All Blog Posts (125)

On May 13, 2013, I had a long chat in the Galleria-area office of Charlie Williams, the executive director of the Center for Offshore Safety (whose earlier career had been with Shell). One of the topics that we discussed was whether or not the case could be made that there is a distinct safety culture that applies to offshore drilling, and another safety culture that applies to offshore production.

This distinction was raised at a session of OTC 2013 by Ian Sutton, a panelist,…

Dear members,may i know please how to calculate washout %?if actual annular volume is 786 bbls and guage hole volume is 796 bbls.Thanks"

Read more: http://www.drillingahead.com/profile/Hashimali#ixzz2Q3QeUsck

recently I came across a question where I needed to calculate the capacity  of a pipe for which I had just od and weight. I normally use the simple formula that is id2 -od2 divided by 1029.4

this works for annular  capacity.

the same thing works for pipe capacity as id2/1029.4 if just pipe capacity is required but what if I don't have an id and just weight lb/ft.any one have any ideas?

thanks and regards

Feb. 8th, 2013

In the course of my fishing duties, up here in the Bakken, I have run into a problem that is…

Jan 22, 2013

I sit here today, writing this, and hiding out from a cold snap that will get anyone’s attention. It is 31 below zero.  I feel like Boris Pasternak writing Dr. Zhivago.

As a Texas hand working up here for 2 years now, I have had to make some adjustments to my lifestyle to live and work in…

If criminal negligence includes the notion of "failure to act," then the failures to act by managers onboard the Deepwater Horizon who were BP's contractors (Transocean, Halliburton and others) should also be subject to criminal prosecution. "I didn't make the final decision" should not be a defense, as everyone who did not object (and loudly) to proceeding in the face of two failed well integrity tests is complicit.

My article (linked below) discusses the safety audit on the…

Nov. 16th

Many of you might have noticed Chesapeake Energy Corporation in the news lately as investors have asked that Chesapeake CEO Aubrey McClendon step down under allegations of corporate misconduct. It seems investors found improprieties with McClendon selling Chesapeake…

Oilfield Safety

Americans like to drive – craving independence and freedom. A vehicle and the open road provide endless possibilities to a society built around freedom of choice.  Motor vehicles require oil to operate…

The Obama administration has in fact halted drilling permits on federal lands.



Unbeknownst to most folks outside the industry, President Obama's response had entirely NOTHING to to do with Gov. Romney's line of questioning about the Obama administration's intentional log-jamming of drilling PERMITS on federal lands.…

Just heard that Leonard Roe of the Drillers Club passed away on the 31st July 2012.

Another well known Oilfield Person has 'faded away'.

ALL CONDOLENCES to family and friends

Mud motor failure downhole may be happened from time to time. The questions that are usually raised are things like “How do I know if the mud motor fails down hole?” and “What indications will I see that this has happened?” etc. Due to this, I would like to share my personal experience regarding mud motor failure and its symptoms.…

Drilling waste minimization is a method to reduce any waste generated from drilling operation. The ideal goal of it is to generate zero residue requiring final disposals. People have developed technologies for two main reasons which are project cost reduction and environmental protection.

Typically, the drilling waste minimization starts with reducing amount of drilling waste, recycling and recovering waste…

I've been working on fabricating a bulk barite mixer, looking for any advice. 5000 bbl system W/1350 bbl active system. running obm up to 21 ppg. right now bulk system dumps barite directly into hopper funnels causing tremendous dust and inefficient mixing.

This article will demonstrate you how to determine hole size by fluid caliper. First of all, you need to know what is the fluid caliper is. The fluid caliper is one simple way to calculate hole diameter. The concept is based on hole volume, annular capacity, and inner capacity. You pump any substance and when you seen it on surface, you back calculate the hole size based on strokes pumped. It is quite tricky to explain so I would like you to see the example below which it will make you clear…

Nabors Rig 9 Catches Fire.

The Oil and Gas Commission was notified of a rig fire at approximately 11pm Friday night.  The rig is located approximately 20km north of Hudson’s Hope.  We understand no one was injured in the fire and at this time there is no risk to the public.

Road blocks and air monitoring equipment have been set up in the area and OGC inspectors are on site.  The rig was drilling a sweet gas well when the fire started.  As of 3pm…

I’ve got an email asking me about how to figure out the total bit revolution (RPM) at down hole when the mud motor is used in the drill string and rotating at surface is also conducted.

There are two components contributing in the total…

Are things slowing down again?  First sign is usually salesmen showing up, consultants looking for vacant trailers, and Directional hands getting days off.  In S.Texas, Barnett and Haynesville hands are turning up south of I-10. 

January 19th, 2012

It's early in the new year and already we are seeing a number of catastrophic drilling accidents which include blowouts and deaths.…