Well Stimulation Requirements

Little is written on the subject of offshore stimulation (stim) vessels and the complex process for which these mighty vessels must prepare which to successfully complete a frac job. Any mention of well stimulation is most often confined to onshore operations. Sometimes, land-based and offshore stimulation are lumped together as though they are interchangeable. Although the output is the same, the process and preparation are different.

When an onshore job is active, the team can be nimble to meet the needs of the day-to-day changes as they occur—bringing in or removing materials and tools as stimulation needs increase or decrease. If the job requires additional pumps or crew members, they can be brought on site almost immediately with a few phone calls and a shift of plans. The capabilities are theoretically endless.

Offshore project planners must be prepared with all the necessary materials, crew, tools and capacity to work a job successfully. These materials go beyond the pumps and equipment that are needed to get the job done. They include the crew’s living facilities and simple day to day needs such as food, water, laundry and kitchen accomodations and supplies. Planning is extremely important on both fronts, but there is no going back for your tool belt when you are miles from shore. The specifics for offshore versus onshore stimulation processes, capacities and equipment are different on many levels.

Transport Time

On land, materials are brought to the site by rigs and trucks. Therefore, onshore jobs have the capacity to run continuously with the exception of maintenance or downtime. Offshore, although there has been much advancement to limit downtime, a vessel must stop to refuel, restock stimulation materials and crew member needs such as fresh water and food. Unlike onshore sites, a vessel must travel, many times long distances, to get its materials. Usually, this is to the nearest port of call or docking station which can take much time.

Job Site Capacity

With virtually wide-open spaces onshore, a job can have multiple trucks with 20 or more pumps onsite at any given time plus the materials needed to get the frac job done. In an offshore environment, vessels have limited space, restricting the amount of pump equipment that can be on hand.