Case Study: a large oil drilling service provider confirms movable hydrocarbons in tight carbonates with SLB SpectraSphere and EcoScope

First Use of SpectraSphere Service in Middle East Confirms Movable Hydrocarbons in Tight Carbonates

SLB worked with a large oil drilling service provider in the Middle East that wanted to assess the production potential of a tight carbonate reservoir while managing high sticking risk in a multilateral horizontal well. The customer needed to confirm whether movable hydrocarbons were present in the low-permeability 4 to 6 mD/cP interval and to drill safely in difficult borehole conditions.

SLB deployed its SpectraSphere fluid mapping-while-drilling service together with the EcoScope multifunction logging-while-drilling service to gather real-time pressure and fluid-property data. The team ran 16 pretests, adjusted mud weight as needed, and used mobility results to choose sampling depths. Hydrocarbon breakthrough was seen within 25 to 45 minutes of pumpout, three-phase flow was identified, and laboratory water-cut measurements closely matched the downhole data, showing that SLB delivered laboratory-quality fluid analysis while drilling and helped minimize sticking risk.