After setting a 9-3/8” liner on a deepwater drillship in the Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Laura forced an operator to evacuate and temporarily suspend their wellbore without performing the primary liner cementing operation. While the operator was able to quickly install the BRUTE® Storm System to secure the wellbore, the time and operations constraints left the landing string downhole and uncemented
After approximately 21 days of wellbore suspension, the BRUTE® Storm System and liner running tool BHA were removed from the wellbore, leaving the 9-3/8” liner in place and uncemented. The operator then sought a drillable composite cement retainer to perform the primary cement operation as the easily drillable composite material would allow for cementing operations through the retainer with the goal of recuperating lost time due to the hurricane
Expro deployed a 9-3/8” Composite Cement Retainer (CCR) and Mechanical Setting Tool (MST) to depth at 29,740 feet (9,064 meters). The CCR was successfully set and tested at 1,800 psi in preparation of performing the primary cement job within the 9-3/8” liner annulus and liner shoe
With the 9-3/8” CCR installed and sliding valve opened, a 225 bbl cement slurry was spotted and successfully placed, isolating the 9-3/8” liner and shoe. Once the 9-3/8” liner was cemented and verification of the seal integrity for the 9-3/8” CCR completed, the operator quickly removed the CCR utilizing their standard PDC drilling BHA, allowing for continuous operations after drillout was complete. Compared to standard cement retainers, the deployment of the 9-3/8” CCR and MST allowed the liner to be successfully cemented while significantly reducing drill-out time, prevented drill bit damage, and eliminated the need to trip to change bits. In total, use of the 9-3/8” CCR saved nearly one full day of rig time compared to conventional methods
