1115_4 — Presentation — Shell — High Reliability GL Valve.pdf

High Reliability Gas Lift Flow Control Devices Increase Well Safety and Reduce Well Intervention Frequency

2008 ASME/API/ISO Gas Lift Workshop

Jun Xu – Shell Oil Company
Jim Hall – Shell Oil Company
William Franke – Shell Oil Company
Guillermo Pastor – Shell Oil Company
Nora Ghobrial – Shell Oil Company
Tommy Hunt – JMI MFG., INC
Ashby Breaux – JMI MFG., INC
Mike Leonard – JMI MFG., INC

Need for High Reliability Gas Lift Valves

• Regulatory requirement is much higher than other parts of world
• Subsea/TLP completion where the risk and the cost for intervention or to change failed reverse-flow valve are high
• Waterflood with seawater as a source commonly results in reservoir souring. Sour produced fluids must not be allowed into the casing annulus
• HSE case requires a zero-leak check valve
• Viable for any gas-lift well

Problems to Commonly Used Gas-lift Valves

• Standard gas lift hardware compromises the well integrity envelope
• The check valve/“check dart” is prone to failure due to high velocity flow cut and is not a reliable barrier
• It is common for the reverse-flow valve to leak at low pressure
• A gas lift mandrel with an open pocket allows flow from the tubing to the casing