LATERAL WELLBORE DRILLING IN WELL REPAIR, EMERGING COMPLICATIONS, AND MEASURES TO PREVENT THEM

A common technique that is used during well work over processes is sidetracking to achieve restoration of production and avoid damaged sections without drilling an additional well. The technique is applicable mostly in the mature oil and gas fields with the lower capital and operation costs. Meanwhile, sidetracking is linked to technical complexity and the high probability of complication. The most deviant issues arise when casing window milling and when building the initial trajectory and involve loss of directional control, instability of the wellbore, stuck tools and loss of drilling fluid. All these complications depend on the construction characteristics of wells, geology, and operational parameters chosen. The given paper examines common complications during the work of sidetracking and presents the summary of the preventive activities which are targeted on enhancing the reliability of operations, cutting down on the non-productive time and enhancing the efficiency of the well workover operations. Keywords: sidetracking, lateral wellbore, well workover, casing window milling, whipstock systems, directional drilling, drilling complications, wellbore instability, stuck pipe, drilling fluid losses, preventive measures, non-productive time.