Northern Colorado #003

Head-to-Head Frac Plug Comparison in Northern Colorado

Challenge

An operator in Northern Colorado’s Rocky Mountain region wanted to move from using a conventional plug design to one that was more efficient and would address the following:

• Reduce plug presets
• Reduce fluid usage getting plug-and-perf gun strings downhole
• Reduce excessive material on drillout (common to longer plugs)

Recommendation

WellBoss proposed using the Boss Hog® ball-drop frac plug system with several risk- and cost-reducing features, including:

• One-piece composite top slip constructed to avoid breakage and presets constructed of carbide-free and ceramic-free mild steel buttons that hold firm, prevent casing damage, and drill out easier than competitor plugs.
• The HELISEAL® fluid control system captures fluid while the plug is pumped down, enabling plugs to be run at speeds up to 900 ft/min while pumping at just 8 bbl/min, even in long lateral sections. Boss Hog plugs use 40% less water to deploy plugs and perforating guns than competitive plug designs.
• The one-piece lower slip, manufactured from a proprietary cast blend, holds more than 15,000 psi pressure, is segmented to make it easy and quick to drill out with minimal casing damage, and prevents presets.

Results

• 40% reduction in pumpdown fluid volume
• 50% faster plug deployment than the competition
• 12-hour completion time and pumpdown fluid reduction translating into $180,000 savings for the operator

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