Description
Limited entry perforating has been around for over 50 years; however, its effectiveness has been limited in the horizontal revolution due to insufficient perforation friction relative to the variability in stress and near-wellbore tortuosity within a stage. It has been shown that the published trends correlating stage count to early life productivity throughout the shale revolution are fundamentally linked to the number of active fracture initiation points per stage. By driving significantly more active clusters per stage with eXtreme Limited Entry (XLE) completions in combination with High Density Perforating (HDP), it has become possible to reduce stage count without sacrificing performance. Confirmation of 12 or more active clusters, or fracture initiation points per stage, has been obtained with radioactive tracers and fiber optic diagnostics, and more importantly, has been validated through improved production relative to offset completions. The goal of this strategy is to consistently drive a high number of clusters per stage, ultimately increasing capital efficiency by right-sizing the cluster and stage count per well.