SPE-184823-MS

From the Backyard Dune to Fracturing a Highly Tectonically Complex

Formation in Saudi Arabia

K. M. Bartko, I. H Arnaout, K. S. Asiri, K. M. McClelland, and N. I. Mulhim, Saudi Aramco; R. Tineo, M. N. Gurmen,
and Z. Al-Jalal, Schlumberger Saudi Arabia; D. Pantsurkin and D. Y. Emelyanov, NTC Schlumberger

Copyright 2017, Society of Petroleum Engineers

This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE Hydraulic Fracturing Technology Conference and Exhibition held in The Woodlands, Texas, USA, 24-26 January
2017.

This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE program committee following review of information contained in an abstract submitted by the author(s). Contents
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Abstract
Sand in Saudi Arabia is easily accessible through surface mining or excavating large dunes that are API
approved, but like many sands around the world, lacks the necessary strength for fracturing high stress
formations. To exploit the sand, a novel engineered workflow, enabled by the flow channel fracturing
technique was established for qualifying and implementing Saudi Arabian sand to fracture stimulate the
tectonically complex ultra-tight "T" carbonate formation.
Channel fracturing does not depend on the proppant pack to provide conductivity, rather on the creation
of stable, open flow channels. Therefore, carefully selected sand that can keep the channel structure open
under stress can be a viable material to replace up to 80% of the ceramic proppant materials. The local
sand used was qualified through unique lab testing procedures to understand the pack behavior under stress,
the pillar erosion under stress, and the effects of stress on long-term conductivity. Once qualified, a design
methodology was applied to optimize the fracture geometry and pillar placement for the initial field test in
Well-A, a horizontal lateral where high strength proppant (HSP) is traditionally used.
A total of six channel fracturing stages with local sand 40% of the total stages were placed as per
design in two sections of the 15-stage lateral along with four conventional and five channel fracture stages
using HSP. A multi-month cleanup and well test period resulted in Well-A being one of the best producing
wells in the basin 26% higher initial production than the next best well. A production log showed sand
stages to be producing an average of 15% higher total production than HSP stages. An oil tracer analysis
revealed sand stages produced an average of 62% more condensate than HSP stages. This initial production
response confirms at least par production with no detrimental effects for channel fracturing with local sand
compared to techniques using HSP, with the potential for improved production.
This qualified and field tested completion methodology allows for the potential replacement of a
significant portion of imported ceramic proppant with locally sourced sand, an abundant and accessible
resource inside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and beyond. The benefits of this technology include cost
reduction, placement improvement, at least par production and the maximizing of in-country content and
value.
2 SPE-184823-MS

Introduction
Saudi Aramco initiated an unconventional fracture program in a tectonically complex ultra-tight "T"
carbonate formation in 2014 with the first successful fracture treatment in this source rock (Nayef et al.
2014). The "T" formation fracture gradient was estimated at 1.05 psi/ft requiring high strength ceramic
proppant and/or bauxite to ensure the formation stayed open. Fracturing best practices were implemented
requiring a conventional fracturing treatment to be utilized with a proppant ramp from 1 PPA to 6 PPA.
With sand utilized in North America for fracturing unconventional wells and the abundance of sand in
Saudi Arabia, a regional study was initiated to locate and source frac sand. Three sandstone outcrops and
sand dunes were identified based on quantity, easy accessibility, and known quartz content. All three areas
met the ISO and API requirements; however, they did not meet the 8,000 psi closure stress requirement. To
exploit the sand a unique solution was developed that utilized the flow channel fracturing technique.
In this paper, we will discuss a novel engineering workflow used to qualify the local sand through unique
lab testing procedures to understand the pack behavior under stress, the pillar erosion under stress, and the
effects of stress on long-term conductivity. A workflow for the field test utilizing similar designs for the
ceramic and sand channel fractures was implemented. The fracturing stages were placed in similar stress
regimes along the lateral to ensure a fair assessment of placement and production flow. A production log and
tracer material was used to validate production contribution from the stages. The results of the test indicated
the sand stages produced an average of 15% higher total production than the high strength proppant (HSP)
stages.
This qualified and field tested completion methodology allows for the potential replacement of a
significant portion of imported ceramic proppant with locally sourced sand, an abundant and accessible
resource inside the Kingdom and beyond. The benefits of this technology include cost reduction, placement
improvement, at least par production and the maximizing of in-country content and value.

Reservoir Description
The targeted Jurassic source rocks are an organic rich carbonate mudstone. The Jurassic mudstones
deposited during the Middle to Late Jurassic time are highly calcareous with extremely low clay content
(Al Duhhailian 2016). Based on X-ray diffraction measurements from cores and cuttings, calcite is the
dominant component. Samples that exhibit higher porosity are commonly associated with a high content
of organics with an average interconnected porosity of 9.67%. Matrix permeability is up to 1,300 nano-
Darcies (0.0013 mDarcies) from a limited number of the samples (Mulhim et al. 2014). The high quartz
content and low clay content is associated with low water saturation and very high gas saturation. The "T"
formation is subdivided into three zones identified by the density log. Zone A at the base is represented
by the highest organic content total organic (TOC) values reaching up to 14%. Zone B is an intermediate
quality representing the lean source rock, Fig. 1.
Arabian tectonic plate movement northward in recent geological history, colliding with the Eurasian plate
as well as opening the Red Sea, dictates the stress regime in the area. Over pressured source rock, sonic data
interpretation together with diagnostic fracture injection test (DFIT) and pressure decline analysis confirmed
strike-slip stress regime at the target interval with overburden stress providing the intermediate value of the
three principal stresses. Hydraulic fractures in such a stress regime are expected to propagate in the direction
parallel to H as in the case of a normal stress regime. Nevertheless, challenges with breakdown of different
perforation clusters could be encountered with high lamination of the reservoir and non-homogeneous
properties of the layers, possibility of bottom-hole pressure to exceed overburden stress and develop the
horizontal component.
SPE-184823-MS 3

Figure 1Variation of gamma ray and TOC content (Momin et al. 2015).

Geomechanical Properties
Mechanical property tests were performed on selected core material to determine the anisotropic nature of
the rock. The tests indicated the Jafurah Basin has a medium degree of anisotropy with the static Young's
Modulus ratio of Eh/Ev of 1.65. The static Poisson's ratio is approximately 1.38.
Multiple DFITs and mini-frac tests were pumped to estimate pore pressure, fracture closure pressure
and fluid efficiency, formation characteristics and leakoff coefficients. Table 1 summarizes the results of
diagnostics and typical rock properties on one of the wells in the area of the Jafurah Basin.

Table 1DFIT analysis results (after Al-Mulhim et al. 2015).

Parameter Value Units

Young's Modulus 3.8 Mpsi

Poisson's ratio 0.23 -
Shmin Gradient 0.96 psi/ft
Shmax Gradient 1.2 psi/ft
Pore Pressure Gradient 0.7-0.88 psi/ft

Saudi Sand Qualification

An initiative to source local sand in the Kingdom was undertaken to identify regional sand dunes to
determine their applicability for fracturing. To be considered a frac sand source, the sand must have the
following characteristics:

Quartz in excess of 95%.

Grain size range between 30/50 and 40/70 mesh standards.

Roundness and sphericity exceeding 0.6.

Conductivity measurements of >100 md-ft at 8,000 psi closure pressure.

4 SPE-184823-MS

All four areas identified met the requirements for sand quality. The requirement for conductivity barely
achieve the minimum requirements of a conductivity >100 md-ft unless a resin coating was applied. The
NW sand was a premium quality sand from the U.S. and used as the targeted performance for the local
sand. A compilation of the conductivity tests, including local sand with resin and bauxite, indicates the resin
sand meets the minimum criteria, Fig. 2. With low expectations, local sand will fill the requirements for
fracturing; alternative technology was considered leading to investigating local sand with channel fracturing
technology.

Table 2Saudi local sand physical properties. Tests performed as per ISO 13503-2 standard.

Description Value Unit

Density 2.65 g/cm3

Bulk Density 2.65 g/cm3
Roundness 0.86 in size wt.%
Sphericity 0.79 wt.%
GSD* 99.77 NTU
Acid Solubility** 0.7
Turbidity 75

* Grain size distribution (GSD).

**Performed in HCl acid (15 wt.% to 18 wt.%) for 30 minutes at 150 F [66 C].

Figure 2Local sand fracture conductivity results. D, H and Du refer to the local sand source

Flow Channel Fracture

The local sand resources were determined not suited at the time for conventional fracturing operations
due to their low compressive strength resulting in loss of fracture conductivity and damage of the pack
due to fines migration. A novel idea was investigated in 2015 to use a combination of local sand
and intermediate strength proppant at the wellbore was developed utilizing the flow channel fracture
technology. Conventional fracture designs illustrated in Fig. 3 utilizes the strength of the proppant to keep
SPE-184823-MS 5

the fracture from closing; therefore, the low conductivity of the sand pack would make the conventional
fracture unsuitable for fracturing operations in the "T" formation. The innovative idea was to utilize the
channel fracturing technology (Medvedev et al. 2013) as the process decouples fracture productivity from
proppant permeability and creates open flow channels. Instead of flowing through the proppant in the pack,
hydrocarbons flow through channels, increasing conductivity by orders of magnitude, as seen in Fig. 3. The
open channels allow the use of nonstandard proppant (NSP) instead of ISO certified proppant (SP). In order
to preserve the near wellbore conductivity and ensure a reliable connection to the wellbore, which is subject
to the highest effective stress, a ceramic tail-in is utilized. By combining geo-mechanical modeling, fit-
to-purpose pumping schedule and fiber-laden fluid technologies channel stability is achieved (M. Gillard
2010).

Figure 3Illustrations of a conventional based hydraulic fracture and a channel

fracture based on pulsated injection to create pillars (Gillard et al. 2010).

Channel Fracture Qualification

To optimize actual designs, a new engineering workflow and experiments developed took into account the
difference in mechanical properties of NSP and SP and their performance inside the fracture. Two main
issues of designing operations for replacing SP with NSP considered are: proppant compaction under closure
stress, and proppant erosion when produced fluid is exposed to the produced fluid, Fig. 4.

Figure 4Proppant erosion. Proppant compaction.

Essentially compaction testing is used to measure thickness of the proppant pillar under stress and
calculate the change in amount of NSP to be pumped compared to that of SP.
An erosion test is used to simulate downhole conditions such as closure stress and fluid flow in the
lab. A fully engineered approach allows us to rescale the obtained results to field conditions and estimate
the maximum production rate per one fracture, below which proppant erosion has a negligible to no effect
on the proppant pillar, and therefore, performance of the well.
6 SPE-184823-MS

Proppant Compaction
Compaction tests were performed to measure local Saudi Arabian sand porosity under stress and compare
its behavior to that of ISO sand. The testing methodology is similar to the ISO crush resistance tests (ISO
13503-2). Sand pack thickness is measured during the test. For the sample, the mass and experimental cell
of the known geometry porosity of the sand pack can be easily calculated. Experimental results for the local
sand are given in Fig. 5 and show that local sand performance is similar to that of ISO sand.
The resulting compaction table of porosity vs. stress is used in fracture simulation software for pillar
height calculation. Sufficient pillar height is required to ensure that channels are open.

Figure 5Saudi local sand porosity in comparison to common ISO certified propping materials.

Proppant Erosion
An erosion test is a procedure specifically for NSP qualification. The goal of this test is to determine a
critical velocity for a sand/proppant. Critical velocity is the velocity of fluid (with particular rheological
properties) below which proppant pack erosion is considered negligible.
Critical erosion velocity is used in fracture simulation software to calculate the recommended production
rate for a particular well. If the expected production rate for the well is below this value, then the proppant
pack erosion should not affect the well's productivity.
During the erosion test, the proppant pillar was arranged to simulate a channel between two pillars, is
subjected to both closure stress and fluid flow, Fig. 6. Washed out sand is collected in set time intervals and
weighed. The sand erosion rate calculation used this data. Saudi local sand test results are provided in Fig. 7.
SPE-184823-MS 7

Figure 6Sketch (on the left) and picture (on the right) of the erosion cell
and proppant loading. Closure stress is perpendicular to the picture plane.

Figure 7Cumulative sand erosion.

Based on erosion test results critical erosion velocity for Saudi sand is 0.05 m/s. This will correspond to
only 3 wt% of proppant eroded during well production time.
Two issues associated with sand erosion grain size of washed out sand and impact of the cycling stress
on the erosion rate are evaluated in the next two sections.

Sand Pillar behavior under stress

Preserving the pillar structural integrity in every stage from surface creation, transportation through pumping
equipment until fracture closure is critical to the success of the flow-channel fracturing technology. Pillar
dispersion is mitigated by the addition of fibrous material, imposing a yield stress to the fiber-laden slug
which hinders dispersion. (M. Gillard 2010).
An experiment was conducted to visually inspect the dispersion of the sand pack under stress with and
without fibers. Fig. 8 shows the sample with fibrous material reduced the sand dispersion and the impact
on pillar height.
8 SPE-184823-MS

Figure 8Sand pack samples without fiber (on the left) and with fibers (on the right) after application of stress

A set of experiments were performed to investigate the formation of fines inside the proppant pillar
under the stress and GSD of washed out sand. Sand pillars were compressed with 5,000 psi, which resulted
in approximately 7,000 psi stress on the sample. Experiments were performed for "pillar" and "channel"
loading of the sample. The stress creates two regions of the pack separated by a transition zone, Fig. 9

Figure 9Sand pack samples before (on the left) and after (on the right) application of the stress. Top "channel"
loading; bottom: "pillar" loading. Green low stress region; red: high stress region; yellow: transition zone.

The first region (Fig. 9, red color) is composed of tight consolidated and crushed material near the cell
wall or in the center of the pillar. In this zone, granular material faces more restrictions to rearrangement
and free movement. The second region (Fig. 9, green color) is composed of proppant under relatively low
stress on the loose side of the channel or on the border of the pillar. The zone in between of the two is a
transitional region (Fig. 9, yellow colored). In the experiment with channel loading high stress region does
not extends to the left (Fig. 9, top right image) because there is an opening in cell on the left side, which
allows sand to move freely; however on the right there is a screen which confines sand movement.
SPE-184823-MS 9

To estimate stress on each region of the sample GSD was measured and compared to the GSD of the
same sand after ISO crush test. Sample GDS was measured for three regions: high stress; low stress and
transition region. Sampling was done to ensure that either only high stress or low stress region is analyzed,
the rest of the sample was considered as transition region. GDS of sand before application of the stress was
also measured. Results are presented on Fig. 10. On Fig. 11 GSD for red region is compared to GSD of the
same sand after 15,000 psi crush test. It should be taken into account that numerous crush samples were
analyzed, but the best match was found between red region sample and crush sample after 15,000 psi.

Figure 10GSD analysis results for sand pack after exposure to the stress.

Figure 11GSD comparison of red region sample and sample after crush test (15,000 psi).

Fig. 10 shows that the GSD of the low stress region is slightly shifted toward smaller meshes; however,
the difference between the initial sand GSD and the low stress region GSD is not greater than 3 wt.% for
any mesh size measured. This fact indicates that the stress on the low stress region is below crushing stress
for the sand, which is usually 2,000 psi to 3,000 psi. Most of the crush occurs in the high stress region.
10 SPE-184823-MS

From the data presented in Fig. 11 it can be seen that the GSD of a consolidated pack is similar to the GSD
at 15,000 psi.
In the erosion tests performed with 30/50 and 20/40 mesh sand, the following was observed: 1) Negligible
to no sand production for fluid velocities 0.05 m/s and below; 2) only coarse particles (from 20 to 50 U.S.
mesh) are produced for velocities 0.05 m/s to 0.10 m/s; 3) no fines production for the velocities mentioned.
It can be concluded that on one hand, in the proppant pillar, subjected to axial compression, effective
stress decreases rapidly in the transition region from the pack center to its edge. While on the outer edge of
the pillar almost no stress is exerted on the pack, while several centimeters deeper, the effective stress can
reach substantial values. On the other hand, if the velocity of the fluid acting on the proppant pillar does not
reach certain values, sand production from the pack does not occur.

Cycling Stress
An erosion test with cycling stress was performed to investigate the stress impact on sample thickness
and erosion rate. Stress on the cell's operating area was 5,000 psi, which is approximately 8,000 psi on
the sample. Stress cycling was applied in two stages under different fluid linear velocity. The stress
differential on the sample during each cycle was approximately 2,500 psi.
Standard behavior of the sand was observed during the experiment: An initial erosion of approximately
20 wt.% of the sample at high fluid velocity followed by sample stabilization (decrease of erosion rate).
The tendency to stabilization was more pronounced at moderate and low fluid velocities, Fig. 12.

Figure 12Cumulative sand erosion.

Stress cycling did not have any notable effect on sample erosion, Fig. 13, and thickness, Fig. 14.
SPE-184823-MS 11

Figure 13Effect of stress on the sample erosion.

Figure 14Effect of stress on the sample thickness.

Stress cycling impact on the sample stability is negligible for the conditions tested. Fluid linear velocity
remains a dominant parameter affecting pack stability.

Conductivity Comparison
Conductivity test Procedures
Experiments were prepared in accordance with the standard procedures, which are based on ISO 13503-5
standards. The proppant pack was added into a 10-in.2 ISO conductivity cell. After assembling the cell,
1,000 psi of closure stress was applied to the cell as it was heated to the required temperature. After at least
12 hours at the required temperature and at 1,000 psi closure stress, the closure stress was increased to 2,000
psi at a rate of 100 psi/min. The permeability was measured at three different flow rates for all required
closure stresses from 2,000 psi to maximum closure stress with 2,000 psi increment.
12 SPE-184823-MS

Flow Channel Conductivity Loading Procedure

To test the impact of the heterogeneous proppant placement effect on pack conductivity, a special loading
procedure was designed. The sample was arranged as a set of proppant clusters separated with a proppant-
free area, Fig. 15. Proppant loading is 0.75 lb/ft2, which is contrary to a standard ISO conductivity test
loading of 2 lb/ft2.

Figure 15Proppant loading for a channel fracture conductivity test.

Conductivity Results of Conventional Pack Flow Channels

To establish a baseline a standard conductivity test was performed with HSP and ISO sand. In these tests,
ISO sand was used to achieve better consistency between standard and flow channel conductivity tests.
Samples of Badger Sand 20/40 and HSP 20/40 were placed in the form of irregular channels on Ohio core
material to simulate heterogeneous proppant placement in the fracture. Experimental results with Badger
Sand 20/40 and HSP 20/40 are shown in Fig. 16. The tests were done based on ISO 13503-5 standards.

Figure 16Conductivity results of irregular channels and conventional sand/proppant packs.

SPE-184823-MS 13

First and foremost, the conductivity experiments with flow channel loading (for both HSP and
sand) showed much higher conductivity than that for the conventional proppant pack, Fig. 16. Second,
conductivity for sand and HSP proppant packs in case of flow channel loading are comparable. Higher
conductivity of sand with flow channel loading, if compared to the HSP flow channel loaded pack, is
explained by a slightly thicker sand pack. The extra thickness of sand pack is attributed to the difference of
sand and HSP density and compaction properties. On one hand, sand occupies a larger volume at low stress
due to its lower density. On the other hand, with the stress increase sand becomes more compacted (less
porous). In general, the cumulative effect of these two factors can be mitigated by adjusting the concentration
of either sand or HSP. The purpose of the test was, however, to evaluate performance of equal concentration
of sand and HSP.

Case Study
The objective of Well-R was to place Saudi local sand in an unconventional formation characterized for high
fracture gradient: 1.05 psi/ft, using flow channel technology, and compare proppant placement, production
results and solids flow back against designs using ceramic proppant that are commonly used under these
stress conditions.

Fracture Design
Well-R is a horizontal well drilled to evaluate the "T" formation. The well was drilled and completed with
4,500 ft of lateral length and 16 fracture stages were designed with three clusters per stage. Plug and perf
technology was used to place and isolate the perforations.
A pilot hole was available to characterize the formation and used as a reference to build petrophysical
and geomechanic models. Lateral measurements along the lateral were available to compute reservoir and
completion quality indicators as seen in Fig. 17. Staging and perforations picks were performed using
an engineered approach vs. geometrical spacing. Perforation clusters were placed in the lateral based on
reservoir quality, low stress contrast, and fracture initiation between the clusters.

Figure 17Lateral hole.

14 SPE-184823-MS

Well placement was executed accurately with a maximum observed true vertical depth variation of 6 ft.
The lateral landed in two layers; Zone A1 stages 1-7 and Zone A2 stages 8-16 as seen in Fig. 18. Zone A1
is more ductile than Zone A2, however, Zone A2 is a higher stress rock.

Figure 18Cross-section.

A typical fracture design at this time used 260,000 lb of proppant utilizing 100% ceramic proppant
as a base case to compare the effectiveness of the flow channel fracture technology. Two flow channel
fracture design scenarios were applied using local sand and ceramic proppant. The two flow channel designs
developed used:
1. Flow channel using 185,000 lb of proppant, 70% local sand and 30% ceramic.
2. Flow channel using 185,000 lb of proppant, 100% ceramic.
Stages were developed in-group of three stages to ensure consistent geomechanical properties for
statistical comparison. Fracture stages 2, 3, 4, 8, 9 and 10, used flow channel with sand, stages 5, 6, 7, 11
and 12, used flow channel with ceramic. The remaining stages used a conventional fracture design.

Proppant Placement
The flow channel fracture design was designed with more aggressive proppant ramps; allocating 60% of
the total proppant volume using concentrations from 5 PPA to 7 PPA, in contrast, the conventional designs
allocated 40% using concentrations from 5 PPA to 6 PPA. Comparisons of the two proppant ramp designs
are shown in Fig. 19. The new aggressive proppant ramp allowed for stable channels resulting in 30%
improved fracture conductivity, Table 3.
SPE-184823-MS 15

Figure 19Proppant ramp comparison.

Table 3Fracture geometry model prediction.

Conventional Flow Channel

70% 30/50 ISP 70% 20/40 Local Sand

Units 30% 20/40 HSP 30% 20/40 HSP

Propped Half-Length ft 545 535

Channeled Length ft 476
Effective Conductivity mD-ft 875 1,144

Approximately 60% of the total proppant mass was allocated in the last proppant stages from 5 PPA to 7
PPA. The sand mesh was increased to 20/40 to ensure maximum fracture conductivity at the wellbore. These
changes raised concerns about the ability to effectively place the proppant and avoiding premature screen
out. Despite these concerns, all the stages were placed as per design, no proppant admittance issues were
observed. The authors believe the mechanics of deploying flow channel fractures; proppant pulsation and
supported transport with fibers eliminated the screen out tendency as expected with this fracture technology.
Figure 20 shows the placement summary per stage.

Figure 20Proppant volumes/concentration per stage.

16 SPE-184823-MS

Production Evaluation
Three methods were applied to compare the productivity of the local sand and ceramic treatments and
validate the applicability of local sand in this formation: 1) Production log ran after fracture cleanup,
approximately 27 days after the well was open. This provided direct measurements of early time production
per stage basis. 2) Chemical tracers, unique hydrocarbon-based tracers were added to each stage, samples
were taken during the entire initial flow back period (37 days). The well was shut-in for 87 days, and then
re-opened after installing a velocity string. New samples were taken after 6 days of the second flow back
period. Comparing the tracer amounts recovered allowed us to quantify the relative contribution of each
stage in the early time, and also after a long shut-in period to understand the stability of the channel in the
longer term. 3) The longer term production comparison (90 days) was with an offset well completed with
100% ceramic proppant. Despite it is not possible to quantify the individual stage contribution in the long-
term and providing the local sand stages make 40% of the stages completed in Well-R, similar cumulative
production would be an indication that the flow channel fractures have not deteriorated over time.
Flow contribution from Zone A1 stages 2 to 7 indicates comparable contribution from channel frac with
local sand and ceramic. Flow contribution from Zone A2 stages 8 to 16 indicates the channel flow with
sand is contributing better than with ceramics; however, the conventional fracture design is overall the best
during this early flow period. The higher flow rates could be due to favorable drawdown pressures at the
heel of the lateral, Fig. 21.

Figure 21PLT flow profile. Green local sand flow channel Blue ceramic flow channel Brown conventional ceramic.

Oil tracer data after 37 days of flow indicate the flow channel with sand is better than the flow channel
with ceramics in Zones A and B. Comparison of the local sand to the conventional design is comparable in
tracer recovery. Understanding the low oil tracer recovery in stages 5, 6 and 7, requires further flow data
to understand the low production rate, Fig. 22.

Figure 22Well-R stage contribution (oil tracers).

SPE-184823-MS 17

Flow contribution after a 90 day shut-in period indicates a similar profile to the flow after 37 days.
Contribution from stages 8 to 10, which were the flow channel with local sand, did not deteriorate due to
exposure to the high closure pressure. This is an indication the pillars did not fail and no crushed sand was
recovered during this late time flow period, Fig. 23.

Figure 23Stage contribution oil tracer after long shut-in period.

The offset well used to compare production is about 5 km apart from Well-R. The well was completed in
the same formation, with the same number of stages but used 100% ceramic proppant. After 110 days, the
cumulative production difference is only 2.7% as shown in Fig. 24. This observation provides confidence
that the stages placed with local sand have preserved the channel integrity over time.

Figure 24Cumulative oil production.

Conclusions
1. The flow-channel fracture technology along with local sand characterization and design workflows
evaluated in the lab have shown instrumental to mitigate production risks associated with using local
non-standard sands in high stress formations, such as fines migration product of proppant crushing,
and channel structure disruption as a result of pillar erosion and/or cycling loading.
2. Proppant ramp allowed for stable channels resulting in 30% improved fracture conductivity.
3. The flow-channel fracture technology with local sand did not fail during the two flow periods.
18 SPE-184823-MS

4. No appreciable flow back of sand or fines from the local sand.

5. No placement issues were observed with the aggressive ramp for the local sand was observed.
6. After 110 days the cumulative production difference is only 2.7% from an offset well.
7. The flow-channel flow fracture technology provides opportunity to use the lower strength local sand
in high stress environments.

Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the management of Saudi Aramco for permission to publish the paper and
to the operational personnel on location for successfully performing the fracture treatment.

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