TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA QATAR Petroleum (QP) and Total have signed a research and technology project agreement on carbonates acid stimulation to increase hydrocarbon production in the country.

According to a press release issued recently, the project aims at addressing a major concern in carbonates oil and gas fields by improving significantly the efficiency of acid stimulation.

Hydrocarbons geological reservoirs are carbonates reservoirs in Qatar. These carbonates dissolve in acid. Thus, the main idea of this project is simple: injecting acid in wells dissolves a part of the rocks, thus improving the permeability of the reservoirs and hence the productivity of the producing wells, the release said.

The joint research between QP and Total will especially focus on highly permeability contrasted formations and at the same time, mitigate unwanted water production.

The Project inaugurates the general technical partnership established within the Technology Cooperation Framework Agreement signed between QP and Total in November 2011, the release said.

Chairman of QP Research and Technology Steering Committee Issa al Ghanim said, “QP and Total are very happy to team up together in their close-by research facilities located at QSTP. This project agreement reflects QP and Total desire to collaborate on activities where both companies share a close vision of future needs in Qatar. Their main goal, in this agreement, is to trigger innovative solutions to match future challenges in Acid Stimulation.” Stéphane Michel, managing director of Total E&P Qatar stressed the importance for Total of this first research and technology partnership. “By developing an innovative expertise and people’ skills, by improving the production of energy resources from existing fields and newly developed ones, this agreement is fully in line with Qatar National Vision 2030,” Michel added.

The two companies will work together, having a joint team in the domain of well acid stimulation in the Qatar Scientific and Technology Park (QSTP), an entity under the Qatar Foundation.

Qatar Petroleum, the stateowned petroleum company which looks after all oil and Gas activities in Qatar, has recently re-enforced its expertise in acid stimulation, via academic partnership.

Following this initial step, QP wanted to partner with a major industrial player, namely Total, having a large expertise in this domain. The main objectives of the partnership will focus on building up lab testing and research capacity in acid stimulation in Qatar, developing an innovative expertise and developing people’ skills, added the release.

Total has a long-term partnership with Qatar (Total operates 100 percent of the Al Khalij field) and has established a strong expertise in carbonates acid stimulation in the Middle East. Through Its participation in South-Pars and Dolphin developments in the last decade, Total has a track record in complex well acid stimulation.