Case Study: Sakhalin Energy achieves faster offshore drilling and $600,000 cost savings with SLB’s dual-reamer BHA

Single-Trip, Integrated Rathole Elimination BHA Drills Wells 7.5 Days Ahead of AFE Offshore Sakhalin

Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd. partnered with SLB to drill and complete two reservoir sections offshore Sakhalin in a very tight summer drilling window before winter ice shut down supply vessel operations. The customer needed to finish the work efficiently while maintaining a 45° inclination, minimizing tortuosity, keeping measurements close to the bit, and preserving a solids-free environment for openhole gravel-pack completions.

SLB deployed a customized single-BHA solution using the Rhino RHE dual-reamer rathole elimination system with PowerDrive X6 675 rotary steerable system, high-speed MLWD tools, and a Smith Bits MDi616 PDC bit. This approach allowed SLB to drill, underream, and reduce the rathole in one run, eliminate a dedicated cleanout trip, and complete both wells 7.5 days ahead of AFE. The program cut 138 ft of rathole to 23 ft, improved drilling performance to 65.6 ft/h and 60 ft/h on the two wells, and reduced total operational costs by USD 600,000.

Sakhalin Energy Investment Company, Ltd.