Various water-based methods are being screened by StatoilHydro to optimise recovery and net present value from oil and gas fields.
These techniques include:
- polymer and/or surfactant flooding
- polymer gels (linked polymer solutions)
- low-salinity water injection
- microbial enhanced oil recovery
and a combination of these methods.
In all these cases, water composition is modified before injection.
The screening process involves laboratory experiments and simulations, with the focus on future pilot testing and possible full field application.
StatoilHydro is currently re-evaluating its chemical IOR activities in the North Sea. These were suspended in 1994, mainly because of low oil prices.
No offshore application has so far been implemented worldwide, which remains a challenge for any North Sea use.
The key to evaluating IOR potential, required technological advances and implementation for any of the above-mentioned methods rests on a very clear understanding of the physics and recovery mechanisms involved.
Almost all IOR methods are case sensitive and must be investigated for each reservoir of interest.
