American Oil and Gas Reporter - September 2023 - 61

SpecialReport: OCTG Technology
part a hydraulic load on the coiled tubing.
During normal operations, fluid from
By vibrating coiled tubing to minimize friction between the tubing and casing, this fourthgeneration
tool is accelerating clean-outs in long laterals, Thru Tubing Solutions reports.
In many applications, the company continues, it has helped operators break their records
for clean-out efficiency.
is seeing increasing demand for its premium
and semipremium wedge connections. He
indicates they have the high torque capacity
to withstand continual casing string rotation
in the Haynesville, Permian and Appalachian
basins and the consistent performance to
give operators greater flexibility when designing
strings.
The semipremium wedge connection
has no seal and requires threads to resist
any leakage, while the premium version
has a dedicated metal-to-metal seal for
leak resistance, he notes. In laterals where
perforating and fracturing are occurring,
connections' long-term performance matters
less and operators generally prefer
the semipremium wedge designs. However,
Schoenhals says they often favor
the premium offering in the vertical section,
where its stronger seal helps maintain
well integrity.
U. S. Steel continues to develop solutions
for wells with tight clearances,
Schoenhals comments. Today, he says, it
can deliver threaded and coupled products
with outside diameters close to those of
semiflush integral joint connections to
provide higher tension ratings without
introducing clearance-related risks.
Enabling Clean Outs
As lateral lengths increase, so does
the amount of friction that coiled tubing
needs to overcome to clean out casing,
says Jeff Whitworth, a Houston-based
regional sales manager for Thru Tubing
Solutions. To minimize the friction coefficient
between the coiled tubing and casing
string, the company has a history of
developing tools that vibrate the coiled
tubing, Whitworth says.
The most recent tool has broken various
depth and time records for companies
since its introduction in 2020, Whitworth
reports. " We still hold clean-out records
for several operators as the fastest times
in and out of the hole on certain depths, "
he remarks.
Run on the end of the coiled tubing,
the tool vibrates the tubing axially to
lower the friction coefficient across the
work string, allowing the tubing to be
pushed down the casing string, Whitworth
describes. He says the tool has reached
the end of laterals that are more than
three miles long.
Now in its fourth generation, the tool
is tuned for maximum coiled tubing vibration
while maintaining low operating
pressures, he says. Vibration is achieved
by creating an oscillating backpressure at
a specific frequency and amplitude to imthe
surface is pumped down the coiled
tubing and circulated back up the casing
to remove debris from plugs, sand and
other sediment. The upgraded tool is engineered
with an open flow path that
never closes, Whitworth says, explaining
that this allows circulation to continue
even if mechanical issues arise.
" When the coiled tubing is in the lateral
to clean out debris, the worst thing
that can happen is for pumping and circulation
to stop, because then debris
will settle down in the well and create a
potential stuck pipe situation, " Whitworth
stresses. " Knowing that, we designed
the tool so crews could keep debris moving
out of the well regardless of the
tool's condition. "
Like its predecessors, Whitworth says
the fourth-generation extended reach
tool has been developed with two main
goals: lowering the pressure drop across
the tool required to operate it and homing
in on a more effective frequency to
impart maximum axial vibration on the
work string.
The tool is being used successfully in
unconventional basins across the country,
he says, including Bakken wells with
challenging casing designs, deep Woodford
wells and Permian Basin wells with lateral
lengths beyond three miles.
Because there are no elastomers inside
the tool, which is made of steel, it does
not have temperature or fluid limitations,
Whitworth mentions. He adds that it is
compatible with nitrogen, which is sometimes
pumped simultaneously with water
in low-pressure wells to reduce fluid
density.
❒
Pinnacle Set to Expand Dos Picos Complex
HOUSTON-Pinnacle Midstream II
LLC is expanding its Dos Picos system
and processing complex by adding another
natural gas processing plant. The facility,
Train II, is targeted for commercial operation
during the fourth quarter of 2024,
and will add 220 million cubic feet a day
of processing capacity, which the company
says will increase its total Midland Basin
operated processing capacity to more
than 440 MMcf/d.
Pinnacle says it also will expand its
gathering and compression facilities
throughout Texas' Midland, Martin and
Glasscock counties.
" This is an exciting next step for
Pinnacle's growing base of Midland
Basin producers, " maintains Pinnacle
Founder and Chief Executive Officer J.
Greg Sargent. " Expanding the Dos Picos
capacity by 220 MMcf/d ensures we
can provide the best service to our
current and future customers, maximize
their recoveries and help limit flaring
across the basin. "
The Midland County Train II facility
will complement Pinnacle's existing processing
facilities and high-pressure, large
diameter gathering and compression infrastructure
that commenced operations
during the first quarter of 2021, the company
says.
❒
SEPTEMBER 2023 61

American Oil and Gas Reporter - September 2023

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