Baker Hughes 2007 Annual Report Download - page 87

4 Baker Hughes Incorporated
COMPLETION AND PRODUCTION SEGMENT
Baker Oil Tools
Baker Oil Tools is a world leader in wellbore construction,
cased-hole completions, sand control and wellbore intervention
solutions. The economic success of a well largely depends on
how the well is completed. A successful completion ensures
and optimizes the efficient and safe production of oil and
natural gas to the surface. Baker Oil Tools’ completion systems
are matched to the formation and reservoir for optimum pro-
duction and can employ a variety of products and services.
Wellbore Construction. Wellbore completion products
and services include liner hangers, multilateral completion
systems and expandable metal technology.
Liner hangers suspend a section of steel casing (also called
a liner) inside the bottom of the previous section of casing.
The liner hanger’s expandable slips grip the inside of the casing
and support the weight of the liner below.
Multilateral completion systems enable two or more
zones to be produced from a single well, using multiple hori-
zontal branches.
Expandable metal technology involves the permanent
downhole expansion of a variety of tubular products used in
drilling, completion and well remediation applications.
Cased-Hole Completions. Cased-hole completions prod-
ucts and services include packers, flow control equipment,
subsurface safety valves, and intelligent completions.
Packers seal the annular space between the steel produc-
tion tubing and the casing. These tools control the flow of
fluids in the well and protect the casing above and below
from reservoir pressures and corrosive formation fluids.
Flow control equipment controls and adjusts the flow of
downhole fluids. A common flow control device is a sliding
sleeve, which can be opened or closed to allow or limit pro-
duction from a particular portion of a reservoir. Flow control
can be accomplished from the surface via wireline or down-
hole via hydraulic or electric motor-based automated systems.
Subsurface safety valves shut off all flow of fluids to the
surface in the event of an emergency, thus saving the well
and preventing pollution of the environment. These valves
are required in substantially all offshore wells.
Intelligent Completions® use real-time, remotely operated
downhole systems to control the flow of hydrocarbons from
one or more zones.
Sand Control. Sand control equipment includes gravel
pack tools, sand screens and fracturing fluids. Sand control
systems and pumping services are used in loosely consolidated
formations to prevent the production of formation sand with
the hydrocarbons.
Wellbore Intervention. Wellbore intervention products
and services are designed to protect producing assets. Inter-
vention operations troubleshoot drilling problems and improve,
maintain or restore economical production from already-
producing wells. In this area, Baker Oil Tools’ offerings range
from service tools and inflatable products to conventional and
through-tubing fishing systems, casing exits, wellbore cleaning
and temporary abandonment.
Service tools function as surface-activated, downhole seal-
ing and anchoring devices to isolate a portion of the wellbore
during repair or stimulation operations. Service tool applications
range from treating and cleaning to testing components from
the wellhead to the perforations. Service tools also refer to
tools and systems that are used for temporary or permanent
well abandonment.
Inflatable packers expand to set in pipe that is much larger
than the outside diameter of the packer itself, so it can run
through a restriction in the well and then set in the larger
diameter below. Inflatable packers also can be set in “open
hole” whereas conventional tools only can be set inside cas-
ing. Through-tubing inflatables enable remedial operations in
producing wells. Significant cost savings result from lower rig
requirements and the ability to intervene in the well without
having to remove the completion.
Fishing tools and services are used to locate, dislodge and
retrieve damaged or stuck pipe, tools or other objects from
inside the wellbore, often thousands of feet below the surface.
Wellbore cleaning systems remove post-drilling debris to
help ensure trouble-free well testing, completion and optimum
production for the life of the well.
Casing exit systems are used to “sidetrack” new wells
from existing ones, to provide a cost-effective method of
tapping previously unreachable reserves.
The main drivers of customer purchasing decisions in well-
bore construction, cased-hole completions, sand control and
wellbore intervention are superior wellsite service execution
and value-adding technologies that improve production rates,
protect the reservoir from damage and reduce cost. Specific
opportunities for competitive differentiation include:
•฀ engineering฀and฀manufacturing฀superior-quality฀products฀
and providing solutions with a proven ability to reduce well
construction costs,
•฀ enhancing฀production฀and฀ultimate฀recovery,
•฀ minimizing฀risks,฀and
•฀ providing฀reliable฀performance฀over฀the฀life฀of฀the฀well,฀
particularly in harsh environments and for critical wells.
Baker Oil Tools’ primary competitors in wellbore construction,
cased-hole completions and sand control include Halliburton,
Schlumberger and Weatherford. Its primary competitors in
wellbore intervention include Weatherford and Smith.
Key business drivers for Baker Oil Tools include the number
of drilling and workover rigs operating, the relative complexity
of the wells drilled and completed, as well as the current and
expected future price of both oil and natural gas.
Baker Petrolite
Baker Petrolite is a leading provider of specialty chemicals
to the oil and gas industry. The division also supplies specialty
chemicals to a number of industries including refining, pipeline
transportation, petrochemical, agricultural and iron and steel
manufacturing and provides polymer-based products to a broad
range of industrial and consumer markets. Through its Pipeline
Management Group, Baker Petrolite also offers a variety of
products and services for the pipeline transportation industry.