Publications

The Rindu formation is the shallowest producing formation in the Dun Field. Its large original oil in place (OOIP) and low primary recovery (less than 6% of OOIP) leave a considerable target for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Initial screenings have indicated that steamflooding is the most promising EOR technology for the Rindu. An aggressive program of data collection, reservoir characterization, simulation, and pilot steamflooding were undertaken to evaluate the steamflood potential of the Rindu reservoirs. Data collection efforts included an extensive coring and core analysis program to determine formation evaluation parameters and fluid flow properties, the collection and analysis of numerous oil samples, and step-rate testing and acoustlcal logging to establish the formation parting pressure. Following the data collection work, a pilot location was selected. A simulation model of the pilot area was built using a geostatistical distribution of reservoir properties to forecast the performance of the pilot. The favorable performance predictions led to the development of a pilot steamflood consisting of three 11 ' / 8 - acre inverted 7-spot patterns. Steam injection began in July 1994. The only consequence of the Rindu's shallow depth is a limitation on the steam injection pressure in order to prevent steam break out at the surface. The pilot response thus far has confirmed the simulation results, illustrating the importance of careful data collection and reservoir characterization in the evaluation of Rindu potential.