New platform brings real-time electrical control to coiled tubing intervention, enabling greater precision, visibility and efficiency across intervention operations
SLB has launched the ExaCT™ electrical downhole coiled tubing (CT) control system, an advanced intervention platform that introduces real-time electrical control to coiled tubing operations. By replacing pressure-dependent hydraulic actuation with electrical communication, power delivery and telemetry, the ExaCT system gives operators greater visibility, precision and control, helping improve intervention execution and reservoir access.
The ExaCT system combines electrical power, telemetry and downhole measurements to enable communication with, actuation of and verification of downhole tools throughout an intervention. Continuous communication across the toolstring enables on-demand tool actuation across a wide range of intervention applications, including extended-reach and multilateral wells. The increased precision and control provided by the system help operators optimize reservoir access, improve production performance and maximize recovery.
'Operators are asking intervention systems to do far more than simply actuate downhole tools,' said Frederik Majkut, president, Reservoir Performance, SLB. 'Completion and production teams need continuous visibility, precise control and the flexibility to perform multiple services in a single run. The ExaCT system represents a fundamental shift to electrically controlled intervention, helping operators improve execution certainty, reduce intervention time and maximize reservoir access.'
The ExaCT system supports multiple services in a single run, including logging, stimulation, isolation and shifting operations. The platform enables real-time monitoring of downhole conditions and allows interventions to be adapted as conditions change, reducing the need for multiple runs while providing a foundation for increasingly automated intervention workflows.
Field deployments have demonstrated measurable operational improvements compared with conventional hydraulic intervention methods. In one six-lateral well intervention, the ExaCT system reduced intervention time by approximately 175 hours, enabling operators to enter each lateral in about 12 minutes compared with six to eight hours using conventional hydraulic systems. The operation stimulated more than 21,000 feet of reservoir contact while reducing fluid consumption by more than 3,000 barrels.
The ExaCT system has also reduced intervention time by up to 30% and fluid consumption by 20% in cleanout and scale-removal operations while sustaining 81 hours of continuous downhole operation, demonstrating the platform's ability to improve intervention efficiency, execution certainty and operational performance across a broad range of intervention applications.
Key Points:
- The ExaCT system from SLB replaces pressure-dependent hydraulic actuation with real-time electrical control, giving operators greater visibility, precision and control during coiled tubing interventions.
- The system enables multiple services in a single run, including logging, stimulation, isolation and shifting operations, reducing the need for multiple intervention runs.
- In one six-lateral well intervention, ExaCT reduced intervention time by approximately 175 hours and enabled operators to enter each lateral in about 12 minutes, compared with six to eight hours using conventional hydraulic systems.
For more information about the ExaCT electrical downhole CT control system, visit slb.com/ExaCT.
Source: SLB
