The Pierce Field, Blocks 23/22a, 23/27, UK North Sea

Abstract

Abstract The Pierce Field contains oil and gas in Palaeocene Forties Sand and fractured Chalk, draped around the flanks of a pair of Central Graben salt diapirs. Whilst the two diapirs constitute a single field containing over 387 MMSTB AND 125 BCF, it took almost 25 years, and several advances in seismic, drilling and production technology, for the field to be brought into production. Many appraisal wells were drilled on the field. Data from these wells were interpreted to suggest the field was highly segmented both in terms of petroleum distribution and pressure variance. On the basis of this interpretation an economic development required a floating production system with long reach horizontal wells to penetrate the many reservoir segments. The results of development drilling have indicated that few pressure seals exist within the field, with concentric faults being more likely to seal than radial faults. The various reservoir pressures and oil-water contacts have been re-interpreted as a single, highly tilted oil-water contact, facilitated by the location of the field in the low permeability toe of the Forties submarine fan, a major conduit for the transport of basinal fluids away from the deep Central Graben Palaeocene reservoir depositional patterns closely resemble those predicted by analogue models. The greatest reservoir thickness and net/gross are located in areas of flow velocity reduction (depletive flow), on the 'lee' side of the diapirs, but porosity and permeability are optimized in areas of increased flow velocity (accumulative flow), towards the crests of the diapirs Strontium residual salt analysis has been used to study the charge history of the field. Interpretation suggests that South Pierce was filled before North Pierce, from a local Upper Jurassic source kitchen. Oil and gas subsequently spilled into North Pierce to form a composite trap with a single, tilted oil-water contact. The South Pierce gas cap has since been breached, and the escape of gas is currently leading to the retreat of the tilted water contact, once again isolating the two diapir structures