REGIONAL RESERVOIR CHARACTERIZATION IN THE APPRAISAL OF THE ALASKAN HEAVY OIL RESOURCE
HULM, Erik J.1, MATSON, Rick G.1, PATTISON, Katherine2, VITTORATOS, Steve1, and WEST, Chris C.1, (1) ACT Business Unit, BP Alaska, 900 E. Benson Blvd, Anchorage, AK 99519, [email protected], (2) Reservoir Fluids & Geochemistry, Schlumberger, 2525 Gambell Street, Suite 400, Anchorage, AK 99503
Alaskan Heavy Oil is a significant resource to BP covering a large area: 14
Bbbl BP net over 1,600 sq. km.. Unfortunately, viscosities ranging between 200 –
20,000 cp mean this oil is immobile and inaccessible using conventional recovery
techniques. Non-conventional recovery technologies (primarily thermal
techniques) have been successfully developed and applied to Canadian heavy oil.
BP-Alaska will appraise the appropriate recovery technologies and locations to
demonstrate commercial development viability by executing a number of pilots.
Successful selection of pilot locations and appraisal of pilot results require
an understanding of compartmentalization and heterogeneities defined in a high
quality reservoir characterization. A regional and local sequence stratigraphic
framework has been established in this heterogeneous fluvial to shallow marine
reservoir. Integration of well and merged seismic
data produced depositional
environment maps that predict reservoir quality and potential stratigraphic
heterogeneity. Stratigraphic heterogeneity is an important constraint of pilot
selection. Complex faulting patterns establish trap geometries and contribute to
predicting additional compartmentalization. Maps of fluid type, viscosity, and
areal distribution provide additional constraints for pilot selection.
Geo-mechanical study results predict the behavior of the reservoir flow
characteristics under changing thermal conditions. Acoustic rock properties and
modeling studies predict 4D
seismic
attribute
changes associated with pilot
execution. The pilot selection process will utilize the reservoir
characterization through a CRS mapping-based selection methodology.