Fractal model of spontaneous imbibition in low-permeability reservoirs coupled with heterogeneity of pore seepage channels and threshold pressure

Spontaneous imbibition(SI)is an important mechanism for enhancing oil recovery in low-permeability reservoirs.Due to the strong heterogeneity,and the non-Darcy flow,the construction of SI model for lowpermeability reservoirs is extremely challenging.Commonly,traditional SI models based on single or averaged capillary tortuosity ignore the influence of heterogeneity of pore seepage channels and the threshold pressure(TP)on imbibition.Therefore,in this work,based on capillary model and fractal theory,a mathematical model of characterizing SI considering heterogeneity of pore seepage channels is established.On this basis,the threshold pressure was introduced to determine the pore radius at which the wetted phase can displace oil.The proposed new SI model was verified by imbibition experimental data.The study shows that for weakly heterogeneous cores with permeability of 0-1 m D,the traditional SI model can characterize the imbibition process relatively accurately,and the new imbibition model can increase the coefficient of determination by 1.05 times.However,traditional model has serious deviations in predicting the imbibition recovery for cores with permeability of 10-50 m D.The new SI model coupling with heterogeneity of pore seepage channels and threshold pressure effectively solves this problem,and the determination coefficient is increased from 0.344 to 0.922,which is increased by2.68 times.For low-permeability reservoirs,the production of the oil in transitional pores(0.01-0.1μm)and mesopores(0.1-1μm)significantly affects the imbibition recovery,as the research shows that when the heterogeneity of pore seepage channels is ignored,the oil recovery in transitional pores and mesopores decreases by 7.54%and 4.26%,respectively.Sensitivity analysis shows that increasing interfacial tension,decreasing contact angle,oil-water viscosity ratio and threshold pressure will increase imbibition recovery.In addition,there are critical values for the influence of these factors on the imbibition recovery,which provides theoretical support for surfactant optimization.

Surface-functionalized cellulose nanocrystals(CNC)and synergisms with surfactant for enhanced oil recovery in low-permeability reservoirs

Nanocellulose,a natural polymeric nanomaterial,has attracted significant attention in enhanced oil recovery(EOR)applications due to its abundance,nanoscale,high oil-water interfacial adsorption ef-ficiency.In this study,surface-functionalized cellulose nanocrystals(SF-CNCs)were prepared via hy-drochloric acid hydrolysis and chemical modification,with adaptable nanosize and considerable dispersion stability in low-permeability reservoirs.The SF-CNCs were structurally characterized by FT-IR,Cryo-TEM,which have a diameter of 5-10 nm and a length of 100-200 nm.The SF-CNC dispersions possessed higher stability and stronger salt-tolerance than those of corresponding CNC dispersions,due to the strong hydrophilicity of the sulfonic acid group.It was synergistically used with a non-ionic surfactant(APG1214)to formulate a combined flooding system(0.1 wt%SF-CNC+0.2 wt%APG1214).The combined flooding system exhibits strong emulsification stability,low oil-water interfacial tension of o.03 mN/m,and the ability to alter the wettability for oil-wetting rocks.Furthermore,the combined system was_able to provide an optimum EOR efficiency of 20.2%in low-permeability cores with 30.13×10^(-3)μm^(2).Notably.it can enlarge the sweep volume and increase the displacement efficiency simultaneously.Overall,the newly formulated nanocellulose/surfactant combined system exhibits a remarkable EoR performance in low-permeability reservoirs.

A Numerical Simulation Study of Temperature and Pressure Effects on the Breakthrough Pressure of CO_(2)in Unsaturated Low-permeability Rock Core

Gas breakthrough pressure is a key parameter to evaluate the sealing capacity of caprock,and it also plays important roles in safety and capacity of CO_(2)geological storage.Based on the published experimental results,we present numerical simulations on CO_(2)breakthrough pressure in unsaturated low-permeability rock under 9 multiple P-T conditions(which can keep CO_(2)in gaseous,liquid and supercritical states)and thus,a numerical method which can be used to accurately predict CO_(2)breakthrough pressure on rock-core scale is proposed.The simulation results show that CO_(2)breakthrough pressure and breakthrough time are exponential correlated with P-T conditions.Meanwhile,pressure has stronger effects on experimental results than that of temperature.Moreover,we performed sensitivity studies on the pore distribution indexλ(0.6,0.7,0.8,and 0.9)in van Genuchten-Muale model.Results show that with the increase ofλ,CO_(2)breakthrough pressure and breakthrough time both show decreasing trends.In other words,the larger the value ofλis,the better the permeability of the caprock is,and the worse the CO_(2)sealing capacity is.The numerical method established in this study can provide an important reference for the prediction of gas breakthrough pressure on rock-core scale and for related numerical studies.

Production evolution patterns and development stage division of waterflooding oilfields

The continuous growth of recoverable reserves in a waterflooding oilfield has a significant impact on the patterns of production evolution. A new production evolution model is established by improving the Weng Cycle model. With the new model, the statistical correspondence between the production decline stage and the reserve-production imbalance is clarified,and the correlation of water cut with the recovery percent of recoverable reserves is discussed, providing quantitative basis of reservoir engineering for dividing development stages of oilfield and defining mature oilfields. According to the statistics of oilfields in eastern China, the time point corresponding to the reserve-production balance coefficient dropping to less than 1dramatically is well correlated the beginning point of production decline, thus the time when the reserve-production balance coefficient drops dramatically can be taken as the initiation point of production decline stage. The research results show that the water cut and the recovery percent of recoverable reserves have a good statistical match in the high water cut stage, and it is more rational to take both the start point of production decline stage and the water cut of 90%(or the recovery percent of recoverable reserves of 80%) as the critical criteria for defining a mature oilfield. Five production evolution patterns can be summarized as follows: growth–peak plateau–stepped decline, growth–stepped stabilizing–stepped decline, growth–stepped stabilizing–rapid decline, growth–peak plateau–rapid decline, and growth–continuous decline.

Permeability evolution mechanism and the optimum permeability determination of uranium leaching from low-permeability sandstone treated with low-frequency vibration

Low-frequency vibrations can effectively improve natural sandstone permeability,and higher vibration frequency is associated with larger permeability.However,the optimum permeability and permeability evolution mechanism for uranium leaching and the relationship between permeability and the change of chemical reactive rate affecting uranium leaching have not been determined.To solve the above problems,in this study,identical homogeneous sandstone samples were selected to simulate lowpermeability sandstone;a permeability evolution model considering the combined action of vibration stress,pore water pressure,water flow impact force,and chemical erosion was established;and vibration leaching experiments were performed to test the model accuracy.Both the permeability and chemical reactions were found to simultaneously restrict U6þleaching,and the vibration treatment increased the permeability,causing the U6þleaching reaction to no longer be diffusion-constrained but to be primarily controlled by the reaction rate.Changes of the model calculation parameters were further analyzed to determine the permeability evolution mechanism under the influence of vibration and chemical erosion,to prove the correctness of the mechanism according to the experimental results,and to develop a new method for determining the optimum permeability in uranium leaching.The uranium leaching was found to primarily follow a process consisting of(1)a permeability control stage,(2)achieving the optimum permeability,(3)a chemical reactive rate control stage,and(4)a channel flow stage.The resolution of these problems is of great significance for facilitating the application and promotion of lowfrequency vibration in the CO_(2)+O_(2) leaching process.

Multifractal estimation of NMR T_(2) cut-off value in low-permeability rocks considering spectrum kurtosis: SMOTE-based oversampling integrated with machine learning

The transverse relaxation time (T_(2)) cut-off value plays a crucial role in nuclear magnetic resonance for identifying movable and immovable boundaries, evaluating permeability, and determining fluid saturation in petrophysical characterization of petroleum reservoirs. This study focuses on the systematic analysis of T_(2) spectra and T_(2) cut-off values in low-permeability reservoir rocks. Analysis of 36 low-permeability cores revealed a wide distribution of T_(2) cut-off values, ranging from 7 to 50 ms. Additionally, the T_(2) spectra exhibited multimodal characteristics, predominantly displaying unimodal and bimodal morphologies, with a few trimodal morphologies, which are inherently influenced by different pore types. Fractal characteristics of pore structure in fully water-saturated cores were captured through the T_(2) spectra, which were calculated using generalized fractal and multifractal theories. To augment the limited dataset of 36 cores, the synthetic minority oversampling technique was employed. Models for evaluating the T_(2) cut-off value were separately developed based on the classified T_(2) spectra, considering the number of peaks, and utilizing generalized fractal dimensions at the weight <0 and the singular intensity range. The underlying mechanism is that the singular intensity and generalized fractal dimensions at the weight <0 can detect the T_(2) spectral shift. However, the T_(2) spectral shift has negligible effects on multifractal spectrum function difference and generalized fractal dimensions at the weight >0. The primary objective of this work is to gain insights into the relationship between the kurtosis of the T_(2) spectrum and pore types, as well as to predict the T_(2) cut-off value of low-permeability rocks using machine learning and data augmentation techniques.

Research progress and potential of new enhanced oil recovery methods in oilfield development

This paper reviews the basic research means for oilfield development and also the researches and tests of enhanced oil recovery(EOR)methods for mature oilfields and continental shale oil development,analyzes the problems of EOR methods,and proposes the relevant research prospects.The basic research means for oilfield development include in-situ acquisition of formation rock/fluid samples and non-destructive testing.The EOR methods for conventional and shale oil development are classified as improved water flooding(e.g.nano-water flooding),chemical flooding(e.g.low-concentration middle-phase micro-emulsion flooding),gas flooding(e.g.micro/nano bubble flooding),thermal recovery(e.g.air injection thermal-aided miscible flooding),and multi-cluster uniform fracturing/water-free fracturing,which are discussed in this paper for their mechanisms,approaches,and key technique researches and field tests.These methods have been studied with remarkable progress,and some achieved ideal results in field tests.Nonetheless,some problems still exist,such as inadequate research on mechanisms,imperfect matching technologies,and incomplete industrial chains.It is proposed to further strengthen the basic researches and expand the field tests,thereby driving the formation,promotion and application of new technologies.

Effect of CO_(2)flooding in an oil reservoir with strong bottom-water drive in the Tahe Oilfield,Tarim Basin,Northwest China

The dissolution and diffusion of CO_(2)in oil and water and its displacement mechanism were investigated by laboratory experiment and numerical simulation for Block 9 in the Tahe oilfield,a sandstone oil reservoir with strong bottom-water drive in Tarim Basin,Northwest China.Such parameters were analyzed as solubility ratio of CO_(2)in oil,gas and water,interfacial tension,in-situ oil viscosity distribution,remaining oil saturation distribution,and oil compositions.The results show that CO_(2)flooding could control water coning and increase oil production.In the early stage of the injection process,CO_(2)expanded vertically due to gravity differentiation,and extended laterally under the action of strong bottom water in the intermediate and late stages.The CO_(2)got enriched and extended at the oil-water interface,forming a high interfacial tension zone,which inhibited the coning of bottom water to some extent.A miscible region with low interfacial tension formed at the gas injection front,which reduced the in-situ oil viscosity by about 50%.The numerical simulation results show that enhanced oil recovery(EOR)is estimated at 5.72%and the oil exchange ratio of CO_(2)is 0.17 t/t.

Using a support vector machine method to predict the development indices of very high water cut oilfields

Because the oilfields in eastern China are in the very high water cut development stage, accurate forecast of oilfield development indices is important for exploiting the oilfields efficiently. Regarding the problems of the small number of samples collected for oilfield development indices, a new support vector regression prediction method for development indices is proposed in this paper. This method uses the principle of functional simulation to determine the input-output of a support vector machine prediction system based on historical oilfield development data. It chooses the kernel function of the support vector machine by analyzing time series characteristics of the development index; trains and tests the support vector machine network with historical data to construct the support vector regression prediction model of oilfield development indices; and predicts the development index. The case study shows that the proposed method is feasible, and predicted development indices agree well with the development performance of very high water cut oilfields.

Characteristics of non-Darcy flow in low-permeability reservoirs

Well testing is recognized as an effective means of accurately obtaining the formation parameters of low-permeability reservoirs and effectively analyzing the deliverability.Well test models must comply with the particular characteristics of flow in low-permeability reservoirs in order to obtain reasonable well test interpretation.At present,non-Darcy flow in low-permeability reservoirs is attracting much attention.In this study,displacement tests were conducted on typical cores taken from low-permeability reservoirs.Two dimensionless variables were introduced to analyze the collected experimental data.The results of the dimensionless analysis show whether non-Darcy flow happens or not depends on the properties of fluid and porous media and the pressure differential.The combination of the above three parameters was named as dimensionless criteria coefficient（DCC）.When the value of the DCC was lower than a critical Reynolds number（CRN）,the flow could not be well described by Darcy＇s law（so-called non-Darcy flow）,when the DCC was higher than CRN,the flow obeyed Darcy＇s law.Finally,this paper establishes a transient mathematical model considering Darcy flow and non-Darcy flow in low-permeability reservoirs,and proposes a methodology to solve the model.The solution technique,which is based on the Boltzmann transformation,is well suited for solving the flow model of low-permeability reservoirs.Based on the typical curves analysis,it was found that the pressure and its derivative curves were determined by such parameters as non-Darcy flow index and the flow characteristics.The results can be used for well test analysis of low-permeability reservoirs.

Non-Darcy flow in oil accumulation (oil displacing water) and relative permeability and oil saturation characteristics of low-permeability sandstones

Hydrocarbon resources in low-permeability sandstones are very abundant and are extensively distributed. Low-permeability reservoirs show several unique characteristics, including lack of a definite trap boundary or caprock, limited buoyancy effect, complex oil-gas-water distribution, without obvious oil-gas-water interfaces, and relatively low oil （gas） saturation. Based on the simulation experiments of oil accumulation in low-permeability sandstone （oil displacing water）, we study the migration and accumulation characteristics of non-Darcy oil flow, and discuss the values and influencing factors of relative permeability which is a key parameter characterizing oil migration and accumulation in low-permeability sandstone. The results indicate that： 1） Oil migration （oil displacing water） in low- permeability sandstone shows non-Darcy percolation characteristics, and there is a threshold pressure gradient during oil migration and accumulation, which has a good negative correlation with permeability and apparent fluidity; 2） With decrease of permeability and apparent fluidity and increase of fluid viscosity, the percolation curve is closer to the pressure gradient axis and the threshold pressure gradient increases. When the apparent fluidity is more than 1.0, the percolation curve shows modified Darcy flow characteristics, while when the apparent fluidity up＂ non-Darcy percolation curve; 3） Oil-water is less than 1.0, the percolation curve is a ＂concave- two-phase relative permeability is affected by core permeability, fluid viscosity, apparent fluidity, and injection drive force; 4） The oil saturation of low- permeability sandstone reservoirs is mostly within 35%-60%, and the oil saturation also has a good positive correlation with the permeability and apparent fluidity.

Stress dependent permeability and porosity of low-permeability rock

The seepage property of low-permeability rock is of significant importance for the design and safety analysis of underground cavities. By using a self-developed test system, both permeability and porosity of granite from an underground oil storage depot were measured. In order to study the influence of rock types on permeability, a tight sandstone was selected as a contrast. The experimental results suggested that the porosity of this granite is less than 5% and permeability is low to 10–20 m^2 within the range of effective stress. During the loading process, both exponential relationship and power law can be utilized to describe the relationship between effective stress and permeability. However, power law matches the experimental data better during the unloading condition. The stress dependent porosity of granite during loading process can be described via an exponential relationship while the match between the model and experimental data can be improved by a power law in unloading paths. The correlation of permeability and porosity can be described in a power law form. Besides, granite shows great different evolution rules in permeability and porosity from sandstone. It is inferred that this difference can be attributed to the preparing of samples and different movements of microstructures subjected to effective stress.

A Comprehensive Evaluation Method for Low-permeability Reservoirs

According to the geological characteristics and their influential factors of the low-permeability reservoirs, a comprehensive method for evaluation of low-permeability reservoirs is put forward. The method takes a matrix system as the basis, a fracture system as the focus and a stress field system as the restricted factor. It can objectively reflect not only the storage capability and seepage capability of low-permeability reservoirs, but also the effect on development as well. At the same time, it can predict the seepage characteristics at different development stages and provide a reasonable geological basis for the development of low-permeability reservoirs.

The Relationship between Fractures and Tectonic Stress Field in the Extra Low-Permeability Sandstone Reservoir at the South of Western Sichuan Depression

The formation and distribution of fractures are controlled by paleotectonic stress field, and their preservative status and effects on development are dominated by the modern stress field. Since Triassic, it has experienced four tectonic movements and developed four sets of tectonic fractures in the extra low-permeability sandstone reservoir at the south of western Sichuan depression. The strikes of fractures are in the S-N, NE-SW, E-W, and NW-SE directions respectively. At the end of Triassic, under the horizontal compression tectonic stress field, for which the maximum principal stress direction was NW.SE, the fractures were well developed near the S-N faults and at the end of NE-SW faults, because of their stress concentration. At the end of Cretaceous, in the horizontal compression stress fields of the NE-SW direction, the stress was obviously lower near the NE-SW faults, thus, fractures mainly developed near the S-N faults. At the end of Neogene-Early Pleistocene, under the horizontal compression tectonic stress fields of E-W direction, stress concentrated near the NE-SW faults and fractures developed at these places, especially at the end of the NE-SE faults, the cross positions of NE-SW, and S-N faults. Therefore, fractures developed mostly near S-N faults and NE-SW faults. At the cross positions of the above two sets of faults, the degree of development of the fractures was the highest. Under the modern stress field of the NW-SE direction, the NW-SE fractures were mainly the seepage ones with tensional state, the best connectivity, the widest aperture, the highest permeability, and the minimum opening pressure.

3D characterization of porosity and minerals of low-permeability uranium-bearing sandstone based on multi-resolution image fusion

In the process of in situ leaching of uranium,the microstructure controls and influences the flow distribution,percolation characteristics,and reaction mechanism of lixivium in the pores of reservoir rocks and directly affects the leaching of useful components.In this study,the pore throat,pore size distribution,and mineral composition of low-permeability uranium-bearing sandstone were quantitatively analyzed by high pressure mercury injection,nuclear magnetic resonance,X-ray diffraction,and wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence.The distribution characteristics of pores and minerals in the samples were qualitatively analyzed using energy-dispersive scanning electron microscopy and multi-resolution CT images.Image registration with the landmarks algorithm provided by FEI Avizo was used to accurately match the CT images with different resolutions.The multi-scale and multi-mineral digital core model of low-permeability uranium-bearing sandstone is reconstructed through pore segmentation and mineral segmentation of fusion core scanning images.The results show that the pore structure of low-permeability uranium-bearing sandstone is complex and has multi-scale and multi-crossing characteristics.The intergranular pores determine the main seepage channel in the pore space,and the secondary pores have poor connectivity with other pores.Pyrite and coffinite are isolated from the connected pores and surrounded by a large number of clay minerals and ankerite cements,which increases the difficulty of uranium leaching.Clays and a large amount of ankerite cement are filled in the primary and secondary pores and pore throats of the low-permeability uraniumbearing sandstone,which significantly reduces the porosity of the movable fluid and results in low overall permeability of the cores.The multi-scale and multi-mineral digital core proposed in this study provides a basis for characterizing macroscopic and microscopic pore-throat structures and mineral distributions of low-permeability uranium-bearing sandstone and can better understand the seepage characteristics.

Permeability and heterogeneity adaptability of surfactant-alternating-gas foam for recovering oil from low-permeability reservoirs

As the traditional polymer stabilizer is eliminated to improve the injectability of foam in lowpermeability reservoirs,the stability,plugging capacity,conformance control and oil recovery performance of the surfactant-alternating-gas(SAG)foam become significantly important for determining its adaptability to permeability and heterogeneity,which were focused and experimentally researched in this paper.Results show that the SAG bubbles are highly stable in micron-sized channels and porous media(than in the conventional unconstrained graduated cylinder),making it possible to use in enhanced oil recovery(EOR).Such bubbles formed in porous media could be passively adjusted to match their diameter with the size of the pore.This endows the SAG foam with underlying excellent injectability and deep migration capacity.Permeability adaptability results indicate a reduced plugging capacity,but,increased incremental oil recovery by the SAG foam with decreased permeability.This makes it a good candidate for EOR over a wide range of permeability,however,parallel core floods demonstrate that there is a limiting heterogeneity for SAG application,which is determined to be a permeability contrast of 12.0(for a reservoir containing oil of 9.9 m Pa s).Beyond this limit,the foam would become ineffective.

Genesis of the low-permeability reservoir bed of upper Triassic Xujiahe Formation in Xinchang gas field,western Sichuan Depression

The genesis of a reservoir is a result of the combined action of deposition, diagenesis, tectonic reworking, and interaction of rock and fluid and the evolutionary environment. We discuss the genetic and evolution mechanism of a low-permeability reservoir bed of the Xujiahe Formation in the western Sichuan Depression on the basis of the study of diagenesis, diagenetic reservoir facies and the diagenetic evolution sequence. The research indicated that this reservoir bed can be divided into five types of diagenetic reservoir facies, namely strong dissolution, chlorite-lined intergranular pores, compaction and pressure solution, carbonate cementation and secondary quartz increase. There are, however, just two diagenetic reservoir facies which provide low-permeability reservoir beds, namely strong dissolution and chlorite-lined intergranular pores. We also analyzed their diagenetic evolution sequences and the origin of the low-permeability reservoir bed. Besides, it was also indicated that the composition and structure of sandstones, types of sedimentary microfacies, diagenesis history as well as the tectonic reworking in later periods are the main factors controlling the formation of the low-permeability reservoir bed. The above- mentioned factors establish the foundation for the forecasting the distribution of high quality reservoir beds.

Application of fracturing technology to increase gas production in low-permeability hydrate reservoir:A numerical study

Low temperature and low permeability are the challenges for the development of hydrate reservoirs in permafrost.The ice produced around the production well caused by high depressurization driving force reduces the gas production,and it is necessary to reduce the effect of ice production on gas production.In this work,a new combination of fracturing technology and depressurization method was proposed to evaluate the gas production potential at the site DK-2 in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Permafrost.A relatively higher intrinsic permeability of the fracture zone surround the horizontal production well was created by the fracturing technology.The simulation results showed that the fracture zone reduced the blocking of production ice to production wells and promoted the propagation of production pressure.And the gas production increased by 2.1 times as the radius of the fracture zone increased from 0 to 4 m in 30 years.Nearly half of the hydrate reservoirs were dissociated in 30 years,and greater than 51.7%of the gas production was produced during the first 10 years.Moreover,production behaviours were sensitive to the depressurization driving force but not to the thermal conductivity.The growth of gas production was not obvious with the intrinsic permeability of the fracture zone higher than 100 m D.The effect of ice production on gas production by fracturing technology and depressurization method was limited.

Experimental study of low-damage drilling fluid to minimize waterblocking of low-permeability gas reservoirs

This paper discusses the systematic design and development of low-damage drilling fluid to protect the low-permeability gas reservoir of the Sulige block in the Ordos Basin, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China. Based on investigation of the geological characteristics and the potential formation damage of the Permian formation of the reservoir, waterblocking due to invasion of drilling or completion fluids was identified one of the most severe causes of damage to gas well deliverability. By adopting the phase trap prevention method, ideal packing theory, and film-forming technology, a lowdamage drilling fluid, sodium formate brine containing efficient waterblocking preventing surfactants, optimized temporary bridging agents （TBAs）, and film-forming agents has been developed. The performance of the new drilling fluid was evaluated by using a variety of techniques. The results show that the fluid has good rheological properties, good strong shale-swelling inhibition, good temporary plugging effect, ultra-low filtration, and good lubricity. It can efficiently minimize waterblocking and can be used to drill horizontal wells with minimal intervention of the reservoir in the Sulige Gas Field.

New progress and prospect of oilfields development technologies in China

As technologies advance in oilfield development, mature oilfields are able to keep sustainable production and complex oilfields difficult to produce in the past are put into production efficiently. In this work, new progresses of main development technologies for medium-high permeability and high water cut, low permeability, heavy oil, complex faulted block and special lithology reservoirs in the past decade, especially those international achievements made in enhanced oil recovery, were summarized, the key problems and major challenges that different oilfields are facing were analyzed, and the development route and direction of three-generation technologies were proposed as "mature technology in industrialized application, key technology in pilot test and innovative technology for backup". The key research contents should focus on:(1) Fine water flooding and chemical flooding for mature oilfields, improving oil recovery after chemical flooding, and gas flooding for low permeability reservoirs must be researched and tested in field further.(2) Study on subversive technologies like nanometer smart flooding, in-situ upgrading and injection and production through the same well should be strengthened.(3) EOR technologies for low oil price, new fields(deep sea, deep layer, unconventional reservoirs etc.) and highly difficult conditions(the quaternary recovery after chemical flooding, tertiary recovery in ultra-low permeability reservoirs) should be stocked up in advance. The development cost must be lowered significantly through constant innovation in technology and reservoir management to realize sustainable development of oilfields.