Lifecycle of an Onshore Well
Final script: 1.23.2013
Total time: 5:50
Timing
:00
:11
Visual
The Lifecycle of an Onshore Well:
Finding and Producing Tight and
Shale Gas & Oil
City in distance, subsurface view of
shale layers deep below surface, pad
location on grassy area
:26
Tractor/building pad
:47
Drill rig on pad
:56
Drilling
1:01
Casing
1:09
Aquifer
1:16
Drilling deeper
1:24
Drilling horizontally
1:41
Close up
1:45
Withdrawing drill
Voiceover
At Shell, we believe natural gas is an important
resource for our energy future. We also believe
it must be produced safely and responsibly.
Technology has made it possible to access gas
and oil trapped in tiny spaces in shale or sand
formations deep under the earth. This short
video explains how we explore, drill and produce
from a well.
We consider the geology and local environment
to carefully select the well location. This might
include gathering seismic data or information
about air, wildlife or nearby water sources. We
work with the regulators to plan the site. Then
we begin by building a well pad for our
operations.
During exploration, we may drill a single well or
several wells to understand the gas or oil in an
area.
When we drill, we are careful to protect the
surrounding area, including groundwater.
We install multiple layers of steel pipe, also
called casing, and cement around each layer of
pipe.
This is designed to isolate the gas and fluids in
the well from the potable water table, or
drinkable water.
We typically drill several kilometers or more
than a mile deep beneath the earth to reach the
trapped hydrocarbon formation.
Then to access gas or oil locked in shale rock we
drill horizontally. We may use different well
designs depending on the local underground
conditions. The entire drilling process can take
several weeks or even months for each well
drilled from a pad.
Sensors in the drilling equipment feed us
continuous data as we drill.
Once we reach the bottom of the well, we
remove the drill and install steel pipe to the
necessary depth based on our engineer’s design
of the well.
1:54
Casing in place
2:05
Depth overview
2:15
Remove rig structure
2:23
Lower perf gun
2:42
Close-up of wellhead
2:48
Feed to bottom reach of wellbore
2:58
Perf process
3:09
View of pad
3:26
Fluid
3:40
Plug
3:56
Repeat multiple stages
This step typically takes only days, with many
safety checks along the way to be sure we have
a good cement job and the well and casing
integrity are secure.
This advanced drilling technology is one of the
keys that make it possible to reach more of the
gas or oil trapped far below the surface within
the shale or sand layer.
After the well is drilled, we remove the rig and
prepare the well to begin the completions and
hydraulic fracturing process.
This is the second key to extracting gas or oil
trapped in tight sand or shale rock. Hydraulic
fracturing is a very carefully controlled process
that releases the hydrocarbon from the tiny
pockets in which it is trapped. We do not
hydraulically fracture wells unless we have
successfully pressure tested for wellbore
integrity.
We lower a tool called a perforating gun into the
wellbore.
We feed it down to the target location in the
well. A well log, which gives us data about the
well, helps us know just where to position the
tool.
Once the perforating tool is in position, we fire
carefully calibrated charges that perforate the
well casing and connect the well to the tight
sand or shale rock layer.
We inject a mix of fluids under pressure – mostly
water, with sand and chemicals – to create
fractures in the surrounding shale rock or tight
sand layer. The sand props open the cracks and
allows the gas or oil to better flow into the well.
When possible, we treat and reuse the fluid we
recover during fracturing to minimize the
amount of water we use. We support the
release of information about chemicals used in
fracturing fluids.
We fracture the well in segments or stages.
After each stage, we put in a temporary plug to
separate the fracture stages and prevent gas or
oil from flowing too soon. The number of stages
will depend on the local geology.
We repeat this process until we have finished
fracturing the length of the target area.
Hydraulic fracturing and completing the well
4:07
4:11
4:15
Drill out plug
Gas begins to flow (magnified)
Separators
4:49
Pad sequence of four wells, multiple
horizontal wells reaching in different
directions
5:01
Pad with facilities
5:09
Overview of wellpad
5:16
5:20
Producing well site with city
emerging in distance and lighting up.
Inspect well
5:25
Plug and abandon
5:38
Marker on well site
typically lasts only a few days for each well.
When we are ready, we drill out the plugs.
This allows the gas or oil to flow into the well.
At the well pad, the flow is separated into gas
and liquids. The liquids might include oil, or
water that was also locked in the rock deep
below ground. We collect the water to be
reused, re-injected or disposed of according to
local regulations. The gas or oil continues to a
pipeline to provide energy. During exploration,
if no pipeline is nearby, we may need to
temporarily flare or capture the gas in shortterm facilities or store the oil in short-term tanks
on the location.
If we decide to develop the area, we typically
put multiple wells on a single pad reaching in
different directions deep underground to
minimize disturbance to the surface.
All our wells and site operations meet
government rules and our own rigorous
standards for safety and protecting the
environment.
Once drilling and completions are done, we
remove most of our equipment and reduce the
size of the well pad.
A well typically can produce needed energy for
decades.
We inspect and maintain well sites regularly
during their productive life.
When the well is no longer producing, we
comply with regulations to cement it closed, test
that it is sealed, remove all equipment and
structures, and reclaim the site to blend back in
to its surroundings.
A permanent marker is installed to mark the
well location.