As technology continues to advance, so does the oil industry. With over 4.9 million barrels of crude oil produced daily, it shows the importance of modern techniques to boost productivity and keep up with consumer demands. Modern oil drilling technology allows companies to find better ways to locate and extract oil that has yet to be discovered. Utilizing the oil that is available in reserves saves the users money, impacting the overall economy.
The Importance of Oil Drilling
With the demand continuing to rise for oil, companies are finding themselves looking for new sources of petroleum. Locating new sources can be challenging as a number of reserves are tapped out. Oil is a fossil fuel found in countries all over the world. Utilizing the correct technology to locate oil will limit the impact it has on the environment. It will save oil companies money as they are able to spend less time researching new locations, and they can save on the amount of money it costs to drill for oil.
Oil drilling has become an important factor in the global economy as people around the world require it to power their vehicles and machinery. Companies are now using advanced technology, such as seismic surveying and geophysical exploration, to locate oil reserves that have yet to be discovered. This helps reduce costs associated with finding new reserves, which can help benefit the economy.
Horizontal Drilling
One technique used for modern oil drilling is horizontal drilling. This drilling technique will begin with a vertical well that becomes horizontal inside the reservoir rock. The goal is to create a larger hole that is open to oil. The legs of the hole can be over a mile long, allowing natural gas and oil to be drained from the well faster. Fewer surface disturbances is another positive impact of horizontal drilling. By drilling horizontally for a longer distance, overall surface land use can be limited.
Additionally, horizontal drilling is more efficient than traditional vertical drilling due to the larger diameter hole and the ability to drill deeper with fewer surface disturbances. The technique also allows companies to access further deposits faster and simpler than ever before. Horizontal drilling technologies are constantly being improved upon.
Complex Path Drilling
This method creates well paths that are unique. Not all drill paths are straight; some can have multiple twists and requires shifting. This method is productive as a company can reach multiple locations from a well. Not only does this method limit the environmental impact on the surface area, it will produce less waste when drilling several wells.
It also enables companies to have faster access to multiple production zones.
Multilateral Drilling
Oil and natural gas can be found in separate layers of the ground. This requires the right method to locate the oil and natural gas, and the correct drilling method. Multilateral drilling helps producers to use the main well at different depths. This will boost production from a well, allowing the company to create a single well versus multiple wells at one site.
Extended Reach Drilling
For this drilling method, producers can reach deposits that are far away from the rigs. Since vertical wells are not always able to reach the reserves, an extended reach drilling method can help companies tap into these reserves that are sensitive areas or under developed. With extended reach drilling, a company can reach 5 miles from the surface location. Offshore drilling can help a company to reach far accumulations from the platforms. This can reduce the number of platforms needed to drill for oil, which helps to keep the overall costs of petroleum and oil lower. A single rig can drill up to twelve different wells.
Exploring Technology
With the exploration of crude oil, using seismic imagery with modern drilling technology will help a company to become productive and save money. It is important to find a company offering the right equipment as it can be incredibly costly to invest in modern technology for oil drilling. Locating a supplier of used oilfield equipment is a great way to reduce costs when you invest in equipment.
With the right technology with a reliable supplier, any company can find success in offshore drilling. It provides access to far reaches of oil and natural gas that were previously inaccessible. With advances in seismic imagery and modern techniques, you can get even more accurate readings than ever before and help reduce risk when it comes to drilling for oil.