Alex Rodriguez, BP; Katherine Gallagher, Pioneer Natural Resources
A growing majority of oil and gas fields in North America are mature or heavily depleted proposing many challenges for economic production. Low reservoir pressures, along with liquid loading, have become some of the main hurdles to overcome when attempting to economically produce natural gas. Deliquifying wells using artificial lift has become a prominent method used to tackle these issues. This paper discusses the challenges faced in the Oil and Gas industry with an eye to deliquifying mature or depleted reservoirs. It describes the pros and cons of the pump jack and the LeBro pump actuator currently being tested; it compares the cost of installing a pump jack vs. a LeBro pump actuator; and it also talks about testing done on horizontal Coal Bed Methane wells, and future design and implementation on deep well application (~12,500').