Performance of longitudinally fractured horizontal wells in high-permeability anisotropic formations

1996 Society of Petroleum Engineers, Inc. This work studies the combined behavior of (1) horizontal wells, and (2) high-permeability fracturing. Fractured vertical wells in high-permeability formations always yield finite conductivity fractures which in turn can reduce the benefits of the stimulation. It has been proposed recently that a fracture along a horizontal well poses far smaller pressure drops than those of the fracture intersecting a vertical well. This work uses numerical simulation to corroborate the recently presented semi-analytical solutions for the problem of a longitudinally fractured horizontal well in a homogeneous, isotropic formation. Additionally, this paper addresses the effects of vertical and horizontal anisotropy in the pressure and production performance of such well and compares it to the performance of a fractured vertical well. Finally, the paper presents a set of transformations that allows for a proper well test analysis of the longitudinally fractured well in an anisotropic formation.

Performance of longitudinally fractured horizontal wells in high-permeability anisotropic formations Conference Paper