Numerical Simulation of Wellbore Flow of Well MW-13B in Menengai Geothermal Field, Kenya

Abstract

Menengai Well MW-13B was drilled purposefully to serve as a production well on the Menengai caldera floor. It is a deviated ‘J’ shaped well that was drilled to 2107m measured depth along the profile. Drilling was completed in March 2017 and immediately followed by completion tests. Heat up tests were conducted for a further three months before successfully discharging the well in June 2017. Monitoring tests were performed for 100 days under different well conditions to determine the optimum flow parameters of the wellbore, thereafter the well was shut-in. Data obtained from these tests are presented and analyzed in this paper using a well-bore simulation program by Kyushu University. Usually the best practice in a geothermal reservoir is to simulate the field to speculate the actual conditions and output expected from the field. Thus, the intention of this work is to run the program provided and compare the findings with well measurements and so establish the absolute usefulness of having to first run a simulation before venturing into exploitation.