Baker Hughes subsidiary Baker Hughes Oilfield Operations has successfully deployed the Hughes Christensen Kymera hybrid drill bit for Statoil in order to improve ROP and drilling performance in an appraisal well in the deepwater Logan field. This was the first time a large-diameter Kymera bit was run in the Gulf of Mexico.

 

A 26-in. Kymera hybrid bit with 19 mm cutters and metal face seals was used to drill the 26-in. vertical section through sediments and salt to section TD, enabling 22-in. casing to be set 450 ft deeper than the well’s original objective.

 

Statoil selected Kymera bit and 26-in. AutoTrak X-treme rotary-steerable drilling system with CoPilot real-time drilling optimization and OnTrak MWD services in an attempt to improve drilling performance over what has been achieved by large PDC bits used in offset wells.

 

By utilizing Kymera technology, Statoil was able to overcome torque and vibration limitations and achieve an ROP of 57 ft/hr through 1,995 ft of salt, as well as 123 ft/hr through 1,131 ft of sediments. Overall, the ROP was improved by 26% compared to the nearest offset. The Kymera hybrid bit design combines PDC and roller cone bit technologies.

 

Baker Hughes is a leading supplier of oilfield services, products, technology and systems to the worldwide oil and natural gas industry. The company’s 58,000-plus employees today work in more than 80 countries helping customers find, evaluate, drill, produce, transport and process hydrocarbon resources.