Control and Optimization Challenges in Liquid-Loaded Shale Gas Wells

Shale gas reservoirs are classified as unconventional reservoirs. Their key features include low permeability, rapid decline in production rate, and liquid loading at the well-bottom. An industrial perspective towards automation in Shale gas is provided in this paper. Specifically, the challenges and opportunities in controlling the liquid loading problem and optimizing the production from shale gas wells are discussed. Automation systems and control hierarchy are discussed and parallels with the more familiar Process Industries are highlighted. The key components of reservoir modeling, well-bore modeling, feed-back control, model parameter update, multi-well optimization, and production management are presented. An example of periodic shut-in operation is used to underline the various concepts discussed in this paper.