RESEARCH ON GEOLOGICAL COMPLICATIONS OCCURRING DURING DRILLING OPERATIONS AT UZBEKNEFTEGAZ JSC WELLS

Abstract

This article presents an analysis of maintaining wellbore stability, preventing pack-off formation, stuck pipe incidents, and drilling fluid losses. A technology aimed at ensuring successful and high-quality trouble-free well drilling is analyzed and recommended. Based on data obtained from the Surkhandarya Basin fields, many wells were not drilled to the designed depth. Geophysical data from studied fields indicate that pore pressure retained in clay formations causes wellbore instability. These data also help to identify zones prone to collapse; however, the direct measurement of pore pressure in such formations remains impossible. This research was primarily conducted in the Ustyurt region, one of the rapidly developing oil and gas prospective areas of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Over the past 60 years, more than twenty gas and gas condensate fields have been discovered in Jurassic deposits regionally traced in this area. The presented analysis indicates that developing an effective technology to prevent geological complications during drilling operations is a pressing issue.