Oil and gas wells require a wide range of equipment to ensure efficient and safe production. One important piece of equipment is the packer. This completion equipment is a device you can deploy to isolate sections of the wellbore during drilling, completion, or production operations. Its function is to create a seal or barrier to prevent fluid flow between different zones of the wellbore.
This technology has been around for many decades and has undergone significant improvements over the years. There are different types of equipment. They include mechanical, hydraulic, and inflatable packers. Each type is designed to suit specific well conditions and production requirements.
Mechanical packers use slips or teeth to grip the casing or tubing wall. This creates a seal and isolates the targeted zone. Hydraulic packers rely on pressure. This pressure expands an elastomeric sleeve or a metal ring against the casing or tubing wall. This creates a seal. Inflatable packers are to inflate like a balloon, forming a seal around the wellbore.
These devices serve in various applications, including zonal isolation, stimulation, gravel packing, and well testing. Common uses of packers are to separate production zones.
This helps to stop different fluids from mixing and flowing between areas. This has two benefits. It can increase the efficiency of the well and reduce production problems.
One type of equipment that commonly serves in the oil and gas industry is the annular packer. This type of barrier comes with a specific design. This design allows a seal around the annulus between the production tubing, casing, or open hole.
Annular barriers have many uses. They are often used in primary cementing, hydraulic fracturing, or for long-term zonal isolation. This helps to protect the target annular zone from the rest of the wellbore.
Seal in the annulus
As a matter of fact, this is how we would answer the question, “What is a Packer in oil and gas?”
These barriers are deformable downhole completion equipment to seal in the annulus. These devices seal downhole pressure inside or outside the tubing string.
Typically, a packer sets in both upper and lower completions. Its primary function is creating isolation. Either in injection or production setup.
Firstly, we have 1 of the sturdiest isolation packers in the oilfield.
Secondly, You can deploy Saltel packers as part of an integrated completion.
Thirdly, our packers mix plastically deformed steel with composite rubber. In the end, this provides an effective annular seal. It ensures a robust and permanent annulus barrier.
Nowadays, oil well packer manufacturers through openhole isolation must cope with demanding downhole needs. By the way, the openhole zone isolation segment needs field-proven efficiency.
Indeed, with smart completions and Extended reach, the market is changing. The annular well packer market is adapting to these changes. Openhole packers are more and more needed for annular isolation. Well-completion designs are getting more complicated.
What is a Packer (@Saltel)
On top of that, wellbore environments are getting harsher. Indeed, technological advances increased the need for versatile isolation tools. In other words, clients want better sureness in the modern oilfield.
Saltel Industries strives to meet these challenges. We settled rigorous testing and cutting-edge expertise.
ISO 14310 and API19OH are part of these.
Regardless of wells completed with fluctuating pressures. And regardless of horizontal wells with HP stimulation. Saltel hydraulic openhole packers meet the need.
Complete your wells with expandable Steel Packers.
Firstly, we always innovate to keep up with new challenges.
Secondly, we have dual expertise.
Elastomer composites.
Plastic deformation of steel.
This expertise offers field-proven oil and gas packers for well completions.
Hence, our portfolio covers the following applications:
- Short-term isolation for high-pressure stimulation.
- Annular cement integrity / cement backup.
- Permanent annular zonal isolation.
Expandable Steel Packer – The permanent zonal isolation barrier
Saltel Expandable Steel Packers are permanent steel annulus barriers. Saltel packers act as baffles to isolate selective zones in the annular for numerous purposes.
- To prevent fluid or gas migration in the annular in long-term zone isolation.
- Split reservoir intervals into sections to fracture selective stages or particular production purposes.
- Segment pay zones into productive subsections. This, is before acid treatment or other stimulation processes.
- Act as a plug, in association with cement, in Plug and abandonment (P&A).
- Reinforce the annular cement integrity in cement backup set up.
- Allow cementing above lower completion or loss zones.
Effective isolation with pressure compensation.
To conclude, Saltel metal packer is an annular barrier in all cases. These barriers ensure effective zone isolation.
Zonal isolation is achievable thanks to sleeve thickness. Likewise, pressure-rated valves also balance the differential pressures. This pressure compensation is possible in 2 different scenarios.
- ‘Across’ (annulus-to-annulus).
- Or ‘in-out’ (annulus-to-casing).