Selection of a Waterflood Pattern for the Jay-Little Escambia Creek Fields

American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers, Inc. Abstract A Three-to-One Staggered Line Drive pattern was selected to initiate the pattern was selected to initiate the waterflood in the Jay-Little Escambia Creek Fields of northwest Florida and southern Alabama. This pressure maintenance program should recover in excess of 200 program should recover in excess of 200 million stock tank barrels of oil over primary operations. primary operations Introduction The Smackover-Norphlet Reservoir in the Jay-Little Escambia Creek Fields of northwest Florida and southern Alabama was discovered in June 1970 and is the largest oil discovery in the lower 48 states in the last two decades. Original-oil-in-place was in excess of 700 million stock tank barrels. The reservoir is located below 15,000 feet and contains a volatile, sour crude which is highly undersaturated. Production was initiated in December 1970 after sweetening facilities were installed. A reservoir study conducted in mid-1971 indicated that there was little likelihood a natural water drive would be effective and that primary recovery would be low. Unitization and pressure maintenance were urgently needed to maintain productivity and increase ultimate oil recovery. The recovery potentials of several types of fluid injection potentials of several types of fluid injection processes were evaluated using two-dimensional processes were evaluated using two-dimensional computer simulation. Screening studies indicated that waterflooding was the most appropriate recovery process. In early 1972 evaluations were begun to determine the optimum waterflood pattern using two-dimensional reservoir simulation and a 3:1 Staggered Line Drive was selected to initiate the waterflood. A three-dimensional reservoir model was constructed in mid-1973 to confirm the effectiveness of the 3:1 Line Drive pattern prior to converting flowing oil wells pattern prior to converting flowing oil wells to water injection service. Results of early reservoir simulation were used to design and justify ordering long delivery waterflood equipment concurrent with field development and unitization. The effective date of the Unit was March 1, 1974, and water injection was initiated four days later on March 5, 1974. This paper presents the methods used to select the optimum waterflood pattern to initiate the pressure maintenance program for the Jay-Little Escambia Creek Fields.