Identifying Formation Creep: Ultrasonic Bond Logging Field Examples

As part of plug and abandonment (P&A) operations, several acceptance criteria need to be considered by operators to qualify barrier elements. In casing annuli, highly bonded material is occasionally found far above the theoretical top of cement. This paper aims to describe how the highly bonded material can be identified using a combination of ultrasonic logging data, validated with measurements in laboratory experiments using reference cells and how this, in combination with data from the well construction records, can contribute to lowering the costly toll of P&A operations. Ultrasonic and sonic log data were acquired in several wells to assess the bond quality behind multiple casing sizes in an abandonment campaign. Data obtained from pulse-echo and flexural sensors were interactively analyzed with a crossplotting technique to distinguish gas, liquid, barite, cement, and formation in the annular space. Within the methodology used, historical data on each well were considered as an integral part of the analysis. During the original well construction, either water-based mud (WBM) or synthetic oil-based mud (OBM) was used for drilling and cementing operations, and some formation intervals consistently showed high bonding signatures under specific conditions, giving clear evidence of formation creep. Log data from multiple wells confirm that formation behavior is influenced by the type of mud used during well construction. The log data provided information of annulus material with a detailed map of the axial and azimuthal variations of the annulus contents. In some cases, log response showed a clear indication of formation creep, evidenced by a high bond quality around the production casing where cement cannot be present. Based on observations from multiple fields in the Norwegian continental shelf, a crossplot workflow has been designed to distinguish formation from cement as the potential barrier element. NORSOK Standard D-010 (2013) has initial verification acceptance criteria both for annulus cement and creeping formation as a well barrier element, both involving bond logs; however, in the case of creeping formation, it is more stringent stating that “two independent logging measurements/tools shall be applied.” This paper aims to demonstrate how this can be done with confidence using ultrasonic and sonic log data, validated against reference barrier cells (Govil et al. 2020). Logging responses like those gathered during full-scale experiments of reference barrier cells with known defects were observed in multiple wells in the field. Understanding the phenomenon of formation creep and its associated casing bond signature could have a massive impact on P&A operations. With a successful qualification of formation as an annulus barrier, significant cost and time savings can be achieved.