Case Study: ExxonMobil improves landing success and boosts North Sea production with SLB GeoSphere reservoir mapping-while-drilling

ExxonMobil Maps Complex Injectite Reservoir to Effectively Geosteer into Target Sands

ExxonMobil worked with SLB to solve a challenging North Sea injectite reservoir problem: distinguishing target massive sands from thin non-target sands while drilling, with the goal of landing producer wells accurately, improving production, and eliminating costly pilot holes. The complex geology made it difficult to know whether the well was entering the right sands, and conventional logging while drilling did not provide enough detail to safely and efficiently place the wells.

SLB deployed the GeoSphere reservoir mapping-while-drilling service, along with geoVISION imaging-while-drilling, to map the reservoir in real time, detect the top of the massive sands from more than 20 m away, and identify the oil/water contact before penetrating the reservoir. This enabled ExxonMobil to land wells without pilot holes, reduce drilling and completion risks, and optimize geosteering for better well placement; production from wells drilled with the service significantly boosted field output, with oil production in 2015 rising 37% versus 2012.

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