Ace Ratchet Collar delivers lower cost and flexibility to operator in remote area

The challenge

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Placement of a 13-5/8” casing string below a 17-7/8” liner was required in an exploration well, off the coast of Uruguay, at a record water depth. There was uncertainty whether downhole challenges would require a 16” contingency liner to be set between the 17-7/8” and 13-5/8” strings.

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In this scenario the operator would traditionally have had two options:

1. Purchase centralizer subs and run them regardless of the presence of the 16” liner

2. Purchase both the centralizer subs and traditional centralizers & stop rings

 

Running either option would then be based upon the presence of the liner. Neither of these options is cost-effective, as they require higher levels of initial investment and long-term inventory management.

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The solution

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To avoid these issues, the operator selected Ace Ratchet Collars and 1-piece non-welded centralizers as the best solution to reduce the overall spend on centralization. The patented slim ARC has a 14.11” OD and is rated to over 90,000lbf axial load. This means it can pass thru the 16” liner while delivering the high holding force required to ensure the centralizers remain in place on the casing string.  It is also designed to maintain sufficient bypass to help prevent formation breakdown during run-in. Therefore, this alternative could be run regardless of the presence of the 16” contingency liner making it a flexible, cost-saving option.

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Each ARC is easily installed off-line in just a few minutes and does not require pipe preparation or transportation off-site for installation.

 

The result

 

For this well, over 40 ARCs were installed off-line at the pipe yard by 2 trained installers in less than one day. The pipe was then shipped to the rig, run in the hole and successfully cemented at total depth without issue.