Fit-For-Purpose Heavy-Duty Fishing Equipment Designed to Safely Retrieve a Damaged Wireline Cable from an Active, Sour Gas Well Located Offshore

Abstract

Wireline operations play a crucial role in the oil and gas industry, facilitating essential tasks like well maintenance, data collection, and intervention. These operations involve deploying substantial downhole tools and large cables into the wellbore, but this endeavor is not without its challenges. Particularly, when a wireline cable breaks downhole, it poses significant risks. Unplanned wireline breakages result in demanding heavy-duty fishing operations when they occur in challenging offshore environments and unfavorable downhole conditions. In this work, strategic planning and execution were applied in a complex e-line cable recovery in a live, sour gas well without the need for well kill operations. This undertaking necessitated a unique approach to safety and setup, starting with a thorough assessment of the challenging well conditions. A comprehensive fishing plan was then developed to embrace all potential scenarios. The operation involved the use of advanced heavy-duty fishing tools and solutions specifically designed to withstand the well conditions. The success of this endeavor is evident in the completion of two recovery operations, all resulting in the successful retrieval of the wire. This first achievement enables customers to restore wellbore access and proceed with their planned interventions. One of these operations involved recovering ~ 4000ft of 5/16in Eline cable and upper section of the fish using mechanical wireline and coiled tubing. While SPE-218323-MS (ICOTA A. Abouganem 2024) provides details about the first recovery, this paper aims to present a more comprehensive overview of the second recovery. Specifically, this recovery involved retrieving a 0.350-in Polymer encapsulated wireline cable using a 5/16-in Heavy Duty braided wireline cable within a 7-in. tubing., representing the first occurrence of such a cable recovery on a global scale. The paper delves into the specific techniques employed and the substantial effort and planning invested in successfully recovering this distinctive cable, recognized for its unique shape characterized by elevated breaking strength and rigidity. The distinct nature of this recovery necessitated the utilization of specialized tools and techniques for both latching and recovery.