Project goal
Field-proven distributed temperature sensing (DTS) for continuous, remotely-operated thermal and flow surveillance across the well lifecycle
Client
CO2CRC Stage 3 Program
Asset
Stage 3 multi-well injection and monitoring network
Location
Otway International Test Centre, Nirranda South, Victoria
Geothermal is a thermal resource — and fibre-optic distributed temperature sensing measures exactly that, continuously, along the entire well, at low cost. CO2CRC has designed, deployed and field-proven this capability across a multi-well CO₂ program explicitly mandated to lower monitoring cost.
23 Km
FIBRE MONITORED
8
Months of continuous surveillance
94%
DATA COVERAGE
4 days
On-site install
The challenge
Geothermal projects live or die on thermal and flow performance — reservoir temperature, which zones actually take or produce fluid, thermal breakthrough between injector and producer, and long-term well integrity under thermal cycling. Conventional wireline surveys answer these questions only episodically: they are costly, require well intervention and personnel on site, and capture a single snapshot in time. Operators increasingly need continuous, fully-distributed, low-intervention monitoring across the entire life of the well.
Our approach
As part of the Otway Stage 3 program — mandated to develop a toolbox of lower-cost monitoring technologies — CO2CRC designed and ran a distributed temperature sensing (DTS) survey using fibre-optic cables installed behind casing on the completions of five wells.
Over an eight-month campaign, the system continuously monitored 23 km of fibre, recorded more than a million temperature traces at 0.25 m spatial resolution, and achieved 94% data coverage with under 5% downtime — all from a single, remotely-operated acquisition hub commissioned in four days on site and run largely unmanned from off-site.
The same fibre-optic infrastructure also supports distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) for seismic and flow imaging.
Permanent fibre-optic monitoring from surface to reservoir. A schematic showing the wellhead and the fibre-optic cable used in this case study. Click on the three lines above the image to view this in a pop-up.
Benefits
Continuous whole-well insight
Monitor temperature, fluid movement and changing conditions continuously from the surface to the full depth of the well.
Lower monitoring costs
Reduce repeat wireline surveys, well intervention, site mobilisation and personnel requirements through permanent fibre-optic monitoring.
Safer remote operations
Maintain continuous surveillance through a remotely operated system with a low site footprint and fewer personnel required on site.
Safety assurance
Detect and interpret downhole events in real time, providing timely information for injection, production and well-integrity management.
What it demonstrated - and why it matters to you
Continuous reservoir and wellbore thermal profiling, surface to total depth — the core measurement for geothermal resource and injection/production surveillance.
Distributed flow profiling: the survey resolved the distribution of fluid intake across a perforated interval into distinct high-, medium- and low-intake zones, matching independent wireline-log geology — the same method gives zonal allocation in geothermal injectors and producers.
Cementing, completion and well-integrity surveillance, including fluid placement and workover operations detected in real time.
Real-time operational diagnostics — downhole events detected and interpreted as they happen, feeding directly into operational decisions.
Low-cost, low-footprint, remote and largely unmanned acquisition — safer and far cheaper than repeat wireline intervention, monitoring the whole well life from a single installation.
DTS data from CRC-4 injectivity testing, showing baseline, injection and thermal recovery while resolving three distinct fluid-intake zones across the perforated interval.
What CO2Tech Offers
Fibre-optic (DTS and DAS) monitoring system design and deployment for geothermal wells; continuous reservoir thermal profiling and thermal-breakthrough surveillance between injector–producer pairs; distributed injection and production flow (zonal allocation) profiling; cementing, completion and well-integrity monitoring; remotely-operated, low-footprint acquisition with real-time diagnostic interpretation; and custom low-cost monitoring technology development, from proof-of-concept through to permanent installation.
Why CO2Tech
CO2Tech has unrivalled practical experience in capturing CO2 from industrial emissions in Australia. It can leverage its unique access to advanced storage projects providing the crucial connection between carbon capture and permanent underground CO2 storage.
If you’re a manufacturer, refinery, ‘Safeguard Facility’, etc. that is impacted by the Safeguard Mechanism, contact us today to see how CO2Tech can assist in your next steps to tackle your emissions reduction.
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