WOODSIDE CLAIMS MARK IN DRILLING

A group led by Woodside Petroleum Pty. Ltd. has claimed a world record for extended reach drilling with a well in North Rankin field off Western Australia. The well, NRA 21, tapped North Rankin reservoir more than 3 miles from North Rankin Platform A. It had a total displacement of 20,275 ft, surpassing the mark set earlier this year by Norway's state owned Den norske stats oljeselskap AS in a well drilled from Statfjord Platform C in the Norwegian North Sea (OGJ, Apr. 15, p. 32).

July 15, 1991

2 min read

A group led by Woodside Petroleum Pty. Ltd. has claimed a world record for extended reach drilling with a well in North Rankin field off Western Australia.

The well, NRA 21, tapped North Rankin reservoir more than 3 miles from North Rankin Platform A. It had a total displacement of 20,275 ft, surpassing the mark set earlier this year by Norway's state owned Den norske stats oljeselskap AS in a well drilled from Statfjord Platform C in the Norwegian North Sea (OGJ, Apr. 15, p. 32).

NRA 21 was drilled to a true vertical depth of about 9,842 ft. The well took 18 months of detailed planning and engineering plus a drilling rig upgrade that included installation of a top drive unit.

The well's success likely will eliminate need for a second platform in the field.

Continuing strong gas flow will enable the Woodside group to focus on condensate production. Woodside and partners expect to hike condensate flow to at least 100,000 b/d by 2000 from the current 30,000 b/d. This will be augmented by crude production to start up from nearby Cossack field in 1993 and from Wanaea field, for which a development decision is expected early in 1992.

North Rankin field is the mainstay in the Woodside group's Northwest Shelf project, which delivers natural gas to the domestic market and LNG to Japan.