Our Projects

The reservoir evaluations NITEC has performed vary in size, complexity, and reservoir type reflecting the variations found in petroleum reservoirs worldwide. Our projects have included volatile oil, medium & heavy oils, gas-condensate, gas, and gas storage fields found in clastic and carbonate lithologies with varying degrees of faulting and fracture complexity. Due to the complexity of many of our projects, we have found that the available technologies or processes are often inadequate to resolve various reservoir issues. Hence, NITEC has developed appropriate technologies and software to address these problems. Typical projects include:

• Fracture characterization: A highly fractured and faulted reservoir in Mexico with an active aquifer was successfully characterized with NITEC's in-house technology. Reservoir simulation resulted in identification of highly productive zones which were confirmed by drilling.
  
  
• Gas storage: A unique helium gas storage project in the U.S. required an improved reservoir characterization in order to history match 78 years of production/injection performance. Future production plans were optimized to achieve a U.S. Congress mandated depletion policy.
  
  
• Thermal recovery: A verification of process was carried out for a thermal recovery process - insitu upgrading of hydrocarbons. Thermal simulation correctly correlated with laboratory results and a U.S. field evaluation considered Huff-n-Puff and continuous injection.
  
  
• Compositional simulation: This light-oil field in Venezuela with a thin oil rim and overlying gas condensate zone was characterized and simulated. Understanding reservoir performance required identification and characterization of asphaltene deposition in the oil rim and detailed simulation of over 100 wells with multiple production strings. Simulation predictions provided new completion alternatives and workovers to improve future oil recovery.
  
  
• CO₂ Injection: An integrated reservoir study was carried out on a near depleted oil field in Wyoming discovered in 1916 with over 700 completions. The simulation model history match indicated substantial remaining oil in place. Extended black-oil simulation of CO₂ WAG and continuous CO₂ injection processes indicated significant tertiary oil recovery potential. Full-field development is in the planning stages.
  
  
• Fracture characterization: Limited performance and wellbore data in a recent oil discovery in India suggested the existence of a natural fracture system. Seismic, wellbore, and performance data, along with NITEC’s unified capillary pressure technology were used to confirm and describe the vertical and areal fracture distribution. Field development is being planned accordingly.
  
  
• Secondary or tertiary recovery: A prolific oil field in Wyoming with significant primary and secondary recovery was evaluated for bypassed secondary and tertiary oil potential. The natural fractures in the formation and the historical water injection resulted in little additional secondary oil recovery potential. Accordingly, the remaining oil in place was found to be insufficient to warrant an economically viable CO₂ injection program. Other tertiary recovery processes are under consideration.