A Smart Integrated System Could Transform Oilfield Services Economics
To put it simply, a production well is a long pipe that extends hundreds of meters underground. At the bottom lies the oil reservoir – a layer of rock containing oil. To bring the oil to the surface, holes must be perforated in the well casing directly across from the reservoir.
In the past, oilfield crews had to run equipment into a well twice to do this. First, a logging tool located the target interval. The crew then pulled it out, replaced it with a perforating gun and ran the equipment back downhole. Each cycle meant hours of downtime and substantial costs. Engineers at the Scientific and Technical Department of TNG-Group, part of the TAGRAS holding company, have developed the SOPR-89 integrated hardware and software system, which locates the target interval and perforates the well in a single run.
Two Functions in One Run
The system combines gamma-ray logging, a casing collar locator, and pressure and temperature sensors. It also captures the entire perforation process in a single measurement cycle. Pressure changes are recorded at 20-microsecond intervals over a 40-millisecond period. This produces a series of near-instantaneous snapshots of the perforation process, allowing engineers to assess how the perforating gun fired and whether the holes were made properly.
The system also monitors the well for more than six minutes after perforation. This helps engineers evaluate how the reservoir responds when it is opened up, including how quickly pressure recovers and whether formation fluids begin to flow into the well. Data are transmitted with threefold redundancy to minimize the risk of information loss.
The new tool could significantly reduce costs for oil producers, particularly when developing wells with complex geometries. During testing, use of the SOPR-89 doubled operating speeds at some oilfields.
The Shift Toward Digitalization
Russian oilfield service companies are already developing integrated systems that combine measurement tools, hardware and software to shorten operations and reduce reliance on imported technology. For example, TatNIPIneft, an institute within the Tatneft Group, has introduced an integrated nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) logging system that can operate at depths of up to 5 kilometers (approximately 3.1 miles). Lowered into a well on a wireline cable, the tool generates a magnetic field disturbance and analyzes the formation's response to identify the boundaries of oil- and gas-bearing zones and estimate their reserves.
Other developments illustrate the same trend. Oilfield services provider TNG-Group has deployed a compact tool for nuclear magnetic resonance logging in a gradient magnetic field. NPP Energiya manufactures logging-while-drilling (LWD) modules for radioactive measurements. Here, too, the hardware and software function as a single product. The goal is the same: to collect formation data while drilling, without interrupting operations to run separate logging tools. According to the company, its LWD modules have been used to drill more than 1,500 wells in Western and Eastern Siberia, the Orenburg Region, Bashkortostan and Kamchatka.
Another example of integration is VECTOR, a bottomhole telemetry system with a hydraulic communication channel developed by the Geofizika Research and Production Company and used in a drillstring assembly with a module from NPP Energiya. While drilling is underway, the system transmits data to the surface on rock density, porosity and natural radioactivity. It can also generate azimuthal images divided into 16 sectors.
A High Level of Import Substitution
In 2022, foreign software accounted for an estimated 70% to 90% of the oil and gas industry's software market, depending on the assessment. After international companies halted exports of products and technologies to Russia, the high-tech oilfield services market faced shortages. Oilfield geophysics has since made substantial progress in replacing imported technologies. The share of Russian software now exceeds 56% of the market, and that share continues to grow.
The SOPR-89 is more than a substitute for existing equipment. It is an attempt to bring the market a more capable product that integrates instrumentation, electronics and industrial software. The system has completed pilot industrial testing in wells in Tatarstan. The next steps are to move into serial production and establish regular use by customers.
The future of oilfield services lies in multifunctional systems that bring hardware and digital technologies together in a single operating cycle. The SOPR-89 is not simply a “unique tool”; it is a working solution designed to improve production efficiency.
