Case Study―The Disappearing Plug Provides Cost Efficient Horizontal Completions for an Operator in Malaysia

Over the past 3 years, an operator in Malaysia has developed several large-bore gas wells with horizontal trajectories. The<br>completion team was faced with several challenges in designing the completion of these wells, particularly in the area of<br>deploying a plugging device to test the completion string and to set the production packer. Traditionally, two conventional<br>plugging methods have been used ― slickline-deployed plugs or ball-activated pump-out plugs. Due to the deviated<br>trajectories and associated intervention risks, both methods were deemed unfeasible. A coiled-tubing intervention could have<br>been considered, but this method would have added significant cost to the completions. To actualize these wells, therefore, an<br>operator needed to find an alternative method that would provide a low-risk, cost-effective tubing-testing and packer-setting<br>device.