Keywords
exothermic chemical treatment
oil well stimulation
enhanced oil recovery
case study
Abstract
In today’s oil and gas world, there is an ongoing demand for Enhanced Oil Recovery Techniques
(EOR). Operators look for the best available solutions to optimize production from heavy crude fields which
were not put on production due to lack of technologies suitable for the individual field nature, type of reservoir,
pressure and most important of all, technologies that are economically feasible and environmentally friendly.
Libya’s capability to boost its oil production is strongly dependent on innovative extraction technologies.
Particularly in the case of the 1billion barrel Al Haram Field. Many years of scientific research and technical
innovation gave birth to the Exothermic Chemical Treatment (ECT) by New Oil Generation (NOG). This
EOR technology is a modern method for thermal stimulation of oil reservoirs containing crude oil ranging
from 10 to 30 API. ECT uses Binary Mixtures of Chemicals, containing non-explosive and non-hazardous
aqueous solutions, injected to the wellbore into the pay zone within the production or injection well to
stimulate the reservoir. Chemical reaction generates three key components: heat, nitrogen and pressure,
which leads to increasing reservoir pressure and lowers the viscosity of heavy oil. Thus, ECT achieves rapid
improvement of oil production. On line monitoring and controlling system of temperature and pressure in
the reaction zone, provides efficiency coefficient of Binary Mixtures reaction that are close to 1. Successful
application of ECT in Russia and USA, proved the technology as the most cost- effective method at the
present day. Comparing the geology and nature of reservoirs of the case histories on which ECT was applied,
they are found to be very similar to those of the Al Haram Field. That makes ECT the most invaluable
technology to assist Libya in boosting its heavy crude oil production in the safest and most economical way.