PT Elnusa (ELNUSA), a subsidiary of PT Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE) which is a member of Pertamina’s Upstream Subholding, continues to develop innovations in the products and services offered to reach a wider market.
After the success of the previous Merah Putih Slurry cement innovation, the latest version of the special formulation for cementing jobs designed to seal or block shallow gas zones and control well pressure is now back with more advantages at a more economical price with better technical performance including: higher compressive strength, easier slurry pumping into the well.
In oil and gas well drilling activities, after the well is drilled, casing will be installed. The challenge is that the casing basically has no bond with the formation or rock behind it. This condition potentially makes the casing prone to being lifted by the pressure/flow of hydrocarbons or fluids from the formation, therefore the casing needs to be cemented with a suitable cement slurry to close the potentially dangerous flow.
Since 2019, Elnusa has been developing Slurry Merah Putih starting from the problems encountered by one of Elnusa’s clients, Pertamina Hulu Mahakam (PHM) in the Mahakam Working Area (WK). It is known that the majority of rocks in Kalimantan are sandstone and coal which also contains gas. So that when drilling is carried out at a depth that is still shallow or shallow gas zone around 100-200 feet, there is a potential hazard due to strong gas pressure. Under these conditions, the Elnusa team provided a Total Solution by conducting research and finally getting a Red and White Slurry formulation that could overcome this shallow gas zone problem.
Elnusa President Director Bachtiar Soeria Atmadja, revealed that the first innovation from Elnusa’s Slurry Merah Putih has been applied to eight wells in the Tunu field, Mahakam Block.
“This Slurry Merah Putih cement has provided extraordinary value added for PERTAMINA Hulu Mahakam. First, it can be maintained from the effects of shallow gas zones that can be dangerous. Second, it can reduce costs for its cementing costs which are cheaper than other products on the market. Third, this is an original Elnusa product by utilising materials that are mostly local products as well,” Bachtiar said in a statement on Thursday, August 29, 2024.
Successful with the initial innovation, Elnusa then developed the Slurry Merah Putih 2.0 concoction which is currently also being utilized in eight wells in Mahakam block, and will continue to grow.
“Slurry Merah Putih version 2.0 has a 15-20 percent more economical price compared to the previous version. The technical specifications are also superior to the previous version by having a higher average compressive strength for the first 24 hours and having a lower rheology that reduces friction pressure and surface pressure, as well as gaining stability at a lower rheology,” Bachtiar said.
The utilization of Slurry Merah Putih cement is also suitable to help increase oil and gas production. As is known, many oil and gas fields are currently mature and their production tends to be depleted or decreasing. So that oil and gas companies began drilling wells in shallow zones that were previously rarely touched because the soil conditions contained coal, sand, and there were potential hazards.
“Thanks to the innovation of Slurry Merah Putih, drilling is still safe with higher technical specifications, but still economical,” Bachtiar said.
Apart from PHM in Mahakam block, this Slurry Merah Putih will also be used by Pertamina Hulu Sanga-Sanga (PHSS) in Sanga-Sanga Block. The shallow gas zone conditions are not only in the Kalimantan region so that this Slurry Merah Putih technology can also be applied in various other regions in Indonesia.
Elnusa, which currently has around six-seven cementing units, is also in the process of purchasing two additional cementing units. Furthermore, there will be around 14 more cementing units, so that by 2025 Elnusa’s cementing business unit can grow to two-three times the current level.
