surface.

In this paper, an Iraqi oil well was studied as a case study of abandonment processes.

Thewell represents a danger to people, environment and subsurface fresh water; due to unusualraised pressure in different annuluses and copious surface leak from wellhead componentswhile production.

Worthily to say that, it is seldom in Iraq to abandon the wells in currenttime, according to good reservoirs situation.

The reasons and justifications of this wellplugging, depending on economic analysis and investigation were studied, and explained, according to international practices and procedures of such treatments.

The workover optionis most economic option, but it was eliminated due to failure in ensuring the well safety andsevere environmental impact which expected.

According to investigation, pressure andlaboratory tests were revealed that P&A is mandatory for this well as soon as possible