ATHENS, TX WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff has finished drilling and completing five new horizontal natural gas storage wells near Athens, Texas for Atmos Pipeline - Texas, a division of Atmos Energy Corporation. 

WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff executed a task order to drill the new wells under an existing master services agreement. Services included engineering and construction management for installation of well infrastructure, mobilization of equipment, drilling operations, well completion and testing.

"We were working on a highly compressed schedule," noted Russell Bentley, Project Manager for WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff. "Drilling began in August of 2015 and proceeded steadily through the end of November, with two drilling rigs running simultaneously to allow us to deliver all five wells on time."

According to Bentley, the project presented significant technical challenges. "Since horizontal wells contact more of the geological formation, they typically provide greater product deliverability than vertical wells and are more efficient to operate," he explained. "However, they are technically more difficult to drill."

After achieving vertical depths of approximately 7,000 feet at each location, the project team needed to turn the wells 90-degrees and drill the lateral portions in an extremely tight two-foot thick natural gas zone. A geo-steering technique using logging-while-drilling (LWD) tools mounted at the bottom of the drill string allowed engineers to make technical decisions based on real-time information about subsurface conditions.

"Our drilling expertise enabled the timely delivery of this project, a critical element in support of our client's business operations," Bentley concluded.