Pressure-Transient Analysis for Horizontal Wells

In recent years, pressure-transient behavior of horizontal wells has received considerable attention because of the increase in horizontal drilling. This paper presents an interpretation method for horizontal-well pressure-transient testing that is applied to a buildup test from a horizontal well in the Prudhoe Bay field. The complex flow geometry associated with horizontal wells makes well-test interpretation difficult. Unique determination of the system parameters from pressure data with a short testing time (typical test times for vertical wells) and/or production time is not possible.