Objective
To develop a pilot plant of Steam Injection to enhance the recovery of heavy oil from the Vallecupa field.
The Vallecupa field was an abandoned fractured carbonate reservoir at a moderate depth (500 to 650 m) with a medium-heavy type oil (16 deg. C to 26 deg. C API gravity). In a block isolated by faults from the rest of the field, five wells were drilled (in a five spot pattern). The steam injection started in November 1984. The total amount of steam injected was 10534 t. The cumulative production of the wells at the abandonment of the pilot was 161 m3 of oil and 2200 m3 of water. The very poor efficiency of the process was due to the very high heterogeneity of the reservoir rock (fractured carbonate) which exhanced the water movement towards the producing wells and prevented any further recovery of oil.
The main phases of the project were:
1. Collection of reservoir and well basic data
2. Study of the reservoir for the selection of the best injection /production scheme
3. Drafting and construction of the pilot plant (based on a five -spot geometry and with central system injection)
4. Test of the process on the pilot plant.
Programme(s)
Topic(s)
Call for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
DEM - Demonstration contractsCoordinator
20097 S. Donato Milanese (MILANO)
Italy