Paper: Plunger Lift Automated Control Via Telemetry

Controlling plunger-lift wells has always proven tricky, if not outright difficult. The advent of electronic controls dramatically improved the success of plunger-lift applications. The reliability of controls along with the varied programs available has made the job easier, and therefore improved the overall operation. Wells never before considered candidates are now regularly employing plunger-lift. While the reliability and flexibility of equipment has improved, most plunger-lift wells are still operated at less than optimum levels of productivity. Today's busy well operators have less time available, making optimization difficult. Utilizing telemetry, along with the Auto-Cycle algorithm, has shown dramatic increases in production, eliminated down time, and maximized the pumper's time. It also serves to provide real time production and management data. This paper looks at several fields where operators have maximized their time, and increased their production through field automation.