DL Luncheon: Operational Excellence: How to Increase Profits at Any Oil Price

The presentation examines how bottomhole assembly (BHA) design can change gas fraction, solids concentration, and pressure and velocity conditions at the pump intake—conditions that surface adjustments such as pumping speed, stroke length, and pump-off controls cannot change. It analyzes a six-year dataset of Bakken rod-pump wells, treating the BHA as a single hydraulic system rather than evaluating components individually. The comparison covers a conventional arrangement, where the tubing anchor restricts flow through the remaining casing annulus, and a flow-through arrangement that routes flow past the anchor using ported subs. The described design provides parallel internal and external flow paths for gas and liquid, with a higher-velocity solids section below the degassing section. For the evaluated configuration in 7-inch casing, the effective open area is 18.45 square inches, compared with 5.41 square inches for a conventional full-bore anchor; the source reports approximately 70% lower local superficial velocity. A six-year paired evaluation of more than 1,200 Williston rod-pumped wells found median fluid and gas increases of 17.5% and 23.3% among wells adopting the geometry, compared with same-configuration controls. The presentation also addresses where the response is most consistent—below approximately 300 BFPD—and the economics of making the change during a scheduled workover.

Examines how casing design has evolved from early load-case frameworks and why traditional tubular stress analysis can fall short in complex wells. Topics include HPHT wells, extended-reach drilling, multistage-fractured unconventionals, subsea wells with sealed annuli and trapped-annular risk, CO₂ injection for carbon capture and storage, and super-hot geothermal wells. The presentation addresses how incomplete or oversimplified pressure, temperature, and load descriptions contribute to tubular failures; the role of rigorous load cases in consistent design; and engineering judgment, model selection, and improved load modeling across well lifecycles.

Examines the potential for enhanced oil recovery in unconventional reservoirs, including Huff & Puff methods using gas, surfactants, y-grade, and gas-surfactant co-injection. Covers a “Stacked Mechanism” approach to improving recovery and the emerging “Frac Flood” concept, which repeats injection cycles across multiple wells. Compares the economics of these methods and discusses artificial-lift requirements for repeated injection and production cycles.

The lecture examines how zone permeability, fluid content, formation pressure—including reservoir recharge prediction—and caprock integrity inform subsurface isolation requirements and abandonment barrier placement. It addresses technical and operational challenges of well abandonment, including defining key isolation parameters when data is limited, what happens when an abandonment plan proves unworkable in practice, and cost implications and optimization opportunities. Case studies demonstrate collaboration between subsurface specialists, well engineers, and operators to develop a robust subsurface basis of design for abandonment. The presentation covers effective decision-making, risk-mitigation strategies, the benefits of engaging a subsurface team throughout the project, and a data-driven, risk-based approach to well decommissioning.

The biennial symposium focuses on proven and emerging technologies for oil and natural gas development and production. Technical papers address commercially viable solutions to drilling, completion, and production engineering challenges. The 2027 theme, “Fueling the Future,” examines the industry’s role in providing low-cost, reliable energy as energy sources diversify. The program also includes events supporting a lower-carbon future, with goals of improving well and program economics, extending commercial success, and addressing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations.

The peer-led program is designed for terminal operators and focuses on health and safety topics affecting terminal operations. Presentations use firsthand operating experiences to discuss incidents, responses, and lessons learned. Sessions address Colonial Pipeline’s “Stuff That Kills You” model for high-energy risks in hazardous work environments; ITC’s cultural, engineering, and reliability changes following the Deer Park fire, including API 653, risk-based inspection, preventive and predictive maintenance; and electrical heat-tracing hazards on movable piping, including design, inspection, testing, and preventive maintenance. Other topics include flammable refrigerants used with LPG, LNG, and specialty chemicals; emergency response and causes of a product spill; corrective actions following an unintended gasoline release during pig retrieval; systems thinking and human performance in terminal-to-barge personnel transfers; and task-focused local plant safety meetings. The program also covers investigation of a leaking aboveground storage tank, including leak identification, nondestructive inspections, and destructive testing. Registration is limited to terminal member companies.

Sessions address oilfield insurance, the federal outlook for upstream oil and gas, the 90th Texas Legislative Session, legal issues relating to “0000b/c,” and a skeptical view of the energy transition. A state and federal affairs panel covers the 2026 election results. The program also includes a keynote address from John Calce, Chairman, Founder, and CEO of America First Refining.

The technical program covers pipeline integrity management, in-line inspection (ILI), engineering assessments, geohazards, crack and dent assessment, seam-weld threats, repairs, and hydrogen transportation. Plenary topics include operator guidelines and specifications, technical knowledge management, assessing existing pipelines for hydrogen service, selective seam-weld corrosion, and PHMSA MAOP reconfirmation requirements. Parallel technical tracks address landslide monitoring and pipeline strain; crack characterization and management; ILI applications, analysis, and verification; hard spots; dent assessment; engineering assessment; hydrogen transportation; integrity management; difficult-to-inspect pipelines; materials verification; and repair technologies. Presentations include work on ILI run comparisons, risk-informed assessment choices under the PHMSA Gas Mega Rule, dent engineering critical assessment, non-intrusive pipeline assessment, material testing, and repair qualification. A panel addresses PHMSA repair criteria for hazardous-liquid and gas-transmission pipelines.

The workshop focuses on practical well integrity solutions across barrier design, remediation, qualification, and lifecycle risk management, emphasizing applications, new technologies, and process methodologies. Field lessons, technical perspectives, and interactive discussion connect engineering principles with real-world deployment challenges. Session topics include cement as a barrier, including establishing cement barriers in a complex onshore U.S. exploration well with a narrow pore-pressure/fracture-gradient window, cementing best practices, and wellbore cementing. Another session covers production-casing integrity risk management, detecting fluid- and cement-driven casing defects through the production life cycle, and artificial-lift decisions under wellbore constraints. An interactive case study has teams solve well integrity challenges and exchange lessons learned and best practices. Further topics include barrier qualification and P&A operations; rigless well integrity remediation; surveillance technology; integrated monitoring for CCS well integrity; corrosion and materials challenges in CCUS Class VI wells; thermal heavy-oil well design; quantitative risk analysis; DHSV strategies in subsea wells; FEP risk assessment using individual barrier evaluation; alternative barrier materials for conventional Australian well abandonments; Permian well integrity solutions; and sealants for flow through narrow pathways.