First Successful Wireline Stress Testing in a Gas Hydrate Reservoir in the Hyuganada Sea, Japan

• Published in: Energies (Basel) Vol. 17; no. 11; p. 2610
• Main Authors: Ohtsuki, Satoshi, Gao, Bei, Yoshii, Takanao, Maehara, Yuki, Watanabe, Daigoro, Kanno, Takayuki, Fan, Zhaoya
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 01.06.2024
• Subjects: Clathrate compounds; Drilling; formation testing; gas hydrates; Information management; Job stress; Mechanical properties; Natural gas; Offshore; riserless operation; stress testing; Japan
• DOI: 10.3390/en17112610
• ISSN: 1996-1073

This study presents a stress testing operation conducted using a wireline formation tester in a newly discovered gas hydrate prospect located offshore in Japan. The campaign, which spanned from December 2021 to January 2022, involved drilling a well using logging-while-drilling technology. Subsequently, wireline formation testing and stress testing were successfully conducted at three different depths within a gas hydrate-concentrated zone. The testing was accomplished in a single riserless descent, with the primary goal of obtaining crucial data such as mobility, formation pressure, and fracture gradient for one of the prospects. This operation marked the first stress testing job performed with dual packers in an open water and deepwater environment specifically for gas hydrate reservoirs. The study also provides a comprehensive interpretation of the data gathered during the operation. Moreover, it evaluates various properties such as formation mobility, formation pressure, initial breakdown pressure, closure pressure, fracture propagation pressure, and instantaneous shut-in pressure.