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Multicomponent seismic characterization and monitoring of the CO₂ flood at Weyburn Field, Saskatchewan

Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado, U.S.

Reynaldo Cardona

ChevronTexaco, Houston, Texas, U.S.

Robert R. Kendall and Robert Winarsky

Veritas, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Corresponding author: tdavis@mines.edu

The first 20% of the full text of this article appears below.

High-resolution, time-lapse (4D), multicomponent (9C) seismic monitoring of a tertiary oil recovery project is being conducted by the Reservoir Characterization Project of the Colorado School of Mines. The project involves a miscible CO₂ flood in a thin (30 m) carbonate reservoir at 1450 m depth in Weyburn Field, Saskatchewan. Multicomponent time-lapse seismic images illustrate the influence of fracture zones on the flood. These fracture zones are very important to characterize and monitor in order to manage the flood successfully and to achieve the desired improved recovery efficiency. The monitoring project offers insights into the future of dynamic reservoir characterization with 4D, 9C seismic technology.

	Weyburn Field

 
Weyburn Field is a 1.4 billion bbl field located on the northeast flank of the Williston Basin in southeast Saskatchewan, Canada. The Midale carbonate reservoir consists of two distinct zones at a depth of approximately 1450 m. The upper unit, the Marly, is low permeability (10 md), high porosity (26%), and ranges in thickness from 7 to 10 m. The lower unit, the Vuggy, is higher permeability (15 md) and lower porosity (11%) than the upper unit, and ranges in thickness from 15 to 20 m. The lower Vuggy unit has a much larger flow capacity relative to the upper Marly unit resulting in low oil recovery efficiency in the Marly unit.

The field was discovered in 1955 and went on a conventional waterflood 10 years after its discovery. Production through primary depletion and conventional waterflooding achieved approximately 25% oil recovery. EnCana, the field operator, started an enhanced oil recovery project during October 2000. Initially, 19 horizontal well patterns were converted into a CO₂ miscible flood . . . [Full Text of this Article]