{"id":840,"date":"2012-08-20T21:47:12","date_gmt":"2012-08-21T02:47:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ericsiegmund.com\/gazette\/2012\/08\/20\/120820-directionaldrilling\/"},"modified":"2022-03-10T18:38:20","modified_gmt":"2022-03-11T00:38:20","slug":"120820-directionaldrilling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ericsiegmund.com\/fireant\/2012\/08\/20\/120820-directionaldrilling\/","title":{"rendered":"Somebody’s got some ‘splainin’ to do…"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’m taking a directional drilling class at the PPDC<\/a> this week, and it’s pretty darned interesting. It’s very basic – precisely what an accountant-turned-drilling analyst needs – but also quite relevant. We’re drilling almost nothing but horizontal wells, as are many other operators in the Permian Basin, and while I’m not remotely involved in the planning or actual drilling of any of those wells, I still need to understand the processes, terminology, and challenges.<\/p>\n

Not all of my six or so regular readers probably know a lot about directional drilling, so here’s a quick primer. Advances in technology have allowed us to drill oil and gas wells straight down a couple of miles, at which point we can turn and aim the wellbore in any direction we wish, and drill out another mile (at least). Drillers can hit a target the size of a basketball by aiming three miles of wiggly steel pipe pushing a diamond-encrusted bit through rock in incredible temperatures and pressures. And hardly anything ever goes wrong, as this video demonstrates:<\/p>\n