Low Permeability Bioturbated Reservoir Productivity: A Case Study from North Malay Basin Seq-0 Reservoir, Malaysia

The North Malay Basin (NMB) Seq-0 reservoirs are unconventional, stratigraphically shallow reservoirs consisting of silt-rich Tidal Ridge complexes. Several drill-stem tests (DST & Mini-DST) were conducted to assess its resources, which concluded that the reservoirs have sub-commercial gas deliverability due to their inherently low permeability. Limited core observations and a Computer Tomography (CT) scan revealed different degrees of bioturbation activity throughout the reservoir. The upper reservoir has a higher bioturbation density compared to the lower reservoir. The logs indicate that the reservoirs are low resistivity low contrast (LRLC) with low permeability, and a few attempts of MDT were conducted to be tight.

A feasibility study involving the strategic use of propellant sleeve perforation gun technology for add-perforation on the existing wells over the Seq-0 reservoirs has shown positive flow tests and encouraging production. The successful implementation of horizontal well technology during one of the previous unrelated development campaigns has opened up new possibilities for exploiting the low permeability formation through the existing wellhead platform to maximize the well productivity index.