WACORP (Wireline Abandonment and Completion Corp.) is pleased to announce the successful trial of the new and patented KWAT tool in Dawson Creek, Alberta with Shell Canada. Based on the results of this trial Shell has indicated that the KWAT technology meets and exceeds their internal and provincial regulatory compliance requirements to abandon their multizone wellbores.
According to the Alberta Energy Regulator, the province has approximately 95,000 inactive and an increasingly growing number of orphan wells. The KWAT tool is a novel abandonment technology that allows operators to plug multizone wellbores cutting nearly 40% the cost of traditional abandonment operations using E-line. The tool equips operators with an effective and reliable system that accurately logs into position, sets and pressure tests each barrier prior to capping with cement.
Peter Knight, president of WACORP states “This technology offers enormous savings in both rig time and rig costs throughout the entire operation compared to rigging in with a service or coil rig. This new tool drastically lowers operator expenses and time spent on each well while providing a much smaller operational footprint. This is not only good for the environment, but also provides a safe and more economical way to tackle this massive abandonment challenge. Operators and regulatory bodies now have a proven solution to abandon complex and deep wellbores with greater efficiency at a much lower cost.”
The system functions by utilizing wellbore fluid for hydraulic operation, eliminating the need for pressurized lines, explosives and testing equipment on surface. Operationally, the time savings are substantial. A typical multi-zone abandonment can take up to three days using current technology. The KWAT system will take less than one day for the same well. The minimal footprint vastly improves safety on the pad. Less equipment reduces emissions, keeping the wellsite surface clean while reducing the manpower required for operations compared to conventional operations. If the operator should need to assess a leak in the casing the KWAT will also serve as an assessment tool to find issues in a fraction of the time and cost versus rig based procedures.
