Publications

Handil field is a mature oil and gas field in the Mahakam PSC operated by Total E&P Indonesié (TEPI). Gas reservoirs are located in deep zone meanwhile oil reservoirs located in the main and shallow zone. These gas reservoirs are produced using tubingless completion with a bottom-up perforation strategy. The moment the gas resources are depleted, oil reservoirs in main and shallow zone become accessible from this gas well, however no integrated artificial lift system was installed in the initial well completion hampering straightforward oil production. Retrievable Gas Lift (REGAL) system is a solution to produce these oil reservoirs with the two main options being: Gas Lift Macaroni (GLM, or also called Concentric Gas Lift) and Gas Lift Annulus (GLA, i.e. Gas Lift Pack Off and Siphon String). The implementation of REGAL is challenging both from a subsurface as well as from a surface point of view. Subsurface considerations are in case of GLM, pressure profile change due to friction loss, and in case of GLA well annulus integrity as no packer installed in the annulus. Further GLM needs to bypass master valve, imposing a safety concern that needs to be solved. However, TEPI has come with alternatives such as adding elevated spool to overcome this challenge. Surface considerations are that the well needs to be equipped by sufficient safety devices. The REGAL system has been implemented in wells initially not designed for Gas Lift, and is proven to deliver significant amounts of oil at low additional cost.