Buzz words in the upstream

Examples of misleading or misunderstood 'buzz' words that are prevalent in modern upstream technology are illustrated. The terms underbalanced drilling, horizontal wells, and geo-steering, which were unheard of in the early 1980s, have become key 'buzz' words in modern exploitation terminology. The terms are not only misused, but the technologies themselves are frequently mis-applied as shown by the frequency of economic failures, or less than optimal technical successes which have occurred when these technologies have been employed. Two examples, 'horizontal drilling' and 'geosteering', are used to illustrate the point. With regard to horizontal drilling, many oil field professionals consider it as merely a more advanced method of directional drilling. This represents a serious, yet common, misconception. In truth, horizontal wells are not just an altered drilling process, but a fundamental change in exploitation technology. A more appropriate definition would be that a horizontal well is an enhanced oil recovery process, clearly implying a relationship to the exploitation benefit potential of horizontal wells. The other term, 'geo-steering' refers to defining, generating and monitoring a wellpath on geology rather than geometry. It, too, is frequently misused in the technical media. The term is also misrepresented by implying that it is applicable only to the horizontal section of a well, which in fact is far from the truth. To counter these misconceptions, the paper provides appropriate definitions for each of these terms, and defines the conditions under which the techniques themselves are most appropriately used. 7 figs