GLOSARIO SEPULVEDA

Survey: A data set measured and recorded with reference to a particular area of the Earth's
surface, such as a seismic survey.

Measured depths range: The length of the wellbore, as if determined by a measuring stick. This
measurement differs from the true vertical depth of the well in all but vertical wells. Since the
wellbore cannot be physically measured from end to end, the lengths of individual joints of
drillpipe, drill collars and other drillstring elements are measured with a steel tape measure and
added together. Importantly, the pipe is measured while in the derrick or laying on a pipe rack, in
an untensioned, unstressed state. When the pipe is screwed together and put into the wellbore, it
stretches under its own weight and that of the bottomhole assembly. Although this fact is well
established, it is not taken into account when reporting the well depth. Hence, in virtually all cases,
the actual wellbore is slightly deeper than the reported depth.

Turnkey: A type of financing arrangement for the drilling of a wellbore that places considerable
risk and potential reward on the drilling contractor. Under such an arrangement, the drilling
contractor assumes full responsibility for the well to some predetermined milestone such as the
successful running of logs at the end of the well, the successful cementing of casing in the well or
even the completion of the well. Until this milestone is reached, the operator owes nothing to the
contractor. The contractor bears all risk of trouble in the well, and in extreme cases, may have to
abandon the well entirely and start over. In return for assuming such risk, the price of the well is
usually a little higher than the well would cost if relatively trouble free. Therefore, if the contractor
succeeds in drilling a trouble-free well, the fee added as contingency becomes profit. Some
operators, however, have been required by regulatory agencies to remedy problem wells, such as
blowouts, if the turnkey contractor does not.

Development: The phase of petroleum operations that occurs after exploration has proven
successful, and before full-scale production. The newly discovered oil or gas field is assessed during
an appraisal phase, a plan to fully and efficiently exploit it is created, and additional wells are
usually drilled.

Underream: To enlarge a wellbore past its original drilled size. Underreaming is sometimes done
for safety or efficiency reasons. Some well planners believe it is safer to drill unknown shallow
formations with a small-diameter bit, and if no gas is encountered, to then enlarge the pilot hole.
An underreaming operation may also be done if a small additional amount of annular space is
desired, as might be the case in running a liner if surge pressures were problematic.

Tieback string: Another term for tie-back liner, a section of liner that is run from a liner hanger
back to the wellhead after the initial liner and hanger system have been installed and cemented. A
tie-back liner may be required to provide the necessary pressure capacity during a flow-test period
or for special treatments, and is typically not cemented in place. In some cases, a tie-back liner will
be installed as a remedial treatment when the integrity of the intermediate casing string is in
doubt.

Stuck pipe: The portion of the drillstring that cannot be rotated or moved vertically.

Wellbore: The drilled hole or borehole, including the openhole or uncased portion of the well.
Borehole may refer to the inside diameter of the wellbore wall, the rock face that bounds the
drilled hole.

Casing point: The location, or depth, at which drilling an interval of a particular diameter hole
ceases, so that casing of a given size can be run and cemented. Establishing correct casing points is
important in the design of the drilling fluid program. The casing point may be a predetermined
depth, or it may be selected onsite by a pressure hunt team, selected onsite according to geological
observations or dictated by problems in the openhole section. In many cases, weak or
underpressure zones must be protected by casing to enable mud weight adjustments that control
unstable formations or overpressure zones deeper in the wellbore.

Buoyancy: The upward force acting on an object placed in a fluid. The buoyancy force is equal to
the weight of fluid displaced by the object. Buoyancy can have significant effects over a wide range
of completion and workover activities, especially in cases in which the wellbore and tubing string
contain liquid and gas. Any change in the relative volumes or fluid levels will change the buoyancy
forces.

Roller cone bit: A tool designed to crush rock efficiently while incurring a minimal amount of wear
on the cutting surfaces. Invented by Howard Hughes, the roller-cone bit has conical cutters or cones
that have spiked teeth around them. As the drillstring is rotated, the bit cones roll along the bottom
of the hole in a circle. As they roll, new teeth come in contact with the bottom of the hole, crushing
the rock immediately below and around the bit tooth. As the cone rolls, the tooth then lifts off the
bottom of the hole and a high-velocity fluid jet strikes the crushed rock chips to remove them from
the bottom of the hole and up the annulus. As this occurs, another tooth makes contact with the
bottom of the hole and creates new rock chips. Thus, the process of chipping the rock and
removing the small rock chips with the fluid jets is continuous. The teeth intermesh on the cones,
which helps clean the cones and enables larger teeth to be used. There are two main types of
roller-cone bits, steel milled-tooth bits and carbide insert bits.

Dogleg: A particularly crooked place in a wellbore where the trajectory of the wellbore in three-
dimensional space changes rapidly. While a dogleg is sometimes created intentionally by
directional drillers, the term more commonly refers to a section of the hole that changes direction
faster than anticipated or desired, usually with harmful side effects. In surveying wellbore
trajectories, a standard calculation of dogleg severity is made, usually expressed in two-
dimensional degrees per 100 feet [degrees per 30 m] of wellbore length. There are several
difficulties associated with doglegs. First, the wellbore is not located in the planned path. Second is
the possibility that a planned casing string may no longer easily fit through the curved section.
Third, repeated abrasion by the drillstring in a particular location of the dogleg results in a worn
spot called a keyseat, in which the bottomhole assembly components may become stuck as they
are pulled through the section. Fourth, casing successfully cemented through the dogleg may wear
unusually quickly due to higher contact forces between the drillstring and the inner diameter (ID) of
the casing through the dogleg. Fifth, a relatively stiff bottomhole assembly may not easily fit
through the dogleg section drilled with a relatively limber BHA. Sixth, excessive doglegs increase
the overall friction to the drillstring, increasing the likelihood of getting stuck or not reaching the
planned total depth. Usually these problems are manageable. If the dogleg impairs the well,
remedial action can be taken, such as reaming or underreaming through the dogleg, or even
sidetracking in extreme situations.

Washout: An enlarged region of a wellbore. A washout in an openhole section is larger than the
original hole size or size of the drill bit. Washout enlargement can be caused by excessive bit jet
velocity, soft or unconsolidated formations, in-situ rock stresses, mechanical damage by BHA
components, chemical attack and swelling or weakening of shale as it contacts fresh water.
Generally speaking, washouts become more severe with time. Appropriate mud types, mud
additives and increased mud density can minimize washouts.

Tail: The last page or pages on a log print, which may contain data about the well, the recording
parameters and the calibration of the measurements.

Hook load: The total force pulling down on the hook. This total force includes the weight of the
drillstring in air, the drill collars and any ancillary equipment, reduced by any force that tends to
reduce that weight. Some forces that might reduce the weight include friction along the wellbore
wall (especially in deviated wells) and, importantly, buoyant forces on the drillstring caused by its
immersion in drilling fluid. If the BOPs are closed, any pressure in the wellbore acting on the cross-
sectional area of the drillstring in the BOPs will also exert an upward force.