About this Workshop

Abstract

This workshop is part of the groundbreaking new Global Integrated Workshop Series that takes a regional look at a topic of global interest. Each workshop in the series is held in a different geographic region, and the discussions and findings from each workshop will be compiled into extended scribe reports. The reports will be gathered and shared among all participants in an online community to provide continuity between the individual workshops and establish a growing body of global knowledge on the topic. All workshop series participants are invited to join the online community to view and comment on the reports.

Water handling is a key issue faced by operators in all geographic regions and at all phases of the production lifecycle. Specific challenges depend on the production composition, the regulatory environment and the production method.

From a facilities perspective, all production has to undergo basic separation to remove water and solids from the well stream. Gas also must be removed, but this is a fairly simple process. Produced water is treated with special equipment and/or chemicals to further separate it from oil and solids. The solids are uniformly disposed of, but the operator has a variety of options to deal with the treated water. This water can be injected into a disposal well or recycled to improve recovery as part of a fracturing fluid, as steam in thermal flood operations, or as an injection medium to maintain reservoir pressure or sweep efficiency. Regardless of the specific technical or regulatory issues, all water handling involves some combination of separation, treatment, and recycling or disposal.

Workshop Guidelines

Workshops maximize the exchange of ideas among attendees and presenters through brief technical presentations followed by extended Q&A periods. Focused topics attract an informed audience eager to discuss issues critical to advancing both technology and best practices.

Many of the presentations are in the form of case studies, highlighting engineering achievements and lessons learned. In order to stimulate frank discussion, no proceedings are published and members of the press are not invited to attend.

Documentation

Proceedings from the workshop will not be published; therefore, formal papers and handouts are not requested of speakers or panel members. A URL containing released copies of the workshop presentations will be available to attendees following the workshop.

Commercialism

In remaining consistent with workshop objectives and SPE guidelines, commercialism in presentations will not be permitted.  Company logos should be used only to indicate the affiliation of the presenter(s).

Continuing Education Units (CEUs)

Attendees will receive 1.6 CEUs.

One CEU equals 10 contact hours of participation.  CEUs will be awarded through SPE Professional Development for participation and completion of SPE workshop.  A permanent record of a participant’s involvement and awarding of CEUs will be maintained by SPE.