Sakhalin-1 consortium member Rosneft has successfully completed drilling a well from Orlan platform at Chaivo field in the Sea of Okhotsk, Russia.
Stated to be the longest in the world, the length of the well with horizontal completion is 15,000m with directional drilling index (DDI) of 8.0 and a stepout of 14,129m.
Sakhalin-1 is one of the first large-scale offshore projects in Russia that comprises three offshore fields in Chaivo, Odoptu and Arkutun-Dagi.
Rosneft holds 20% interest in the project, while the remaining stake is with ExxonMobil (30%), SODECO (30%), and ONGC Videsh (20%).
Sakhalin-1 extended reach drilling programme used ‘Fast Drill’ technology that combines high-quality modelling of physical parameters along with a structured approach to well design to ensure faster drilling.
Extended reach drilling also reduces construction costs of associated offshore structures, pipelines, and other infrastructure facilities.
As it has a smaller drilling and production footprint, the environmental impact is also significantly reduced.
Chaivo is located towards the north-east from Sakhalin at water depths between 14m and 30m.
The water depth in the area of Orlan platform was 15m with the nearest shore being 5km away.
The platform was completed in July 2005 and drilling started in December that year. It comprises minimum structures for crude processing as all produced oil is transported to the Chaivo Onshore Processing Facility.
The Orlan steel and concrete structure is capable of withstanding ice and icepacks with the height of a six-storey building.
