Paper: 3.5 Slimhole Plunger Lift System Used In The Wamsutter Development Asset

In Greater Green River Basin, Wyoming In order to keep capital cost down in tight gas fields, the slimhole 3%" wellbore was developed. Due to the large pipe diameter, high line pressure and low rock permeability, liquid loading becomes an issue early on a wells life cycle and, in most cases, liquid loading is immediate upon first delivery. 3%" plungers have proven to be an effective method for deliquification of the slim hole wellbore utilizing the larger-cross sectional area to effectively push the plunger and accumulated liquids up the wellbore. In comparison, using the Foss & Gaul Calculation, the 3%" plunger can operates with a lower differential pressure across it than smaller tubing sizes. The 3%" slimhole plunger has been successful in restoring production to the original decline curve or eliminating the hyperbolic decline recognized when liquid loading occurs. 3 %," plungers are currently pushing the existing fluid lifting limits and new 3%" plunger technologies such as freecycle plunger lift systems are under evaluation. In this paper the authors will describe the process of evaluation that was used and provide details of the operational problems that were encountered and how they were handled. They will go on to provide production data for several case study wells that illustrate the effectiveness of the plunger lift system and its close adherence to the performance predicted in the evaluation process.