Driving Continuous Performance Improvement in Qatar’s North Field

RasGas Company Limited has been utilising the ExxonMobil Fast Drill Process to drive continuous improvement in drilling operations in Qatar’s North Field since its roll-out in 2005. Implementation of the process has resulted in significant increases in drilling performance and unique changes in operational practices. In recent years, continued North Field development in new areas has introduced unique challenges requiring innovative drilling solutions to continue to raise the bar in drilling performance. This paper details how RasGas has utilised the Fast Drill Process to identify and extend new performance limiters in wells of increasing drilling complexity. It also details the development and roll-out of a new Flat Time Reduction initiative that targets performance improvement in areas previously untouched by the Fast Drill Process workflow. The combined impact of these initiatives has resulted in another step change in performance and well delivery in more complex areas of the North Field. The performance improvements have accumulated cost savings in excess of $250 Million USD for RasGas and its Shareholders and have been achieved while maintaining and building upon an industry leading safety record. The performance improvement initiatives described in this paper are applicable for any large scale drilling campaign that requires increased Rate of Penetration (ROP), reduced plateau times, and accelerated well delivery.