Publications

The Rindu formation is currently the shallowest producing formation in the Duri field. Primary recovery of this sand is very low, 6% of original oil in place (OOIP), thereby offering a large resource for enhance oil recovery (EOR). Initial screening indicated that steamflooding was the most promising EOR technology. One consequence of implementing steamflood in shallow depth reservoir is limitation of injection pressure to prevent steam break out at the surface. To asses the technical and economic risks, therefore, a pilot steamflooding was desirable. Favorable simulation performance prediction led to the development of a pilot steamflood consisting of three 11 5/8 - acre inverted 7-spot patterns. The pilot was selected in an area of excellent reservoir quality. This approach was intended to demonstrate some commercial recovery from the Rindu sand, with subsequent expansions benefiting from improved operating methods and added reservoir information. The steam injection began in July 1994.The production response to steam injection thus far has been quite encouraging and no major operating problems have been encountered. The overall performance of the pilot to date agreed with the original pilot yerformance prediction. Through March 1997, the steamflood pilot recovered 31% of OOIP, exceeding typical steamflood recovery in the PertamdKedua sands in the Duri field. The installation of pressure controlled injections were also proved useful to help maintain the injection pressure to stay below the frac pressure. Observation well data, production rates, and wellhead temperature from all producers confirm that the injectors are distributing heat and displacing oil to producers efficiently. The Rindu steamflood pilot project has so far been a technical and economic success.