Halliburton's Accolade Technology Helps to Lower Drilling Costs in Global Operations
HOUSTON, May 02, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Halliburton's (NYSE:HAL) Baroid Fluid Services has concluded a series of successful field trials in deepwater locations around the globe to confirm that the unique performance characteristics of its award-winning Accolade(R) drilling fluid can now be achieved with a variety of base fluids.
Drilling fluids formulated with the Accolade technology are designed to minimize the downhole losses normally associated with deepwater and deep gas drilling operations by providing exceptional control over rheological properties. For the first time, drilling fluid systems using the Accolade technology can be formulated with paraffin or internal olefin base fluids, while still retaining the clay-free composition that sets the Accolade technology apart from conventional invert emulsion fluids.
"The ability to use the Accolade technology with paraffins allows the rest of the world to take advantage of the performance benefits which were previously perceived as limited to Gulf of Mexico applications," said Art Huffman, senior vice president of Baroid Fluid Services. "During a deepwater field trial where heavy mud losses occurred on all offset wells, an operator using the new paraffin system was able to drill and run casing with substantially lower losses."
Huffman continued, "Increased interest in high-temperature deep gas plays was a factor in the introduction of the new internal olefin Encore system with the Accolade technology. The Encore fluid overcomes the temperature limitations encountered with ester-based fluids, while maintaining the operator's ability to handle cuttings in an environmentally safe manner."
The new Accolade technology systems allow operators throughout the world to achieve the award-winning, best-in-class drilling performance that has been demonstrated by the Accolade system in the Gulf of Mexico since 2001.
Halliburton, founded in 1919, is one of the world's largest providers of products and services to the petroleum and energy industries. The company serves its customers with a broad range of products and services through its Energy Services Group and KBR. The company's World Wide Web site can be accessed at www.halliburton.com.
SOURCE: Halliburton
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