Drilling Fluid Is Not A Cost

The fact is that in the period of tough sanctions, according to the needs, the domestic producers became very active and have had acceptable growth in the quantitative dimension. If we look at the qualitative dimension, it must be said that the services of drilling fluid companies, with a view of the mandatory conditions in those days, were good, and there has not been any great challenge that domestic companies fail to handle. However, after the arrival of foreign companies, a big challenge will appear in a way that in a competitive situation, high quality and reasonable prices will be very important. The issue is important in all services related to drilling, and drilling fluids are no exception to this fact. The effectiveness of the use of the drilling fluid services in the optimized drilling cannot be denied. While our attention to this issue has been dedicated just to meeting the needs, the special importance needed in optimized drilling for drilling fluids has not been available. The cost of drilling fluid in any well offshore or onshore is between 4 to 10 percent of the costs, but its effect on the quality of the drilling operation might be considered to be 50 percent. However, unfortunately, we are entangled in a false look, and companies’ managers sometimes even do not know the name of contracting drilling fluid companies. Senior managers are usually more occupied with the numbers and costs and do not pay much attention to the after-effects and the role of different sectors and services in the process. For example, if drilling a normal well at sea makes a cost of $ 35 million, the maximum cost of drilling fluid is about one million dollars; while it must be noted that drilling fluid has a great influence on drilling. If there is a shortage in this section, such as low quality of the desired drilling fluid, or even the delay due to the lack of access to substances, a lack of optimized fluid program causes an irreparable loss in well. However, if the right action is done, it will be very effective in the recovery of the well. With regard to the changes in the conditions in the near future, we will have to see where we are. For this purpose, after some checkups, the companies operating in the field should be rated. The ranking process of companies shows their technical positions, and also there will be a motivation for them to try to promote their rank. Moreover, the employer’s outlook on the drilling fluids tenders must change. For example, currently, sometimes tender documents are sent for10 wells, and only 4 days are given to return the documents. In this case, the collected documents are just a price list and, in fact, do not show the true cost of fluid. In these conditions, the lowest price

“Drilling fluid is a sensitive service and is much affected by other drilling services. If anything wrong occurs to the drilling fluid, it will be sensed completely, and this is a very high risk” in a bid wins, while no attention is paid by any of the contractors to the quality of the work. It must be noted that whether in the prices mentioned, the quality of job is equal, and whether engineering and planning are the same. While choosing the low price, well costs will not necessarily decrease because programming in the wrong way eventually leads to a waste of time and an increase in costs. Currently, there are some companies working in the drilling fluids and participating in bids which have never ever seen a drilling rig. While offering services is not merely selling substances, these services require engineering and planning. Drilling fluid is a sensitive service and is much affected by other drilling services. If anything wrong occurs to the drilling fluid, it will be sensed completely, and this is a very high risk. It must be noted that the plan of drilling fluid can not have a single version for all wells. Therefore, it is necessary that mineral and chemical producers and drilling fluid service companies improve the quality and continue their way with a systematic look. Altogether, requirements such as joining the WTO, presence in global markets, and competition with international companies necessitate the promotion of domestic power. For this purpose, in addition to the above-mentioned cases, in the QHSE sector, effective measures must be done concerning expert man power and the use of technology.

Author: Ali Sadraei