“There was a lack of any proper training in the operations of a ‘sour’ gas field which


we found readings to be up to and over one per cent H2S which was alarming and became one of the priorities to address. H2S trainers were brought from Canada and everyone was given a PITS (Petroleum Industry Training Service) certified H2S course. Gas monitoring equipment, breathing equipment and breathing air trailers were brought from Canada,”said Stang.“Albanian safety personnel were sent to Global Training in Strathmore for proper safety training and this made it possible to ensure that all national personnel would continue to receive proper H2S training.” From 2004 to 2008, BPAL raised oil production from 400 barrels per day to 6,000


barrels per day by reactivation of existing Albpetrol wells using rotating artificial lift technology, or a ‘screw pump.’ A reactivation consisted of the removal of all surface equipment, and cleaning up of sludge, oil and contaminated soil off of the location. Building a road and a loca- tion pad to hold service rigs and tanks was done next. Once the location was finished, a service rig came on and pulled all old downhole equipment.A new North American wellhead was installed and then a proper down- hole well clean out was done to the well. A new screw pump, tubing, rods and rotat- ing top drive was then installed. In 2008, BPAL began drilling horizontal wells for the first time in Albanian history, drilling 600 horizontal wells by 2016.This drastically changed the future outlook of the field due to the success rate. The biggest difference between these wells and Lloydminster wells was the drilled depth of over 1,600 meters versus 800 meters depth or less of a Lloydminster well. “This presented a hurdle due to the fact that at that time progressive cavity pumps


had lift limitations of about 1,000 meters,”said Stang. BPAL did eventually increase the oil production to over 20,000 BPD by 2016


throughout reactivation of existing Albpetrol wells and the drilling of horizontals which accounts for 80 per cent of total oil production. “I was and still am very grateful for the opportunities that were presented to me


over the time I spent in Albania. It was a very daunting task when we approached it, but also one of the most rewarding of my career,”said Stang.“We were able to trans- form a field that was in modern day, operating on 1930’s Canadian standards and technology, and bring it up to meet and exceed the expectations of today’s operating models. In the matter of 10 years, BPAL transformed the landscape, environment and lives of many in Albania forever.”


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insight magazine november 2019 - 17


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