Production Engineering - Analytical Principles of the Spacing of Oil and Gas Wells (With Discussion)

It is gratifying to observe the growing interest in the study of oil-well spacing. It should always be held in mind that the problem of optimum spacing is to obtain the maximum return of capital per acre drained. This naturally evolves.into a mathematical consideration. As mathematics is the basis of all science, an effort should be made to develop formulas which involve data obtainable in the early stages of development. The first information from a discovery well in a new field would be the character of the sand, rate of initial production of oil and gas, viscosity of the oil, rock pressure, etc. Later, from this well, if Herold's theories of hydraulic, volumetric and capillary controls are accepted, could he determined the ultimate production as without interference from drainage by subsequent well completions, and under which control the well is producing. If it should prove to be producing under capillary control, a rough estimate could be made of it's radius of drainage. With but one well, the radius of drainage, or the interference of drainage of individual wells by close spacing, would be estimated by comparison with similar conditions in other fields in which the development has progressed sufficiently to furnish the data. A second well that is spaced sufficiently close so that an interference can he observed after its ultimate production is estimated, will furnish data to develop a desirable spacing of wells which can be inaugurated for that area and which is capable of producing a uniform amount of oil under like conditions. In some fields this area will be extensive, in others each well location will require an individual study. In 1924, Cutlerl developed a scheme whereby he determined by tabulation a spacing of oil wells for the maximum return per acre. After a study of production in a number of fields, he developed the following as a tentative rule: "The ultimate production for wells of equal size in the same pool where there is interference (shown by a difference in the, production decline curves for different spacing) seems approximately to vary directly as the square roots of the areas drained by the wells. This rule may also he stated thus: The recovery from wells of equal size