Paraffin control in heavy oil producers

The role of downhole heaters in managing paraffin build-up and improving production in heavy oil producers.

In a recent inquiry, the subject of using downhole heaters to manage the buildup of paraffin deposits in heavy oil producers was raised. Current downhole heater treater technology while not a complete solution for paraffin control, can certainly help minimize the problem and in many cases will provide the following benefits:

• improved operational efficiency of insert type pumps due to reduced paraffin buildup and lower oil viscosities in the wellbore
• reduced paraffin clogging of perforations
• reduced paraffin precipitation at some radius from the perforation resulting in a larger productive surface area and higher total production.

Contemporary inline heaters are made-up or integrated into the tubing string allowing for rod pumps to operate through the heater tool. I would recommend using these types of inline heaters only with rod pumps that can tolerate the higher temperatures generated by the heater to avoid operational problems and associated pump replacement costs. I also want to stress that these inline heaters should be considered for the specific purpose of improved wellbore lift and paraffin control and not confused with more complex downhole steam generation systems used with CSS or SAGD.

Jorge.