24 November 2020 SALAMANDER SOLUTIONS INC is pleased to announce the award of a sales contract by Petrogas to design and supply an electric downhole heater system for use in one of Petrogas’ operated heavy oil production wells in the Sultanate of Oman.

The application of electric heat to improve the oil production from high viscous “cold” wells has been known for years, but until now has been limited to short vertical sections. The reduction of the oil viscosity in the vicinity of the heated borehole as well as inside the production tubular results in a larger effective diameter of the borehole and in lower skin. In addition, in the case of long horizontal wells, the reduction in viscosity inside the production liner results in lower pressure at the toe of the wellbore, which allows for a potentially significant increase in oil production from this poorly tapped section of the reservoir. Additional benefits include the reduction in water coning and an increase in the efficiency and operating life of the downhole pump.

“We are excited to work with Petrogas on a successful downhole heater application,” said Salamander CEO Ben van den Brule, “Downhole electric heating has proven successful not only by enhancing the production of viscous oil but also by improving the recovery factor of reserves with relatively low investment costs. Salamander is uniquely positioned to manufacture and deploy an unprecedented combination of long length, high power heaters”. ¨We believe this project will pave the way for large scale replication of the technology in the Middle East and will contribute to Petrogas and Oman’s reputation as an IOR/EOR technology center of excellence.

“We at Petrogas share the excitement with Salamander to be the first in the Middle East to deploy this promising technology. We jointly are focused on ensuring a safe and a successful pilot; and we believe a positive result from this pilot will derive faster and a more cost-efficient maturation of some of our marginal heavy oil fields.”