Advances In Flowmeter Proving For Shale Fields

By Brian Hoover, Endress+Hauser

In the past, calibrating flowmeters in remote shale fields required removing the meters and sending them to a calibration lab or using local provers. Now, mass and density calibration has come to the field.

The oil and gas production renaissance in the U.S. has resulted in a large number of allocation and custody transfer meter installations. These installations are driving an increased need for “proving” or calibrating flow measurement points used for transactional purposes. Meeting these calibration requirements in oil and gas fields is particularly difficult because shale plays are often in remote and isolated locations, far from proper maintenance facilities. For example, estimates are that more than 5,000 wells will be drilled in the Permian Basin over the next 20 years. Each of these wells will have one or more flowmeters that must be calibrated and proven.