During the project, Shell developed a shared HSE vision with Chinese contractors that resulted in open communication and only four minor lost time incidents in the first three years of drilling and development.

The oil and gas industry touches many facets of life but its large impact on the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing had escaped me. That is, until I got my latest copy of E&P Technology published by Shell Exploration and Production.

Shell China E&P is overseeing the development of the Changbei gas field in the hostile environment of China’s Gobi desert, at an elevation of nearly 4,000 feet and with temperatures ranging from -45 degrees F to more than +120 degrees F. It would be a development to test anyone’s patience and skills. Put on top of that the fact that the project faced a non-negotiable deadline to deliver gas (an additional source of clean energy so necessary to reduce the overbearing smog) to Beijing, some 435 miles to the east, in time for the 2008 Olympic Games and the task became daunting.

PetroChina began exploring the area in 1991. Production began in 1995. However, production volumes were small due to a combination of poor permeability and vertical wells. Shell brought single and dual horizontal legs of up to 6,500 ft (a technology Shell calls “snake wells”) to the field. The wells were drilled from 20 clusters of up to three wells apiece. Using this technology brought field production to 53 billion cubic ft last year. The field should reach its annual productive capacity of 106 billion cubic ft this year.

During the project, Shell developed a shared HSE vision with Chinese contractors that resulted in open communication and only four minor lost time incidents in the first three years of drilling and development. Combined with the contribution to better atmospheric conditions in Beijing, Olympic games or not, the development is a significant achievement for Shell and PetroChina.