The results are 10% better than the nearest competitor and are currently showing slower decline in production.
Petrobakken also announced the commissioning and commencement of air injection at our Kerrobert THAI (Toe Heel Air Injection) heavy oil project. This project applies the THAI technology in a conventional heavy oil reservoir at Kerrobert, Saskatchewan.
Kerrobert heralds a new era for fast track heavy oil projects in Canada.
– July 9, 2009: Regulatory approval received only 54 working days after filing the application.
– September 7, 2009: Drilling and completion operations completed.
– September 8, 2009: Plant construction initiated and completed in six weeks.
– September 12, 2009: The pre-ignition heating cycle (“PIHC”) commenced (in the vertical wells only) and we have now started air injection.
The PIHC performed as expected, allowing us to achieve the necessary injectivity into the reservoir zone. The horizontal wells have temporary downhole pumps which were turned on at low rates to achieve a slight drawdown pressure across the horizontal well prior to air injection. Air injection has been initiated at a rate less than 10% of designed volumes to establish the in-situ combustion zone. Currently, we expect to begin producing through the plant in the next twenty-four hours. Once combustion gas is consistently produced from the horizontal well, we will cease pumping and ramp up air injection to allow the wells to flow. We will then increase air injection rates and oil production volumes are expected to increase concurrently.
This project will highlight the applicability of the THAI technology in Saskatchewan’s conventional heavy oil resource base. We believe that a significant portion of the Province’s estimated 20 billion barrels of unrecovered conventional heavy oil resources can be commercialized using THAI
Here is an 8 page pdf that looks at simulations of Toe Heel Air Injection (THAI) THAI simulations show it will work under different geology conditions and work better than other underground combustion techniques.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
Known for identifying cutting edge technologies, he is currently a Co-Founder of a startup and fundraiser for high potential early-stage companies. He is the Head of Research for Allocations for deep technology investments and an Angel Investor at Space Angels.
A frequent speaker at corporations, he has been a TEDx speaker, a Singularity University speaker and guest at numerous interviews for radio and podcasts. He is open to public speaking and advising engagements.