Deploying Fibre Optics outside the casing

As part of CO2CRC’s Stage 3 Project, fibre optic cables were deployed to the outside of the casing. This provided some valuabel lessons for deployment. The Stage 3 Project team engaged with an industry leader in DAS systems to provide a tubing encapsulated fibre optics (TEF) suitable for downhole deployment which would be secured to the outside of the casing of each well, run through the injection interval and into the rathole section and incorporate an integrated turnaround immediately above the casing shoe.  As the four monitoring wells were to be directionally drilled from two offset wellpads (two wells per pad), centralisation of the casing was critical to protect the TEF during deployment as well as to ensure the effectiveness of the cement to isolate the upper zones.  An additional point of complexity associated with the installation, was the need to perforate the wells and establish reservoir communication for the purposes of pressure tomography.  As the TEF was deployed through and below the target zone, the perforating charges had to be oriented away from the TEF to ensure they were not damaged. 

The approach taken was to employ a 6spf gun down-loaded to 4spf such that a 180^o phasing was left blank which would then be oriented toward the TEF.  This directionality was ensured through the installation of a heavy duty blast protector (designed by project participant, InGauge Energy) which had the dual benefit to protect the fibres from the shock of the adjacent perforating event as well as having sufficient magnetic detectability that it could be identified by a conventional wireline logging tool.  Importantly, the positioning of this device had to be aligned with the identification of the target zone for perforating and this was required in advance of running the casing section to which the device was attached.  Consequently, a rapid open-hole log evaluation and perforation interval decision workflow was required to facilitate this decision process. 

This approach proved to be successful with all wells perforated without damage to the TEF.  The downloading of the perforating gun to avoid the TEF resulting in a reduced shot density across the target interval, however, will have certainly reduced the potential area open to flow of the perforated interval.

 The system was commissioned and tested between March and June 2020.  High quality seismic data has been acquired continuously from all wells on site outfitted with the TEF, since that time with excellent reliability and repeatability

The Otway International Test Centre

The CO2CRC Otway International Test Centre (OITC) is a globally unique research facility as it has its own source of CO₂ on site with the Buttress gas well, plus seven purpose drilled CO₂ storage wells (>1.5km deep), within a ~1 km² area, for CO₂ injection and monitoring activities.

Over more than a decade of leading-edge research the many projects undertaken at the facility have made a significant contribution to an emerging global CCS industry, demonstrating that:

1. CO₂ can be safely stored and monitored in depleted gas reservoirs as well as unconfined saline formations;
2. CO₂ plume migration can be confidently predicted;
3. Long-term plume stabilisation can be verified for small injections;
4. Clear seismic detection thresholds can be established; and
5. Confidence of regulators, landowners and the wider community can be established and maintained.

As CO₂ storage projects require monitoring operations at the CO₂ storage site to understand the behaviour (location, attribution and quantification) of the CO₂ plume, including the assurance that “leakage” of the CO₂ has not occurred, the research projects’ monitoring programs were designed to measure the CO₂ plume behaviour with wide spatial coverage, good spatial resolution, and high temporal frequency, and subsequently for continuous monitoring in the geosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere.

The projects provide ongoing technical information on CCS processes, technologies and monitoring and verification regimes that continue to inform public policy and industry decision-makers while also providing assurance to the community.

CO2CRC launches technical advisory and consultancy services company – CO2Tech

CO2CRC’s Chief Executive, David Byers, announced today that CO2CRC has established a wholly-owned subsidiary company, CO2Tech Pty Ltd (‘CO2Tech’).

“We have established CO2Tech to meet the growing customer need for multi-disciplinary technical consultation, advisory and project management services across the whole CCUS value chain.” said Mr Byers.

CO2Tech will have access to the Otway International Test Centre (OITC) and CO2CRC’s expertise via commercial agreements.

“CO2Tech will allow CO2CRC Limited to offer our industry partners and customers, tailored solutions while preserving commercial confidentiality.

“CO2Tech will be pleased to work with industry customers to help them achieve their emissions reductions goals by applying individualised technologies and techniques that result in lower costs for capturing, storing or utilising CO₂.”

“It is an exciting era for CCUS at international, national and industry levels. CCUS has been identified as a priority technology under the government’s Technology Investment Roadmap

“CO2CRC will continue to partner with world leading researchers, international industry and Australian Federal and State Governments on its traditional collaborative research model to advance the deployment of CCUS. This includes contributing to the achievement of the Australian Federal Government’s long-term stretch goal for CCS ($20 per tonne for CO₂ compression, transport and storage).” he said