PAS
Subtopics:
Initial Deliverability Requirements
Initial Production Requirements
PAS stands for Pressure ASCII Standard and the .PAS files accepted by the AER follow a defined structure. There are different types of PAS files: TRG (transient gauge), GRD (gradient), PRD (production), OAN (oil analysis), GAN (gas analysis), and WAN (water analysis).
TRG, GRD and PRD PAS files can be read and generated by IHS applications to meet the AER’s requirements for initial pressure, deliverability, and production. IHS applications do not read or generate fluid analysis PAS files (GAN, OAN, or WAN) For more information about these PAS files, try contacting your fluid sampling provider (e.g., Core Labs, AGAT Laboratories, etc.).
If you do not deal with wells in Alberta, Canada, you can hide the PAS tab.
| AER Requirement | Type of PAS file | IHS Application used to generate these PAS files |
|---|---|---|
| Initial / Annual pressure | GRD.PAS or TRG.PAS | IHS ValiData or WellTest |
| Initial deliverability | TRG.PAS | WellTest |
| Initial production | PRD.PAS or TRG.PAS | WellTest |
Important Notes
There are exceptions to the requirements described below (e.g., non-control wells in a Development Entity, or wells producing under Self-declared (SD) Commingling). Please refer to the AER website re: Directive 40 and 65 to learn more about these exceptions.
Exemptions on Pressure Survey requirements can be requested. These have been granted for low permeability, heavy oil, small reserve, declining productivity pools, etc. Please refer to the AER website re: Directive 40, section 4.6.
Initial Pressure Requirements
Alberta’s regulatory board requires an initial pressure to be obtained for:
- gas wells: within the first three months of production (one well per pool per section)
- oil wells: prior to any sales production (one well per pool per quarter section)
This requirement can be met by one of the following techniques:
- Analyze a well test, such as a buildup test or falloff test, and generate and submit a PAS AER file using WellTest.
- Analyze a static gradient and generate and submit a GRD.PAS file using IHS ValiData.
To meet the initial pressure requirement with a static gradient, one of the following criteria must be met:
- the pressure must not build more than 2 kPa/hr over a period greater than 2 hours while the gauges are on bottom.
- OR, the gauge was on bottom (with well shut-in) for a minimum of 14 days.
For more information, see Meeting the AER Initial Pressure Requirements.
Annual Pressure Requirements
Annual pressure surveys must be conducted by year end (December 31) for oil & gas pools. Surveys are required on 25% of the producing well count, based on ¼ section well spacing for oil wells, and 1 section spacing for gas wells.
Initial Deliverability Requirements
Alberta’s regulatory board requires initial deliverability to be obtained as follows:
- gas wells: within the first three months of production
- oil wells: not required, however, if an IPR is available, the test data and interpretation should be submitted to the AER.
For more information, see Meeting the AER Initial Deliverability Requirements.
Initial Production Requirements
Alberta’s regulatory board requires the following initial production data to be submitted
- gas wells: any cleanup, or flow data.
- oil wells: not required, however, AER rules state that if you have cleanup or flow data in PRD.PAS format it shall be submitted.
This requirement can be met by one of the following techniques:
- If the well is producing inline, the TRG-PAS file generated to meet the initial deliverability requirements will also meet the initial production requirement.