In 2012, as the hydraulic fracturing boom in North America was spreading its promise to other countries and regions, a group of operators already sharing global offset well data decided to launch the Shale Performance Review (SPR). The SPR, which helps operators compare data to those of their participating competitors, allows for better planning and budgeting, setting targets, and applying the knowledge gleaned from others in a particular play.

Until 25 years ago the sharing of this type of data was cumbersome; it lacked organization and quality, and it wasn’t always cost-effective. That is why a group of operators in Aberdeen, Scotland, created the Drilling Performance Review (DPR). For the first time, participating operators were offered the chance to share data based on standard metrics and definitions. An external layer of quality control also was provided.

After running the DPR for a few years, the founding operators outsourced its management to the Rushmore organization, retaining the right to decide what data to share, how to measure and define it, and the rules that govern its sharing. In the subsequent 25 years, other reviews have been added such as the Completions Performance Review, Well Abandonment Performance Review and the Well Interventions Performance Review. The reviews have expanded from the U.K. to include data from more than 250 companies operating in more than 100 countries.

Sharing shale well data

While at first operators found it cumbersome to collect and share the wealth of available data in the reviews, they were able to streamline the system and set parameters for the shale well data that would be easier to extract from their daily reports in an automated process. As of January 2014, more than half of the top 10 most active operators in the Eagle Ford shale play were participating in the SPR, with a number of others in the process of joining. The operators have all committed to participate for periods ranging from three to seven years. By the end of 2014, the SPR will contain data on more than 10,000 wells in the U.S., Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Poland and Sweden.

The data shared in the SPR are fully transparent; the name of the operator as well as the name and location of each well is depicted on a map within the database. It includes dates and times; indication of zipper fracking; number of stages; sleeves; perforation clusters; gross and net treated lengths; treating rates and pressures; proppant types, sizes and volumes; and fluid types and volumes.

The SPR website, which is made available only to participating operators, contains a forum where participants may propose changes to the data, their definitions or the rules governing their sharing. Other operators may then respond in the forum by either agreeing or disagreeing to each proposal. Every February the proposals are reviewed at an operators’ meeting held in Houston, and a final decision is made. Every operator has veto power on proposed changes, which means a consensus is required.

The February 2013 meeting led to the expansion of the original scope of the SPR—from sharing data just on shale wells to covering all multistage hydraulically fractured wells regardless of the formation type but excluding coal. At the February 2014 meeting, operators decided to allow for the optional sharing of initial production (IP) data.

The IP data to be shared from 2014 are in the process of being defined but are likely to include IP30, 60, 90 and 120 values. These data are supplemented on the website by calculated performance metrics such as drilling days per 3,048 m (10,000 ft), percentage nonproductive time, cost per foot, cost per day, proppant placed per treated foot, fluid pumped per stage and cost per treated foot.

In addition to the minimum, average and maximum values of each metric, operators are provided with P10 and P90 values for planning and budgeting purposes and the P25, P50 and P75 values vital for performance management applications.

It is possible for an operator to participate in the SPR by only providing drilling data, but that operator’s access to data from other participating operators is then limited to drilling data as well. Most operators provide a minimum of completions and hydraulic fracturing data, and many have indicated their intentions to share IP data.

Quality control

Rushmore Reviews employs a team of 15 data analysts to perform a series of hundreds of automated “expert system” checks on each well. These checks raise queries where data are inconsistent or outside of technical limitations or performance norms. The analysts then perform a manual check to see whether any of the queries can be resolved by referencing additional data such as completion schematic diagrams provided by the operator before deciding which queries need to be forwarded to the operator for correction or explanation.

The operator that receives the query can then correct the data or provide an explanation in the “comments” field provided for this purpose and published with the rest of the well data. Drilling cost data are correlated against drilling speed to establish that they fall inside norms.

Analysis options

Participating operators are supplied with a series of chart options to help transform their performance metrics into useful, comparative data. Chart options include histograms, box and whisker charts, and cross plots that show the performance of each operator or well set.

Along with the ability to select wells from a map and comprehensive search and sort options, these tools enable answers and trends to be obtained and then used to feed into planning and target-setting processes. The ability to calculate a reliable “gap to best in class” figure provides operators with both a powerful performance improvement tool and a target.

Looking forward

It is the aim of all SPR participants to work toward capturing every shale and multistage well that is being drilled worldwide. The SPR has the potential to improve the performance of every participating operator. It can also, in turn, lead to more efficient production and lower cost energy for all.