pretty unlikely the entire formation is damaged. You're talking about a "grout" curtain. The damage would be in the vicinity of the well bore in my opinion (however the company is saying they interpret it the "blockage" to be due to oil/mud emulsion, and they have a lot more info than i do). The only way to determine the degree of formation damage is via logs and driller logs and mud eng records. And the usefulness of the latter two depend on how good and accurate their record keeping is. The key parameter is mud loss but it depends on how accurately they have monitored that.
If mud invasion damage is the issue, acid frac may do the trick. The idea is you open up new cracks by over-pressuring the formation and given the reservoir matrix is limestone (calcium carbonate) - the acid you inject would dissolve the matrix sufficiently to get to unimpacted formation/reservoir, thus establishing communication between the well and the unimpacted, oil bearing, formation. I dont know the chemistry of the well fluids, so cannot comment on whether there is a compatibility issue that precludes acid use.
nope, thats not what i was thinking. The point im trying to make is that you need to have sufficient people on site and keeping an eye on everything/one making sure the job is getting done right. You can engineer anything you want, but if you dont ensure it is implemented the way it is intended, then don't expect good outcomes.
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In answer to your question. The repeated "failure" to get decent flow rates in A2 (three or four zones), A3 (three zones) could well point you to thinking, hey, is someone "sabotaging" Melbana's efforts here? Who knows? If your staff is across all the details and real time info, you would be able to answer that question with confidence. Is something more sinister afoot? well who knows? Theres no friends in the oil business. They need to have their eyes wide open.
Anyway, we're one month past the "FID" announcement for Unit 1A/1B development. Whats up with that?
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