BC Well Testing & Reporting

Requirements

Reservoir Engineering
BC Oil and Gas Commission
April 2015
 Presentation Outline

1) Drilling & Production Regulations

• Pressure Testing Requirements
• Gas Well Flow Testing Requirements
2) Well Testing & Reporting
• Submission Requirements
• Pressure ASCII Standard (PAS) Test Types
• Common Error Messages
• Pressure Test Analysis
• Data Quality
3) Annual Pressure Surveys
• Minimum Test Requirements
• Annual Pressure Survey ‘Tips’
• Application for Exemption/Modification
• What Pools Require Testing This Year?
4) Website Orientation
• Guidelines and Additional Information
Drilling and Production Regulations
 Pressure Test Regulations
4
Drilling and Production Regulation
Section 73 – Reservoir Pressure Measurements:
73 (1) Subject to subsection (5), a well permit holder must ensure that the static bottom hole pressure of each
completed zone of each of the permit holder's oil or gas wells is measured before initial oil or gas production.

(2) Subject to subsection (6), a well permit holder must ensure that the static bottom hole pressure of each of the
permit holder's producing pools and observation wells is measured once every calendar year.

(3) A well permit holder must report all static bottom hole pressures and the duration of the resulting shut-in period
to the commission within 60 days after the date on which the pressures were measured.

(4) A well permit holder must ensure that, when static bottom hole pressures are measured, the surveyed wells
remain shut-in until the reservoir pressure has been attained in the well bore or until sufficient data are available
to permit the calculation of the reservoir pressure and, in the latter case, details of the reservoir pressure
calculations are included in the report required under subsection (3).

(5) Subsection (1) does not apply with respect to a well completed in an unconventional zone listed in Schedule 2
if the commission has released, under section 17 of the Oil and Gas Activities Act General Regulation, well reports
and well data that include a static bottom hole pressure measurement from the same unconventional zone within
a 4 km radius measured from the wellhead of the well.

(6) Subsection (2) does not apply with respect to a well completed in an unconventional zone listed in Schedule 2.

Note: Pressure tests, both initial and annual, are also required for disposal wells,
as a condition of the approval Order.
 Pressure Test Regulations Continued
5
Schedule 2 – Unconventional Zones:

Field Zone Name Distance (m)

Horn River Muskwa-Otter Park 100
Horn River Evie 100
Helmet Muskwa-Otter Park 100
Helmet Evie 100
Liard Basin Besa River 100
Northern Montney Montney 150
Northern Montney Doig Phosphate-Montney 150
Heritage Montney 150
Altares Doig Phosphate-Montney 150
Town Montney 150
Deep Basin Cadomin 150
Deep Basin Nikanassin 150
 Flow Test Regulations
6
Drilling and Production Regulation
Section 63 – Gas Well Tests:
63 (1) Subject to subsection (3), before 6 months have elapsed after a permit
holder has first placed a gas well on production, the permit holder must flow
test the well and determine the absolute open flow potential if
(a) the well is producing from a pool with suspected water drive, or
(b) the well is classified as an exploratory outpost well or exploratory
wildcat well.

(2) A permit holder must submit to the commission, within 60 days of the date
on which the operation concluded, a detailed report of
(a) any gas well flow test,
(b) any cleanup flow that results in burnable gas to the surface, and
(c) any underbalanced drilling that results in burnable gas to the surface.

(3) Subsection (1) does not apply with respect to a well completed in an
unconventional zone listed in Schedule 2.
Well Testing and Reporting
 Submission Requirements
8
• All pressure and flow tests are required to be submitted to the Commission within 60 days of the
date on which the operation concluded.
• Each test submission must include one (or more) PDF(s), and one PAS file.
• The PDF must include the raw data, and additional PDF’s with analysis data will also be accepted.
• A separate submission is required for every PAS file. For tests with more than one PAS file, but
only one PDF of the test data (ex. Pressure Build-Up followed by a Static Gradient), submit the
PDF once with each PAS file.
Submit: • one PDF and
• one PAS
Submit to: eSubmission Portal

Naming Convention: WANUM_TRG_YYYYMMMDD_OPTIONAL, or

WANUM_TRGS_YYYYMMMDD_OPTIONAL, or
WANUM_GRD_YYYYMMMDD_OPTIONAL, or
WANUM_PRD_YYYYMMMDD_OPTIONAL

Note: The Submission Portal User Guide provides step by step submission instructions.
 Pressure ASCII Standard (PAS) Test Types
9
• TRG – Absolute Open Flow / Pressure Transient Test Data (Bottom Hole Recorders)
AOF Test Types Pressure Transient Test Types
• Single-Point AOF • Bottom Hole Build-Up
• Multi-Point AOF • Bottom Hole Fall-Off

• TRGS – Pressure Transient Test Data (Surface Recorders)

TRGS Test Types
• Diagnostic Fracture Injection Test (DFIT)
• Acoustic Well Sound Build-Up

• GRD – Gradient Test Data

GRD Test Types
• Static Gradient
• Acoustic Well Sound Single-Shot

• PRD – Production/Flow Test Data

PRD Test Types
• Clean-Up Flow Test

Note: PAS file types are noted in the first row of the PAS file. If the PAS file indicates a TRG
type and surface recorders were used, submit the file as a TRGS.
 Common Error Messages
10
• If a PAS file is missing required information, the operator will receive an error message.
FILE NAME ERROR
Example 1 – The date should read 2015MAR11, instead of 20150311.

PAS FILE ERRORS

Example 1 - The PAS file is missing the required well shut-in time and date (TISI.DAY/HR).

Example 2 - The PAS file has an invalid value for the test purpose (PRPS). Valid values are (I)nitial,
(A)nnual or (O)ther.

Example 3 – The PAS file requires a liquid level mCF LOG (LLVL.M) when the primary liquid gradient
(PLGR.KPA/M) is water (W). As the well type indicator (WTYP) is horizontal (H), the PAS file also
requires a liquid level mCF TVD (LLVT.m) in true vertical depth units.
 Error Messages – Tips
11
• If a TRGS (surface recorders) file is uploaded as a TRG (bottom hole recorders) file, it will
result in multiple error messages. Double check which type of recorders were used, label
accordingly, and try uploading again.

• The Pressure ASCII Standard (PAS) – Reference Guide will assist the operator with PAS
file errors.
 Open the reference guide and click on the tab associated with the file type you are
working with (PRD, GRD, or TRG).
 Use the “find” function to search for the mnemonic name that came up in the error
message.
 The table will provide descriptions and business rules required for the specific field.
 Open the PAS file and use the “find” function to search for the location of the
mnemonic name.
 Make a manual change to the PAS file, and try uploading it again.
 Pressure Test Analysis
12

• A pressure transient analysis may

be required in order to obtain a valid
reservoir pressure.
• Where an analysis is included,
provide details of all reservoir
pressure calculations including
extrapolations, assumptions, etc.
• Submit the following to the
eSubmission Portal.
• PAS file
• PDF of raw pressure data
• PDF of analysis
 Data Quality
13

Pressures are used for pool mapping, well classification,

and reserves. The 2012 Regulation changes for the
unconventional areas greatly reduces pressure testing
requirements. Quality of testing is replacing quantity.
Accurate testing and reporting is important. Collecting
quality data is our goal.
Annual Pool Pressure Survey
 Minimum Annual Pressure Test Requirements
15
• Minimum number of annual pressure tests for a(n):

• Gas Pool = 25% of total wells in pool or,

50% of producing wells
(whichever is less)

• Oil Pool = 25% of producing wells in pool

*These percentages represent a policy guideline only. In some cases a lesser number of tests
may be adequate, and staff may be consulted on individual cases.

*Unconventional wells in Schedule 2 areas do not require annual pressure testing.

*For all other pools, the OGC ‘rounds up’ to the next whole number when calculating the
minimum number of pressure tests required. This means that single well pools need to be
tested annually unless otherwise approved.
 Annual Pressure Survey Tips
16

 Select wells that offer good pool coverage.

 Plant shutdowns are an excellent time to collect annual pressure
survey data, often facilitating adequate SI time and no lost
production.
 Suspended wells are also good test candidates.
 Annual testing applies within the calendar year.
 Initial pressure tests for development wells can be applied to the
minimum annual pool testing requirements.
 The OGC may order additional tests other than the outlined
minimum.
 Modification of Initial or Annual Pool Pressure Test Requirements

17
Where adequate pressure history exists, wells have low productivity, and/or there are few remaining
reserves in a pool, exemption from initial pressure testing or annual pressure testing of a pool may
be granted.

 The assigned coordinating operator of a pool

may apply to have the annual pressure testing
requirement modified for that pool.

 A list of assigned coordinating operators is

available on our website.

 A modified testing interval of two or more years,

or a total exemption, may be granted.

 The operator must provide sufficient information

to substantiate their request for modification.

 An application guideline is available on our

website as a reference.
 What Pools Require Testing This Year?
18
Is the pool producing?

no yes

Is the pool listed in:

Pressure survey “Pools with Non-Annual Pressure
NOT required. Survey Approval (Table 1)*”?
(* available from the OGC website)

no yes

Table will specify either:

Annual pressure
a) the frequency of testing & which
survey required.
calendar year the next tests are due or,
b) that the pool is exempt from annual
pressure testing.
 Pools with Non-Annual Pressure Survey Approval (Table 1)
19

• This image is
page 1 of 5.
Please see our
website for the
complete table.
 Coordinating Operators (Table 2)
20

‘Coordinating Operators’ have been

assigned to certain large multi-
operator pools for the purpose of
assisting in the collection of annual
pressure survey data. These
operators draft the testing schedule
for the pools but individual operators
are still responsible for ensuring
testing requirements are met. This
table can be found on our website.
Website Orientation
http://www.bcogc.ca/
 Questions?

Please contact: Melanie de Boer

Well Test Analyst
 (250) 419-4433
 melanie.deboer@bcogc.ca

…or visit

www.bcogc.ca