Applied Drilling and Well Engineering

Steve Nas

The objective of this 5 days Applied Well Engineering course is to provide well engineers with an advanced and practical insight into the Well Design and Well Construction process. This course approaches well construction as a design process. In doing so each topic is addressed by the participants by defining objectives and creating a basis of design. Once this has been completed the detailed design process is addressed.

The course is scheduled around an actual well and it is combined with practical examples to enhance the theoretical and practical knowledge of the candidates. As the course progresses, complexity is increased, requiring the candidates to re-evaluate objectives as new conditions are introduced. The course addresses all aspects of well design and well operations including aspects that are generally conducted by contractors. 

Each of the participants will work and create a detailed drilling program, which will include costs, timings, risk assessments and contingency planning. Once the well design is completed the program will be used to review operational management and optimization opportunities.

DAY 1 - Introduction to Well Planning and Formation Temperatures

The first day introduces the well planning process, Objectives and Basis of Design as well as the general standards and guidelines that need to be referenced. Introducing the objectives of the well to be designed and working through the basis of design including first pass of drilling times and costs. From the initial well proposal, we add the understanding of pore, fracture pressures and the temperatures as they are provided to the well engineer. The objectives are to incorporate the formation pressures and temperatures into the basis of design and understand the implications. Various methods for pressure determination and potential variations in pressure predictions will be introduced

  • Welcome and Introductions
  • Well Types
  • Well Planning
    • Objectives
    • Basis of Design
    • Standards and Guidelines
    • Data Requirements for Well Planning
    • Considerations in well planning
    • Offset wells
    • Drilling program
  • Estimating Drilling Duration
  • Estimating Well Costs
  • Pore Pressures
  • Fracture Pressures
  • Temperatures
Exercises: Well Objectives, Basis of Design for the well, Drilling program contents, Time and Cost estimates, Pressure safety margins, Effects of Pressures and temperatures related to the well design.
 

DAY 2 - Directional Planning

This part introduces the understanding of directional planning and downhole targets. Directional calculations and the basis of design for trajectory planning will be addressed. With the trajectory directional plan designed tool and survey requirements, anti-collision and Torque and Drag calculations are conducted

  • Well Trajectory Directional Planning

    • Reference Systems

    • Trajectory Planning

  • Directional Tools

  • Directional Control

  • Torque and Drag

  • Tortuosity

  • Anti-Collision

Exercises: Trajectory planning and anti-collision calculations

 

DAY 3 - Casing Design

Casing design on the proposed well will be introduced. The principles of casing design, casing properties and connections will be introduced. Conductor design for a jackup rig and the wellhead types and selection of the wellheads will be introduced.

  • Casing Design

    • Selecting Setting Depths

    • Casing Properties

    • Load Cases Design Factors

    • Coupling and Connectors

    • Material Selection

  • Conductor Design

  • Wellheads

  • Casing running Operations

Exercises: Casing Design setting depth selections and tensional, burst and collapse 
calculations and design factors.

 

DAY 4 - Cementing and Drilling Fluids

Introducing the objectives and basis of design for cementing. Cement slurries and additives are introduced with testing requirements for the cement recipes. Cementing programs for the casing strings in the well will be completed and potential cementing problems are introduced. 

Introducing the objectives and basis of design for drilling fluids. Selection criteria for water based and oil based fluids. Introducing testing of drilling fluids and data gained from mud reports. Introducing rheology, fluid types and hydraulics and pressure loss calculations. Hydraulics optimization and solids control. Surge and swab pressures.

  • Cementing 

  • Cement Slurries

  • Cement additives

  • Cement Testing

  • Cement Placement

    • Cementing Problems

    • Remedial Cementing

  • Managing Cementing Operations

  • Drilling Fluids

  • Water based Fluids

  • Oil Based Fluids

  • Fluid Properties 

  • Testing of Drilling Fluids

  • Solids Control

  • Hydraulics

    • Rheology

    • Pressure Losses

    • Hydraulics Optimization

    • Hole Cleaning

  • Surge & Swab

Exercises: Casing primary cement calculations, basic hydraulic calculations, pressure losses and hydraulics optimization. Calculations for hole cleaning.

DAY 5 - Drilling Challenges and Well Control

Introducing drilling challenges and the remedial options for these challenges. Address  mitigations and drilling program requirements for these challenges. Introduce equipment requirements to mitigate the drilling challenges. Introducing well control challenges and objectives and basis of design for well control. Introducing the concept of well control barriers and general pressure barriers. Introducing kick tolerance calculations. Introducing blowout contingency planning and relief well planning. 
  • Drilling Challenges
  • Shallow Gas 
  • Down Hole Equipment Failures
  • Surface Equipment Failures
  • Stuck Pipe
  • Losses
  • Drillstring Failures
  • Hole collapse
  • Well Control
  • Barriers
  • Kick Tolerance
  • Primary Well Control
    • Kick Detection
  • Secondary Well Control 
    • Kick Circulation
  • Non-Conventional Well Control
    • Bullheading
    • Losses and Kicks
    • Plugged Equipment
  • Tertiary Well Control
    • Blowouts
    • Relief Wells
Exercises: Kick tolerance and relief well calculations. 
 

Notes:

For offline training candidates are required to bring their own laptops with excel and must have the ability to use excel for this course. No programming knowledge is required but complex formulas and  graphs are used together with spreadsheets during the course.
     
 

What is Applied Drilling and Well Engineering training course objective?

At the end of the course, the participants will understand and be competent in:

  • Participants gain a solid understanding of understanding objectives and creating a basis of design for each activity before working the details of their well program.
  • Participants are made aware of the complexities and interaction between various components of well design and the subsequent well operations. 
  • Participants will gain a good understanding of well design aspects provided by contractors, they will also gain an understanding of the data requirements for the contractor work scopes. 
  • Participants gain a better understanding of the operational management, the risk management and mitigation aspects of well design and well operations and the influence these have on well objectives. 
  • Participants can go back to their operational roles after the course with a better understanding of the well design process.

Who should join Applied Drilling and Well Engineering training course by PetroSync?

This course was originally designed for young graduate or trainee well engineer. These are the fundamentals of well engineering and are targeted at participants that want to understand the well engineering fundamentals.

Steve Nas

Well Engineering Consultant and Instructor

Experienced well engineer and well engineering instructor with an MSc in Drilling Engineering and over 40 years of drilling and well engineering experience. Skilled in many facets of advanced  well engineering such as Deepwater Managed Pressure Drilling, High Pressure – High Temperature, Geothermal, Well Integrity, Well Control and Well Abandonment operations. Experience working for operators, drilling contractors and service providers delivering a wide range of engineering solutions for complex wells. 

Developed and presented numerous training courses related to well design, managed pressure drilling, high pressure high temperature operations, casing design, advanced well control, well control emergency response planning and well abandonment.

Skilled in thermal and multiphase hydraulic modelling for geothermal and underbalanced drilling and blowout kill calculations. Experienced in engineering solutions for well abandonment, relief well planning and coiled tubing drilling.

Coauthored several SPE books and numerous SPE papers and Member of SPE, ICOTA, IADC, IWCF, Energy Institute.

 

  • Code PST0407-202501
  • Start Date 17 Feb, 2025
  • End Date 21 Feb, 2025
  • Locations Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • Cost USD 3550
  • Code PST0407-202502
  • Start Date 30 Jun, 2025
  • End Date 04 Jul, 2025
  • Locations Bangkok, Thailand
  • Cost USD 3550
  • Code PST0407-202301
  • Start Date 30 Oct, 2023
  • End Date 03 Nov, 2023
  • Locations Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • Cost USD 3495

   Upcoming Training

Code Start Date End Date Locations Cost Instructor
PST0407-202501 17 Feb, 2025 21 Feb, 2025 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia USD 3550 Steve Nas
PST0407-202502 30 Jun, 2025 04 Jul, 2025 Bangkok, Thailand USD 3550 Steve Nas

   Past Training

Code Start Date End Date Locations Cost Instructor
PST0407-202301 30 Oct, 2023 03 Nov, 2023 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia USD 3495 Steve Nas
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