A new technology now exists to expand solid stainless steel tubulars for downhole remedial pre frac applications

A new technology now exists to expand solid stainless steel tubulars for downhole remedial pre frac applications. Very different from other expandable technologies, mainly due to the setting process and the capacity of the tools to expand until they're in contact with the casing, this technology has now been used successfully in several countries as a precision intervention to resolve a variety of downhole problems. This paper will: provide an introduction to inflatable packer expandable steel technology, what it is and how it works; discuss some of the issues identified and resolved during the development of the technology; provide case histories using examples of pre frac jobs DV tools and sliding sleeve repair jobs from operations in US, and Western Canada; summarize the features, benefits, and limitations of the technology; present the solutions available today in the US.