Directional drilling creates holes underground for installing pipelines, cables, and conduits without disturbing the surface. Generally, it refers to installing pipelines without trenching the surface. This method requires a drilling machine and supportive attachments to accurately drill across the selected bore. The drilling stage goes through three major stages: pilot hole, pre-reaming, and pipe pullback.

In simple words, the trenchless drilling method refers to the process of a pilot hole that goes through a specified route between entry and exit points. In an oil or gas industry, it is known as deviated drilling. It makes the boring possible without disorganizing the surface, making it a useful method in plenty of applications.

In this blog, we will glance at the most common directional drilling applications.

Operations of Direction Drilling

1.    Sidetracking

One of the most common applications of directional boring is sidetracking. It sidetracks a borehole with a new one at any point higher than the bottom of the old hole.

Initially, sidetracking was used to bypass blockage lost in the original wellbore. Later, people started using sidetracking for various other reasons, such as exploring the producing area in the file. Multiple sidetracks can be made from a single wellbore: each drilled area will work for different purposes.

2.    Straight Hole Drilling

Another application of directional drilling is straight hole drilling, which helps keep the hole vertical for various reasons. Some of them are given below:

• Straight hole drilling avoids crossing lease lines.
• To stay with the contract specifications.
• To ensure consistency of well spacing in a developed field.

3.    Controlled Drilling

The controlled directional drilling method is used for creating multiple wells from a man-made structure, such as offshore platforms, artificial islands, and drilling pads.

4.    Drilling at Inaccessible Locations

This method is helpful to access oil deposits beneath locations that are not easy to access, such as rivers, shorelines, and mountains. Contractors also use this method to install utility pipelines in the areas where buildings are already on the surface. The contractors hire directional drilling companies to create hole space for pipeline installations.

5.    Fault Drilling

Fault drilling helps in drilling well in locations where drilling a vertical well is not possible. Locations like steeply inclined fault planes require fault drilling.

6.    Salt Dome Exploration

Hard salt dome caps cover some oil fields. Directional drilling helps in accessing the oil in such difficult formations.

7.    Relief Well Drilling

This drilling method is used when a well starts blowing out and become uncontrollable. When the well is not accessible from the surface, relief well drilling is used. This method intersects with the uncontrolled well. This way, the mud and water are transferred from the wild well into the relief well.

8.    Horizontal Well Drilling

The Horizontal well drilling method is applicable to extract oil or gas from difficult locations to access.

9.    Multilateral Wells

Another application of directional drilling is drilling multilateral wells. This method helps in creating additional wells from a parent well. Multilateral wells increase production at lower costs.

Conclusion

Various directional drilling applications help the constructors and oil/gas companies create well in locations where it seems difficult or inaccessible. CANTEL Telcom is one of the best directional drilling companies. We have high-quality equipment, crew, and great experience to drill underground without disturbing the surface.