American Oil and Gas Reporter - May 2016 - 48

SpecialReport: Compression & Production Optimization
Best practices and experiences from various operators provide
insight into the challenges, technology applied, and potential/actual benefits realized in terms of operations and field development. This includes developments to improve the reliability of
vapor recovery, incorporate application-specific software, and implement a modular approach for remotely managing production
storage operations (Figure 1A).
Systems Approach
In shale resource development projects, drilling and completion efforts largely have driven efficiency improvements. The focus has been on cost and time to first production, which limits
oil and gas companies' ability to focus on operational efficiencies. Efforts to standardize modular facility designs have not always exploited automation opportunities for standardized operations and production optimization.
Variability in pad production storage management in conjunction with adjacent production-related operations can be linked to
multiple production issues. Gaining insight and managing these
FIGURE 1A
Well Pad Production Management System
Production
Management

Critical Operations
Tank

Inventory
Transfers
Blanketing
Vapor Control
Capital

Adjacent

Allocation
LACT
Flare Gas
Vapor Recovery
Emissions

Impacts
Lost/Deferred
Unaccounted
Theft
Accounting
Planning
Compliance

FIGURE 1B
Expanding Role of Remote Automations

Turnkey
Applications
Software
Single
Configurable
RTU, PLC &
FC Platform

Critical
Asset
Reliability

Package
Applications
Solutions

various parameters from a systems approach improve operational
effectiveness and reduce overall production uncertainty.
Advances in remote automation technology, combined with
a focus on solving critical field asset challenges, are expanding
the remote automation systems approach to monitoring, controlling and automating operations, as illustrated in Figure 1B.
Improved sensing technologies make it easier and more cost
effective to monitor and control critical parameters. At the same
time, the expanded functionality of remote operations control platforms, scalability, and distributed architectures reduce the complexity associated with system integration. Packaged-application
solutions consolidate monitoring and control data to enhance the
optimization of process units and modular skid systems. Turnkey
application software provides configurable software modules to
support customization, standardization, and automation of critical operations.
Pad production storage management offers a number of opportunities to implement integrated applications and system-based
solutions to address the various challenges associated with overall production management. This includes critical operations associated with:
* Inventory, allocation and custody transfer management;
* Inventory and fiscal transfer measurement;
* Vapor control; and
* Vapor recovery.
Reducing Uncertainty
Managing well pad inventory, allocation and custody transfer encompasses multiple operations that contribute to overall uncertainty in production management. The accumulated measurement errors and variability in operations within a storage system
can add quickly to a significant level of uncertainty. Higher levels of uncertainty reduce the prospect for timely insight into problematic field operations, which translates quickly into added lease
operation costs and lost revenue.
Figure 2A depicts how quickly various operations can contribute to overall production uncertainty. Manually gauging the
accuracy of tank "in" and "out" volumes is highly dependent on
operator competency and consistency in sometimes challenging
weather conditions. Rounding off open- and end-level measurements to ensure contractually compliant haul volumes introduces
unaccounted-for errors. Poor insight into actual oil shrinkage and
oil losses in water storage tanks also contributes to overall production uncertainty.
The root mean-square error of the typical values encountered
in the field indicates a potential uncertainty of 5-11 percent. It

Improved
Sensing
Technology

Distributed
Control
Diagnostic
Tolls &
Analytics

48 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

Uncertainty

FIGURE 2A
Accumulative Production Uncertainty

Innage - Outage

Unaccounted

Shrinkage

Shim

± 1-2%

± 0.5-1%

± 5-11%

± 1-2%

RMS
± 5-11%
Worst Case
± 7.5-16%

American Oil and Gas Reporter - May 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Oil and Gas Reporter - May 2016