Case Study: Vankorneft saves 3 drilling days with SLB PowerDrive Archer RSS

First Run of PowerDrive Archer RSS in Russia Saves Vankorneft 3 Drilling Days

Vankorneft worked with SLB to optimize well placement in an eastern Siberia field where a previous well had been stopped short by gas saturation. The challenge was to drill a sharp 7°/30-m dogleg under the casing shoe while avoiding torque and drag issues and preserving the ESP zone, which made conventional motors, RSS, and whipstock-based options unattractive.

SLB proposed a single-trip solution using the PowerDrive Archer 475 high-build-rate RSS, supported by ImPulse 475 MWD, adnVISION 475, Smith Bits’ PDC bit design, and M-I SWACO drilling fluid. Vankorneft drilled the section in one run, completing 625 m in 21 drilling hours, eliminating the whipstock operation and extra BHA trips, and saving 3 drilling days and USD 250,000.