consequentially reduces the ECD. This reduces the risk of losses during drilling and improves ROP.

Using the MPD with RPD techniques significantly improved rate of penetration by up to 93% compared with offset wells, which were drilled conventionally. Overall, the average number of drilling days for the section was reduced from seven days per well using conventional drilling to 3.24 days using MPD system with RPD technique. Figure 6 shows the overall effect on performance (days/1,000 ft) using conventional drilling, drilling with casing with SUB, and drilling with casing with MPD. These techniques allowed the continued casing downsizing and the effect of improved time because of nonproductive time reduction and ROP optimization. Simplified Underbalance Technique In North Louisiana, horizontal wells targeting the Haynesville shale have been drilled conventionally using a simplified underbalanced technique. A rotating control device and the gas buster are used while drilling the curve through the Bossier and Haynesville shales because of the high risk of encountering gas kicks in these sections. While drilling, the flow from the well is diverted through the rig choke line with one open choke to the gas buster, and the flow is returned to the shale shakers before reaching the estimated depth of a potential kick. With the flow routed through one fully open choke, the friction loss through the choke creates about 100

psi of surface backpressure (SBP). Any fluctuation in this pressure provides an additional indicator of increased flow from the well for kick detection. If a gas kick enters the wellbore, the increased friction through the choke will increase the choke gauge pressure and will therefore indicate that a kick is in progress. If this pressure increase occurs, it will give indication of a kick prior to either the flow sensor on the outlet of the gas buster or the pit volume increase occurs.

Figure 10 compares the mud weight in and PWD data versus measured depth for the conventional well and the three MPD wells. Mud weight was decreased progressively for each of the MPD wells. When a kick is believed to be in progress, the driller will pick up off bottom to prepare to shut in the blowout preventers (BOP). The sequence of events should be essentially the same as a normal shut-in, except the BOP is closed before stopping the pump. The kick is then circulated out using the drillers method. Experience has indicated that kicks come from trapped gas in fractures and are limited in total volume. This procedure is designed to restrict and control the kick coming into the well rather than stopping it. The kick is strung out in the wellbore by maintaining flow and can be managed at surface within the fluidhandling ability of the surface equipment. This approach also allows drilling the lateral section with a lower mud weight. As a result, the ROP increases and drilling time has been reduced significantly (Figure 7). MPD in North Louisiana Haynesville Based on the positive results obtained using underbalanced mitigating well control events, decreasing mud weight and increasing ROP, a field trial implementation of MPD using RPD during connections was undertaken in the North Louisiana Haynesville. The main objectives were to: Improve kick detection without compromising the rig choke (keeping it as a backup for well control); Cut the mud weight lower than the conventional historical values;

 Increase the ROP; and Reduce the time associated with handling well events in the production hole. The main components of the automated MPD system used in this project were the same as those used in South Texas: Automated choke system; RPD; DAS; Rotating control device; Atmospheric mud gas separator; and Piping for both high- and low-pressure lines for use upstream and downstream of the MPD chokes.

For the same four wells, Figure 11 plots the mud weight in and pump rate versus MD. It illustrates a correlation between lower mud weights and higher pump rates. There were two important modifications to improve the system. The first one was the inclusion of a high closing ratio valve to tie in the RPD upstream of the stand pipe. The benefit of this new valve is that the isolation of the stand pipe during the connection is done automatically from the drill floor. In the MPD system used in South Texas, this isolation was done closing the manual standpipe valve. The second modification was to take the mud returns through the mud cross, installing a T with a second HCR valve. Depending on which HCR valve was close /open, the mud returns could be circulated either through the MPD choke or the rig choke. The benefit of this modification is that, in a kick event, after the well is shut in, the kick could be circulated either through the rig choke or the MPD choke.

One advantage of the MPD system is that it allows continuous monitoring and evaluation of real-time drilling data via time- and depth-based plots. This enabled a 24-hr manned, trained crew to detect pressure abnormalities in the drill string by monitoring the stand pipe pressure and at the annular side by monitoring auto-choke behavior, presure-while-drilling data, drill gas, connection gas, trip gas and bottomhole temperature. The MPD crew also monitored rig tank levels, losses and gains. Besides their continuous monitoring of drilling data, the MPD crew also set limits on what data should not exceed or go below and set alarms around those limits. This early kick detection system is able to identify abnormal conditions with the use of Coriolis meters while drilling or circulating. It was developed to allow rapid response to any unpredicted change in the mud flow or pressure. During the course of drilling the selected wells, the MPD crew was the first to notice drilling and pressure abnormalities and immediately bring it to the attention of Shells foreman and toolpusher. Two kicks were detected while drilling the curve in the other two MPD wells: The automated MPD system detected the first influx while drilling the curve at 13,210-ft MD in the second MPD well. The MPD supervisor reported the kick to the driller and Shell foreman. The well was shut in to 280-psi casing pressure. Choke was opened; pressure was bled off. Gas and bottoms up were circulated before resuming drilling. The well was checked for flow, but no flow was detected. The second kick was also detected when drilling the curve at 13,434-ft MD in the third MPD well. After an increase in flow was detected, the well was shut in, and a pit gain of 12 bbls was reported. The well was monitored for 30 min until pressures stabilized, with the recorded shut-in drill pipe pressure and shut-in casing pressure as 350 and 800 psi, respectively. The gas influx was circulated out through the rig choke, and a 5- to 15-ft flare was observed. After the influx was circulated out, the system was lined up and diverted back through the MPD system. An oil-based drilling fluid was used to drill the production section, and mud weights ranged from 12.8 ppg to 15.0 ppg.

Figure 12 shows the average ROP vs MD for the wells. A brief summary of the mud weight strategy is below: Conventional well: The curve was drilled conventionally using a typical mud weight of 14.4 ppg, but it was necessary to increase it to 15 ppg while drilling the lateral. This change impacted the initial mud weight selected to be used in the first two MPD wells, and a higher initial mud weight was used instead. MPD well No 1: The curve was drilled conventionally using a mud weight of 14.5 ppg, and the mud weight was decreased to 14.0 ppg at the end of the curve. The lateral section was then drilled using the automated MPD system, decreasing the mud weight in stages to 13.8 ppg at about 15,000-ft MD. No surface backpressure was required while drilling, and an equivalent mud weight (EMW) of 14.4 ppg was maintained at the shoe during connections. MPD well No 2: The curve and the lateral section were drilled using the automated MPD system. Although lower mud weights were used in this well (14 ppg for the curve and 13.613.4 ppg for the lateral), no SBP was required during drilling either. The same EMW of 14.4 ppg at the casing shoe was maintained during connections. MPD well No 3: The automated MPD system was used in both the curve and lateral sections. A mud weight of 13.6 ppg was used to drill the curve, and it was decreased up to 12.8 ppg to drill the lateral section. Surface backpressure was required while drilling and during connections to maintain a constant BHP when drilling with 12.8 ppg static mud weight. PWD is not commonly run because of factors such as additional cost and higher risk of having a lost in hole when drilling problematic zones. PWD was used during this field trial to measure if a constant BHP could be maintained during connections using the automated MPD system with RPD. Two different connections are discussed below: one during conventional drilling and the other while implementing MPD with the RPD.

Figure 13 shows bottomhole temperature vs MD. Figures 10-13 show that lower mud weights and higher pump rates generate higher ROPs and lower bottomhole temperatures. Lower temperatures help mitigate the risk of downhole tool failures in high-temperature environments, such as in the Haynesville Shale.

Figure 8 illustrates a connection made while drilling conventionally. Tracks 1 and 2 indicate that a connection is being made. Track 3 shows that the mud weight in is 15 ppg, and it corresponds to a PWD EMW of approximately 16.1 ppg. When making the connection, the PWD EMW drops to 15.09 ppg; therefore, the pressure fluctuation generated once the pumps are off corresponds to 1.0 ppg. Minimum and average annular pumps off EMW are lining up on top of the 15.09 ppg, indicating the minimum pressures that occurred during the pumps-off cycle and the static mud weight were the same during the connection. The maximum annular pumps off EMW is about 16 ppg, which is capturing the maximum pressure that occurred during the pumps-off period. Figure 9 shows a connection for the third well drilled using the MPD automated system with RPD. The applied SBP was about 500 psi in this case. The mud weight in was 13.5 ppg, and the target equivalent BHP at the control depth was 14.4 ppg. The lateral section was being drilled at this point, and the heel of the curve was the control depth. Three variables are on top of one another almost all the time during both drilling and connection: target equivalent BHP at control depth, actual calculated equivalent BHP at control depth and PWD EMW. Because the PWD sensor was closer to the bit, the TVD does not change much and the frictional pressure losses do not start to increase considerably at this depth. The established limit for the SBP was 900 psi. Because a lower mud weight was used for this well, the model indicated that to compensate for surge and swab, the SBP could exceed the 900 psi while drilling the lateral. A decision was made not to enable the surge and swab mitigation option to try to maintain the SBP within the upper limits. As a result, in the last track, the pressure fluctuations generated were about 0.2 to 0.3 ppg for about 2 to 3 min, which was not a problem in this case because the difference between the equivalent BHP created by these pressure fluctuations and the shoe strength was considerably high. This was captured as a lesson learned, and it will be improved in future MPD wells. Figure 10 shows the mud weight in and PWD data versus measured depth for the conventional well and the three MPD wells. The graph illustrates the mud weight strategy described previously. The mud weight was decreased progressively from Well 1 to Well 3 while the wells were drilled, and the automated MPD system proved an effective and safe tool to drill the curve and the lateral sections. The PWD data is also shown for the four wells, and it can be observed that the equivalent BHP was decreased from 15.4 to 14.2 ppg in the curve and from 16.0 to 16.4 ppg to 14.3 ppg in the lateral section. The PWD data has more variations for the first two MPD wells because no SBP was required to maintain the target BHP while drilling. For the third well, these pressure fluctuations are minimized because a lower mud weight was used and surface backpressure was required during drilling and connections. Figure 11 shows the mud weight in and pump rate (gpm) data versus MD for the conventional well and the three MPD wells. There is a correlation between lower mud weights and higher pump rates. With lower mud weights, the stand pipe pressure is also lower because the pump is lifting a lighter mud column. This lower standpipe pressure provides room to increase the flow rate. Figure 12 shows the average ROP versus MD for the four wells. The combination of lower mud weight (less solids in the mud) and higher pump rates (better hydraulics) generates higher ROP. The ROP increased mainly while drilling the lateral, but this still resulted in a reduction of drilling days. Two key factors contributed to this: Different mud weights were used for the various wells at different depths, and significant directional work was required (sliding) while drilling the curves of the MPD wells.

After 16,000-ft MD, the average ROP for the conventional well was about 10 to 20 ft/hr. This average ROP increases up to 50 to 80 ft/hr when looking at the three MPD wells. Higher pump rates also provide the benefit of better hole-cleaning that allows less solids to be kept in the hole that could help to generate less torque and drag and better transmission of weight to the bit. Figure 13 shows the bottomhole temperature versus MD for the four wells. The combination of lower mud weights (lower friction) and higher pump rates (cooling effect) generates lower bottomhole temperatures. When drilling in high-temperature environments, such as the Haynesville shale, lower bottomhole temperatures could help to mitigate the risk of downhole tools failure, so it could potentially avoid tripping to replace damaged tools. At 16,626 ft, there was a decrease in the bottomhole temperature of the well 17-2H (solid red line). The reason was that the hole was circulated for a period of 9.5 hrs. After the circulation period, the bottomhole temperature of the well started increasing consistently. There was a MWD failure in the conventional well at 15,764 ft. It correlates with a high temperature spike of 331F. It is the most probable root cause of the MWD failure. It took 63.5 hrs to get back to drilling. The curve was drilled faster in the conventional well compared with the other three wells. This is due to additional directional work required (more sliding) to drill these curves, which is mainly influenced by geology. The lateral section was drilled in about 12.2 days in the conventional well. The three lateral sections of the MPD wells were drilled in 4.7, 5.7 and 6.3 days, respectively. This results in a reduction of 62%, 53% and 48% for each well, having an average reduction of 54% for the drilling days. Conclusion Shell used different technologies onshore South Texas and North Louisiana Haynesville to optimize operations where conventional drilling would be too expensive and unsafe. A fully automated MPD system allowed a smooth transition from circulating to non-circulating downhole during connection while maintaining continuous rig pump circulation. This article is based on IADC/SPE 156909, Onshore US MPD Use by an Operator, presented at the 2012 SPE/IADC Managed Pressure Drilling and Underbalanced Operations Conference and Exhibition in Milan, Italy, 2021 March 2012.

Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank Shell Exploration & Production Company for its support and for allowing the publication of this paper

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