American Oil and Gas Reporter - September 2015 - 145

ConventionCoverage: Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners

Participating in an oil and gas innovation and technology panel at the Texas Independent
Producers & Royalty Owners summer conference are, from left, Bob Sherwin, managing
member of Bionic Soil Solutions USA and Bionic Soil Solutions International; Brent
Halldorson, chief operating officer for Fountain Quail Water Management; Dave Milam,
executive vice president of product management and marketing for WellAware; and
TIPRO President Ed Longanecker, who served as moderator for the panel.

aware what level of treatment they needed
from a water handling company, he recalled. "Things have improved now to
where producers understand the level of
treatment required. They are starting to
form performance metrics. Now, an operator will say he wants a recycling program, with constituents A, B and C removed," Halldorson said.
He recommended that operators considering water recycling programs start
simple, decide early if they can reuse
saltwater or freshwater in projects, and
ensure they use proven technology.
"I always tell people that if someone
comes in and cannot explain how the
system works or tells you he cannot say
because it is top secret, avoid him," Halldorson said. "The industry is past that.
Water recycling is mainstream, and often
is the low-cost water management option.
But, I caution you that you are going to
have to work closely with your treatment
provider, because it is not a mature business yet. We have driven recycling costs
down and reliability up, and while we
have come a long way, we will have
plenty more to learn."
Data monitoring systems such as

Coming In October

An update on the latest field Eagle
Ford activity, including initial results
from refrac pilot projects in horizontal wells.

WellAware help operators reduce the
effort to manage wells, minimize downtime and improve safety and regulatory

compliance, Milam told TIPRO. Too
many companies continue to use manual
processes to monitor wells, and he asserted
that today's market environment didn't
allow for such inefficiencies.
To reduce windshield time for pumpers,
gaugers and other company employees, and
to minimize the separate communications
charges, Milam said WellAware installed
wireless networks that covered several shaleproduction basins, including the Permian,
Eagle Ford and Bakken. The company
also provides mobile applications for cell
phones and tablets that allow field workers
to manage by exception, limiting visits to
well sites that have reported problems.
"Pumpers or gaugers get an alert where
there is an issue, so at the beginning of a
day they are not driving their standard
route anymore. They are seeing where
there is an alarm, and they go to that
well," he detailed.
The system also allows operators to
monitor chemical inventories and injection
rates, and match those against production
records, detailing what wells need what
services, Milam stated.
❒

SHEAR GENIUS
Your top performance is reinvented with
Atlas Copco PDC bits.
800-732-6762
www.atlascopco.us

SEPTEMBER 2015 145

American Oil and Gas Reporter - September 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Oil and Gas Reporter - September 2015