Welltec® Annular Barrier (WAB®) Passes V0 Qualification

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, November 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

Welltec^®, a Danish based oil and gas service provider, is pleased to announce that its Welltec^® Annular Barrier has successfully passed ISO/API V0 qualification testing. 

     (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140219/671153 )

The Welltec^® Annular Barrier is a unique, all metal expandable barrier with a large expansion ratio and high delta P capability. It can be used to prevent flow between casings or between casing and open hole to provide cement assurance, to prevent build-up of surface annular pressure or to create compartmentalization within the reservoir or isolation between reservoirs.  

For the test, a 9 5/8" version of the WAB^® was expanded into a 13 3/8" casing within a test cell. There it was exposed to pressured nitrogen while undergoing axial loads and temperature cycles without experiencing any leaks. Witnessed by a number of representatives from global operators as well as Welltec staff and management, the test was successfully completed in accordance with ISO/API standards. 

"This qualification is the next significant step in a series of successes for the WAB^®," says Paul Hazel, VP of Well Completions. "These have included being incorporated as part of the primary well barrier and being installed for zonal isolation in wells capitalizing on cementless completions." 

Ricardo Reves Vasques, VP Engineering, states "Of course the testing wasn't easy. It has taken almost three years of research, but we've always believed that this technology could achieve this high standard and we wouldn't give up until we had accomplished it." 

A brief description of the levels of ISO/API standards for packers can be found at Petrowiki® - http://petrowiki.org/Packer_standards_and_classifications . Welltec^® is the largest provider of tractor technology for conveyance solutions as well as the foremost supplier of milling, clean-out and mechanical solutions for e-line interventions. Our novel, expandable metal annular barrier's (WAB's) capabilities have been accelerating for the past four years and comprise the foundation of the Flex-Well^® completion concept. 

SOURCE Welltec