Directional Drilling and Trajectory Design

Directional drilling may be considered the "intentional, controlled deflection of a wellbore to intersect pre-determined targets." In the early days when wooden derricks were erected so close that they touched each other, wellbores that were believed to be vertical occasionally intersected nearby wellbores, proving that the wells were in fact deviating from vertical. This was not directional drilling because this behavior was neither intentional nor controlled. Modern directional drilling is based on an understanding of the reservoir and how the wellbore should be constructed for its proper placement in the reservoir for optimum productivity.

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Target Audience

Technical staff, business professionals, technicians, analysts and other non-technical staff who are involved with but have limited experience with drilling operations.

You Will Learn

Participants will learn how to:

• Describe the objectives of directional drilling
• Recognize trajectory design options and selection criteria for given surface and downhole requirements
• Clarify trajectory measurement and wellbore position calculation techniques and limitations

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