Three dimensional simulation for bayou choctaw strategic petroleum reserve (SPR)

Three dimensional finite element analyses were performed to evaluate the structural integrity of the caverns located at the Bayou Choctaw (BC) site which is considered a candidate for expansion. Fifteen active and nine abandoned caverns exist at BC, with a total cavern volume of some 164 MMB. A 3D model allowing control of each cavern individually was constructed because the location and depth of caverns and the date of excavation are irregular. The total cavern volume has practical interest, as this void space affects total creep closure in the BC salt mass. Operations including both cavern workover, where wellhead pressures are temporarily reduced to atmospheric, and cavern enlargement due to leaching during oil drawdowns that use water to displace the oil from the caverns, were modeled to account for as many as the five future oil drawdowns in the six SPR caverns. The impacts on cavern stability, underground creep closure, surface subsidence, infrastructure, and well integrity were quantified.