1. Formate brines – Production and first field use - Milestones
Start of deep HPHT gas well drilling with formates in Germany
(Mobil, RWE,
BEB)
Potassium formate brines used in USA, Canada, Mexico,
Venezuela,
Brazil,
Ecuador
First field use of sodium formate:
Shell drills and completes first Draugen oil wells
First field use of potassium formate (with Micromax) :
Statoil drills and completes Gullfaks oil well
First use of formate brine as packer fluid: Shell Dunlin
A-14
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
Sodium formate powder available throughout, but no anti-caking additive. Draugen wells each produce 48,000 bbl oil /day
Potassium formate brine becomes available from Hydro Chemicals (now Addcon) in Porsgrunn – sold thru Forbrico Ltd
Cesium formate brine becomes available from Cabot
Potassium formate from Addcon

2. Potassium formate brine has been produced at Porsgrunn since 1994
Production Site
ADDCON NORDIC AS
Storage tanks for raw materials
Potassium formate from Addcon

3. Cesium formate produced by Cabot in Canada from pollucite ore
Cs0.7Na0.2Rb0.04Al0.9Si2.1O6·(H20)
Mined at Bernic Lake, Manitoba
Processed on site to Cs formate brine
Cs formate brine production 700 bbl/month
Potassium formate from Addcon

4. Germany : Potassium formate brine has been used to drill deep HPHT gas wells since 1995
First use : ExxonMobil’s Walsrode field, onshore northern Germany
- high-angle deep HPHT slim hole low perm gas wells
TVD : ,450-5,547 metres
Reservoir: Sandstone mD
BHST : o C
Section length: m
Drilling fluid: SG K formate brine
Potassium formate from Addcon

5. Potassium formate from Norway used in 15 deep HPHT gas well constructions in Germany ,1995-99
Further wells drilled for BEB and RWE-DEA in Germany with Porsgrunn’s potassium formate brines via Baroid (1997 onwards)
Well Name
Application
Fluid Type
Density s.g. (ppg)
Horizontal Length(m)
Angle (°)
BHST (°F)
BHCT (°F)
TVD (metres)
MD (metres)
Permeability (mD)
Walsrode Z5
W/C
K Formate
1.55 (12.93)
345 26
315 na mD
Wasrode Z6
420 40
Walsrode Z7
Drill-In
1.53 (12.77)
690 59
295
Söhlingen Z3A
Formix
1.38 (11.52)
855 89
300
270
4908
5600
Söhlingen Z3a
Na Formate
1.30 (10.85)
Volkersen Z3
1.40 (11.68)
512 52
320
Kalle S108
1.45 (12.10)
431 60
220
Weißenmoor Z1
1.35 (11.27)
634 31
Idsingen Z1a
645 61
321
290
Söhlingen Z12
Na Formate/Formix
452 28
313
285 mD
Simonswolde Z1
K Formate/Formix
1.52 (12.68)
567 35
293
275 mD
Walsrode NZ1
1.51 (12.60)
460 34
265
Idzingen Z2
Voelkersen NZ2
1.40 (11.680
Söhlingen Z13
Drill-In/Frac
1.30 (-1.56)(10.85)
1200 90
4724
0, mD
Potassium formate from Addcon

6. Summary of potassium formate brine use in HPHT gas wells in Germany,1995-99
Potassium formate from Addcon

7. Formate brines – Some further important milestones : 1999-2004
First use of K/Cs formate brine : Completion job in Shearwater well (Shell UK)
First drilling jobs with K/Cs formate brine:
Huldra and Devenick
First use of K/Cs formate brine as HPHT well suspension fluid
(Elgin G-3)
First use of Cs-weighted LSOBM as perforating completion
fluid
(Visund)
First production of non-caking crystalline K formate at Porsgrunn
Cs-weighted LSOBM used as OH screen completion fluid
(Statfjord)
First of 14 Kvitebjørn HPHT wells drilled and completed with K/Cs formate brines
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Formate brines used as packer fluids for HPHT wells in GOM. First well : ExxonMobil’s MO 822#7 (215oC BHST) in 2001
Use of Cs-weighted oil-based completion fluids for oil reservoirs : Visund, Statfjord, Njord, Gullfaks, Snorre , Oseberg, Rimfaks – present
Individual Draugen oil wells (1993) and Visund oil wells (2003) have similar flow rates of around 50,000 bbl oil/day
Potassium formate from Addcon

8. The first sustained use of K/Cs formate brine was in the world’s largest HPHT gas field development
Elgin/Franklin field – UK North Sea
Cesium formate brine used by TOTAL in 34 well construction operations in 8 deep gas fields in period
Potassium formate from Addcon