Recommended Practice for Well Control Operations

API RECOMMENDED PRACTICE 59 SECOND EDITION, MAY 2006

REAFFIRMED, DECEMBER 2018

Recommended Practice for Well Control Operations

Upstream Segment

API RECOMMENDED PRACTICE 59 SECOND EDITION, MAY 2006

REAFFIRMED, JANUARY 2012

SPECIAL NOTES

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API publications are published to facilitate the broad availability of proven, sound engineer- ing and operating practices. These publications are not intended to obviate the need for applying sound engineering judgment regarding when and where these publications should be utilized. The formulation and publication of API publications is not intended in any way to inhibit anyone from using any other practices.

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Copyright © 2006 American Petroleum Institute

FOREWORD

This publicaiton is under jurisdiction of the American Petroleum Institute, Upstream Depart- ment’s Executive Committee on Drilling and Production Operations.

Drilling and well service unit (production well service, well workover, well completion, and plug and abandonment) operations are being conducted with full regard for personnel safety, public safety, and preservation of the environment in such diverse conditions as metropolitan sites, wilderness areas, ocean platforms, deepwater sites, barren deserts, wildlife refuges, and arctic ice packs. Recommendations presented in this publication are based on extensive and wide-ranging industry experience.

The goal of this voluntary recommended practice is to assist the oil and gas industry in pro- moting personnel and public safety, integrity of the drilling and well service equipment, and preservation of the environment for land and marine drilling and well service operations. This recommended practice is published to facilitate the broad availability of proven, sound engineering and operating practices. This publication does not present all of the operating practices that can be employed to successfully install and operate well control systems in drilling and well service operations. Nor does this publication imply that all of the practices herein are applicable to all drilling and well service operations. Drilling and well service operations throughout the world vary widely and take place under a wide range of downhole and surface conditions. Practices at one operation will not necessarily be required at a similar operation due to different conditions. Practices set forth herein are considered acceptable for accomplishing the job as described; equivalent alternative installations and practices may be utilized to accomplish the same objectives. Individuals and organizations using these recom- mended practices are cautioned that operations must comply with requirements of national, state, or local regulations. These requirements should be reviewed to determine whether vio- lations may occur.

Users of recommendations set forth herein are reminded that constantly developing technol- ogy and specialized or limited operations do not permit complete coverage of all operations and alternatives. Recommendations presented herein are not intended to inhibit developing technology and equipment improvements or improved operational procedures. These rec- ommended practices are not intended to obviate the need for qualified engineering and oper- ations analyses and sound judgments as to when and where these recommended practices should be utilized to fit a specific drilling application.

This publication includes use of the verbs shall and should, whichever is deemed most appli- cable for the specific situation. For the purposes of this publication, the following definitions are applicable:

Shall—Indicates that the recommended practice(s) has universal applicability to that specific activity.

Should—Denotes a recommended practice(s) a) where a safe comparable alternative prac- tice(s) is available; b) that may be impractical under certain circumstances; or c) that may be unnecessary under certain circumstances or applications.

Changes in the uses of these verbs are not to be effected without risk of changing the intent of recommendations set forth herein.

Nothing contained in any API publication is to be construed as granting any right, by impli- cation or otherwise, for the manufacture, sale, or use of any method, apparatus, or product covered by letters patent. Neither should anything contained in the publication be construed as insuring anyone against liability for infringement of letters patent.

This document was produced under API standardization procedures that ensure appropriate notification and participation in the developmental process and is designated as an API stan-

dard. Questions concerning the interpretation of the content of this publication or comments and questions concerning the procedures under which this publication was developed should be directed in writing to the Director of Standards, American Petroleum Institute, 1220 L Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20005. Requests for permission to reproduce or translate all or any part of the material published herein should also be addressed to the director.

Generally, API standards are reviewed and revised, reaffirmed, or withdrawn at least every five years. A one-time extension of up to two years may be added to this review cycle. Status of the publication can be ascertained from the API Standards Department, telephone (202) 682-8000. A catalog of API publications and materials is published annually and updated quarterly by API, 1220 L Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20005.

Suggested revisions are invited and should be submitted to the Standards and Publications Department, API, 1220 L Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005, standards@api.org.

1. SCOPE 1

   1. Purpose 1

   2. BOP Installations 1

   3. Operations 1

   4. Furthering the Understanding of Well Control 1

   5. Deepwater 1

2. REFERENCES 1

   1. Standards 1

   2. Other References 2

3. GLOSSARY FOR WELL CONTROL OPERATIONS 2

   1. Definitions 2

   2. Acronyms and Abbreviations 6

4. PRINCIPLES OF WELL CONTROL 6

   1. General 6

   2. Conventions 6

   3. Primary Well Control 7

   4. The Flowing Well 7

   5. Drilling or Workover Fluid 9

   6. Influx Behavior 10

   7. Formation Integrity Tests 10

   8. Well Control Pressures 11

   9. Well Close-in Procedures 14

   10. Methods For Circulating Kicks At Constant Bottom-Hole Pressure 15

   11. Non-Circulation Kill Methods 23

   12. Comparison of Kill Methods 25

   13. Choke Line Pressure—Subsea Stacks 26

   14. Diverter Systems Applications 31

   15. Well Control Worksheets 31

5. CAUSES OF KICKS 32

   1. Conditions Necessary for a Kick 32

   2. Insufficient Hydrostatic Pressure 32

   3. Drilling Into an Adjacent Well 33

6. WELL CONTROL WARNING SIGNALS 33

   1. General 33

   2. Gain in Pit Volume 33

   3. Increased Flow from Annulus 33

   4. Volume of Drilling Fluid to Keep the Hole Full on a Trip is Less

      Than Calculated or Less Than Trip Book Record 33

   5. Sudden Increase in Bit Penetration Rate 34

   6. Change in Pump Speed or Pressure 34

   7. Flow After Pumps Stopped 34

   8. Gas-cut Drilling Fluid 34

   9. Liquid-cut Drilling Fluid 35

      v

      
      

7. WELL PLANNING 35

   1. Introduction 35

   2. Data Availability and Gathering 35

   3. Shallow Flows 36

   4. Casing 37

   5. Cementing 37

   6. Blowout Prevention Equipment Selection 37

   7. Drilling Fluid 38

   8. Service Operations 38

   9. Kick Response Plans 39

   10. Riser Disconnect 39

   11. Simultaneous Operations 39

   12. Logistics 39

   13. Safety and Medical 40

   14. Communication 40

   15. Training and Instruction 40

8. WELL CONTROL PROCEDURES FOR SURFACE DIVERTER

   INSTALLATIONS 41

   1. Purpose 41

   2. Installation of Equipment 41

   3. Diverter Operation 41

   4. Diverter Stripping Operations 42

9. CONTROL PROCEDURES—SURFACE BOPS 42

   1. Pre-kick Planning 42

   2. Well Control Procedures 43

   3. Drill String Off-bottom 44

   4. High-Angle and Horizontal Well Bores 45

   5. Reference Notes For Section 9 45

10. WELL CONTROL PROCEDURES FOR SUBSEA BOPS 46

    1. General 46

    2. Additional Causes of Kicks Unique to Subsea Operations 46

    3. Subsea Exceptions to Control Procedures 46

    4. Special Subsea Procedures 47

11. WELL CONTROL PROCEDURES—RECOMMENDED RIG PRACTICES 48

    1. Well Control System Equipment Installation 48

    2. Well Control Equipment Installation Test 49

    3. Crew Drills 49

    4. Trip Tanks 50

    5. Gas-Cut Drilling Fluid 50

    6. Trip Book 50

    7. Pre-Kick Information 52

    8. Minimize Time Out of the Hole 52

    9. Trip Margin 52

    10. Short Trip 52

    11. Rig Practices for Handling Pressure 54

        
        

    12. Rig Practices for Pipe Handling 54

    13. Drill Stem Tests 54

12. PROCEDURES FOR DEALING WITH SPECIAL PROBLEMS 54

    1. Introduction 54

    2. Pump Failure in a Kick Situation 55

    3. Excessive Casing Pressure 55

    4. Pipe Problems with a Well Kick. 56

    5. Procedures for Gas Bubble Migration 59

    6. Gas Influx In Cemented Annulus 59

    7. Drill Stem Testing 60

    8. Stripping Procedures 60

    9. Bullheading and Top Kill Methods 61

13. SLURRIES AND PLUGS TO DEAL WITH LOST CIRCULATION AND UNDERGROUND BLOWOUTS 61

    1. Introduction 61

    2. Lost Circulation 61

    3. Underground Blowouts 61

    4. Barite Plugs 62

    5. Squeeze Slurries 64

APPENDIX A KICK PRESSURE AND GRADIENT CALCULATIONS 67

APPENDIX B WELL CONTROL WORKSHEETS 77

Figures

1. Example of Primary Well Control Conditions 7

2. Well Performance 8

3. Equipment Performance Relationship 8

4. Equipment & Well Performance Curves 8

5. Dynamic Kil 8

6. Static Well Kick Pressures 12

7. Equivalent Circulating Density 13

8. Well Closed-In on a Kick 14

9. Closed-In Drill Pipe Pressure 14

10. Gas Influx Migrating Up The Hole. 15

11. Stabilized Pumping of A Kick 17

12. Casing Pressure And Gas Volume Resulting From Using The Driller’s Method . 19

13. Casing Pressure and Gas Volume Using the Driller’s Method 20

14. Drill Pipe Pressure Schedule for the Wait and Weight Method 21

15. Typical Casing Pressure Resulting from Using Wait and Weight Method 22

16. Drill Pipe Pressure Schedule-Concurrent Method 24

17. Typical Casing Pressure Resulting From Using Concurrent Method 25

18. Example Of Approximate Casing Pressures With Different Kill Methods 27

19. Pressure Loss versus Flow Rate 28

20. Pressure Loss through Choke Line and Manifold With Choke Full Open 29

11.1 Loss of Effective Drilling Fluid Density Due to Gas Cut 51

1. Weight of a Gas Kick, 0.6 Gravity Gas 69

2. Maximum Surface Pressure of A Zero Intensity Gas Kick 70

   
   

3. Factor for Determining the Maximum Surface or Casing Shoe Pressure

while Killing a Gas Kick with a Constant Bottom-Hole Pressure Method 71

Tables

11.1 Example Form from a Trip Book 53

12.1 Indicators of Possible Problems while Circulating Out a Kick 57

1. Barite Slurry Formulations 62

2. Slurry Volumes 63

3. Barite Required (API Barite Specific Gravity = 4.20) 63

4. Diesel Oil-Bentonite Drilling Fluid Reactive Slurries 63

5. Trial Mixing Ratios for Reactive Slurry Mixtures 65

6. Materials Quantities for Mixing One Barrel of HWL-HS Cement Slurry 66

Recommended Practice for Well Control Operations

1. Scope

   1. PURPOSE

      The purpose of these recommended practices is to provide information that can serve as a voluntary industry guide for safe well control operations. This publication is designed to serve as a direct field aid in well control and as a technical source for teaching well control principles. This publication establishes recommended operations to retain pressure con- trol of the well under pre-kick conditions and recommended practices to be utilized during a kick. It serves as a companion to API RP 53, Recommended Practice for Blowout Preven- tion Equipment Systems for Drilling Wells and API RP 64 Recommended Practice for Diverter Systems Equipment and Operations (reader should check for the latest edition). RP 53 establishes recommended practices for the installation and testing of equipment for the anticipated well conditions and service and RP 64 establishes recommended practices for installation, testing, and operation of diverters systems and discusses the special circumstances of uncontrolled flow from shallow gas formations.

      
      

   2. BOP INSTALLATIONS

      The recommended practices are separated into two main systems:

      1. Blowout preventers (BOPs) at the surface within reach and sight of the driller or well service unit operator, and

      2. BOPs installed on the seafloor with relatively long choke and kill lines.

         In this publication, sections have been prepared to establish practices and procedures pertaining to both surface BOP installations and subsea BOP installations. The delineation between surface BOP installations and subsea BOP installa- tions is mainly on an exception basis, and the recommenda- tions made for surface installations apply to subsea installations unless exceptions are stated. The recommended practices can apply to drilling, well service unit, and coiled tubing unit operations. The fundamentals of well flow and well control are the same.

         
         

   3. OPERATIONS

      This publication was developed to enhance well control by proper planning and execution and thus avoid a kick. The publication also deals with the eventuality that a well kick may occur and presents details for handling such a kick using basic control methods. Details of these basic control methods are presented for both surface and subsea BOP stack installa- tions. Suggested considerations and modifications to the basic control methods, which may be dictated by special problems or well conditions, are also covered. Recommended

      1

      
      

      well control worksheets for surface and subsea BOP installa- tions are included in Appendix B. Instructions are included for completing and use of the well control worksheets. Rec- ommended practices set forth in this publication are consid- ered adequate to meet specified well conditions. It is recognized that there are alternate procedures that can be uti- lized in well control that may be equally as effective in meet- ing the well requirements and promoting safety and efficiency.

      
      

   4. FURTHERING THE UNDERSTANDING OF WELL CONTROL

      Details of well control technology and reasons for the rec- ommended procedures are included in Section 4, “Principles of Well Control.” Section 4 was prepared so it can be used as a technical base for instructing personnel in well control oper- ations. Appendix A contains several special pressure and pressure gradient calculations and examples to further emphasize the techniques and calculations that can aid a well control supervisor in understanding well control operations.

      
      

   5. DEEPWATER

      The International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) has published guidelines for planning and drilling deepwater wells, IADC Deepwater Well Control Guidelines, 1998 Edition. The reader is referred to that document for more complete coverage of deepwater well control.

      
      

2. References

   
   

   1. STANDARDS

The following standards contain provisions, which through reference in this text, constitute provisions of this standard. All standards are subject to revision and users are encouraged to investigate the possibility of applying the most recent edi- tions of the standards indicated below:

API

Spec 6A Wellhead and Christmas Tree Equipment

RP 5C1 Recommended Practice for Care and Use of Casing and Tubing

RP 5C7 Recommended Practice for Coiled Tubing Operations in Oil and Gas Well Services

RP 7G Drill Stem Design and Operating Limits

RP 10B Recommended Practice for Testing Well Cements

RP 13D Rheology and Hydraulics of Oil-Well Drilling Fluids

RP 13B-1 Standard Procedure for Field Testing Water-based Drilling Fluids