This is a Contract Position for 12 months via 3rd Party.
The work scope covers a general geomechanics study, sanding prediction, pore pressure and fracture gradient (PPFG) analysis, and assessment of reservoir suitability for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS).
Responsibilities
General Geomechanics Study
Data integration & Interpretation
- Integrate wellbore data (logs, core, drilling parameters) to build geomechanics models.
- Interpret stress regimes, fault reactivation potential, and wellbore stability.
- Develop 1D/3D geomechanics models for field development and well planning.
- Simulate stress changes due to depletion, injection, and hydraulic fracturing.
Wellbore Stability Analysis
- Evaluate borehole collapse, breakout, and sanding risks.
- Recommend mud weights and casing programs to mitigate instability.
- Assess natural fracture networks and their impact on reservoir performance.
- Support stimulation design and fracture containment analysis.
Geomechanics Risk Assessment
- Identify and mitigate risks related to fault reactivation, casing deformation, and subsidence.
Evaluating reservoir stress conditions & rock mechanical properties to access the risk of sand production, determine critical drawdown limits, and support mitigation strategies for wellbore and completion stability
Pore Pressure & Fracture Gradient Study (PPFG)
PPFG Prediction & Calibration
- Predict pore pressure and fracture gradient using seismic, log, and drilling data, especially in highly depleted reservoir environment.
- Calibrate models with MDT, LOT/XLOT, and formation pressure tests
- Provide PPFG inputs for casing design, mud weight window, and kick tolerance.
- Collaborate with drilling engineers to optimize well trajectory and mitigate risk
- Conduct basin-wide PPFG studies to support exploration and appraisal.
- Develop PPFG maps and trends for strategic planning.
- Support real-time PPFG monitoring during drilling operations.
- Update models based on drilling events (kicks, losses, wellbore instability).
Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS)
Geomechanics Studies & Modelling
- Develop regional understanding of in-situ stress regimes, stress anisotropy, magnitude, and orientation relevant to CO₂ injection containment.
- Characterize rock mechanical properties to quantify compaction and deformation within coupled reservoir–geomechanical simulations.
- Conduct subsidence prediction and evaluate potential risks to surface facilities and infrastructure.
- Build and calibrate 1D geomechanical models using leak-off tests, laboratory measurements, in-situ stress data, and pressure test results.
- Assess caprock integrity, fault stability, and potential fracture propagation associated with injection pressures and stress evolution.
- Support wellbore stability analysis and evaluate risks of CO₂-induced mechanical failure or leakage pathways.
Coupled Dynamic – Geomechanics / Geochemical Modelling
- Develop 3D coupled geomechanical models to evaluate maximum allowable injection pressures, potential fault reactivation, and reservoir deformation, integrating pressure, porosity, and permeability fields from dynamic simulations.
- Calibrate models using pre- and post-CO₂ injection laboratory tests, core data, and field measurements.
- Perform reactive transport modelling to predict long-term CO₂ migration, mineralization, and evolution of rock properties due to geochemical interactions.
- Evaluate feedback mechanisms between geomechanical stress changes and geochemical alteration of the storage complex.
- Reactive Transport Modelling – Batch modelling initialized with geological grid model with rock properties, well location, injection volume / rate & composition (prediction on long-term CO2 distribution, geochemical changes & evolution of rock properties due to CO2 injection)
Monitoring & Risk Assessment
- Support Monitoring, Measurement, and Verification (MMV) planning by defining geomechanical indicators and monitoring requirements.
- Contribute to long-term containment assurance studies and post-injection stability assessments.
- Provide input to risk assessments, safety cases, and regulatory documentation concerning geomechanical integrity.
Qualifications
- University degree in Engineering, Science, Geoscience, Geomechanics or Mathematics.
- Minimum 15 years of experience in relevant oilfield (drilling PPFG/geomechanics) with operator or service company.
- Strong communication skills with the ability to distil complicated technical work to a variety of stakeholders.
- Ability to work with cross-disciplinary teams and competing priorities to deliver challenging wells.
- The candidate must be familiar with PPFG, geomechanics, drilling and subsurface aspects of Well Planning and Execution for both FDP and CCS proposal.
- Previous PPFG experience with an operator; previous geomechanics experience such as wellbore stability and formation pressure integrity tests, strong geology and geophysics background and experience with well planning.
- Experience generating pre-drill PPFG forecasts for offshore wells in both development and exploration settings.
- Experience in CCS projects related to geomechanics analysis and requirements.
- Awareness of Geology, Petrophysics, Basin Modelling, Processing Geophysics, Reservoir Geomechanics, Drilling Engineering, Rig Systems, and Well Control.
- Software proficiency and coding capability (e.g., VBA, Python, Techlog and Petrel).
