HULK VORT-X De-sander In the Williston Basin

Summary

HULK partnered with a major Oil & Gas operator in the Williston Basin to provide technology to help prevent ESP failures as well as issues caused by sand fallback. This partnership is ongoing and began with three experimental wells that deployed the new VORT-X desander system. Since the trial period began, the operator has incorporated VORT-X into 27 of its wells in the Williston Basin. 

Background

Sand and other solids cause production issues, operational delays, and increased costs during the extraction process. Sand deposits that make it past desanding measures and into ESP (electrical submersible pump) equipment is corrosive and destructive, and can cause hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damage. 

This operator operates in areas plagued by solids entering their ESP system, causing costly damage and delays in production. These challenging wells had a known history of short runlife primarily due to excessive sand production. They needed a comprehensive solution to help protect their ESP equipment from damage due to sand fallback, so they called HULK. 

Solution

One way to prevent sand issues from causing failure, wear, and loss of efficiency is with desanding technology. HULK recently released its latest desanding product, the VORT-X . This innovative solution enables better runlife and optimizes ESP Performance by separating solids below the ESP. 

The VORT-X is the first desander designed for ESPs to accommodate different flow rates. It works by separating sand by throwing it downward into the tailpipe and preventing it from entering the ESP equipment. 

Results

Since the experimental VORT-X (3) installations were completed in December of 2022, this operator has installed a total of 27 in their wells in the Williston Basin. Of those 27, only two have been pulled within 60 days of being deployed due to mud-joints being filled in the time the product was downhole. This means the product performed as designed in a heavy sand environment, but there was simply too much solid material to continue the run. These desanders were pulled, flushed, and returned to HULK for refurbishment. The rest of the VORT-X installs are still downhole and operational.

This particular operator is employing the entire HULK product package, which means they are protecting their ESP system with HULK VORT-X, Centralizer, MLE, and Cross Collar. 

Interested in learning more about HULK VORT-X  equipment? Contact us.