Schlumberger Introduces High-Definition Dual-Imaging-While-Drilling Service for Oil-Based Mud | SLB

Schlumberger Introduces High-Definition Dual-Imaging-While-Drilling Service for Oil-Based Mud

Published: 09/03/2019

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ABERDEEN, September 3, 2019—Schlumberger today introduced the TerraSphere* high-definition dual-imaging-while-drilling service at SPE Offshore Europe Conference and Exhibition.

The new service provides the industry’s first application of a logging-while-drilling dual-physics imager for oil-based mud for drilling oil and gas wells. It incorporates electromagnetic (EM) and ultrasonic measurements that enable multiple high-resolution borehole images in nonconductive mud. This reveals enhanced details for geological, petrophysical and geomechanical interpretation to uncover subtle variations in the subsurface caused by stratigraphic or structural properties that impact wellbore stability. The real-time transmission of images with these enhanced details enables drillers to make better-informed decisions during the near-wellbore stress interpretation process.

“Drillers have been unable to visualize, in real time, subsurface features when drilling with oil-based mud,” said Tarek Rizk, president, Drilling & Measurements, Schlumberger. “The TerraSphere service delivers geological and geomechanical data that not only saves logging time and related rig costs, but also reduces the potential risk for lost circulation of drilling muds into formation fractures.”

More than 30 field trials were conducted with the TerraSphere service in the Gulf of Mexico, Middle East, North Africa, North Sea and US land. These trials included successful imaging for structural and stratigraphic analysis, revealing breakout fractures that enabled drillers to avoid mud loss. The new service acquired additional and higher definition data, reducing subsequent operational time and improving net-to-gross ratio in the payzone.

In the North Sea, a customer used the TerraSphere service in a complex reservoir in Balder Field. Dual imaging while drilling delineated sand injectites in the reservoir and removed ambiguity from conventional logs, providing more accurate characterization through increased reservoir coverage to maximize production potential. The resolution captured by ultrasonic images is now refined to millimeters—previously possible only with wireline imagers.

For more information on the TerraSphere high-definition dual-imaging-while drilling service, visit www.slb.com/terrasphere.

About Schlumberger

Schlumberger is the world's leading provider of technology for reservoir characterization, drilling, production, and processing to the oil and gas industry. With product sales and services in more than 120 countries and employing approximately 100,000 people who represent over 140 nationalities, Schlumberger supplies the industry's most comprehensive range of products and services, from exploration through production, and integrated pore-to-pipeline solutions that optimize hydrocarbon recovery to deliver reservoir performance.

Schlumberger Limited has executive offices in Paris, Houston, London, and The Hague, and reported revenues of $32.82 billion in 2018. For more information, visit www.slb.com.

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*Mark of Schlumberger

For further information, contact:

Moira Duff
Corporate Communication Manager − Western Hemisphere
Schlumberger
Tel: +1 (281) 285-4376
communication@slb.com

The TerraSphere high-definition dual-imaging-while-drilling service uses dual-physics imaging to identify structural detail while drilling with oil-based mud.