Automated Workover Rig Oil Well Sidetrack: DW20 at Daqing Oilfield
Executive Summary
Daqing Oilfield — one of China's largest mature fields — is in its mid-to-late development phase: many old wells, and a heavy, steady demand for workover and sidetrack operations. Conventional workover rigs were manually operated: extremely labor-intensive, slow, accident-prone, with data that could not be traced. Jinneng Drilling developed the DW20 automated integrated drilling-and-workover rig — a fully electro-hydraulic dual-control machine with an automatic tubular-handling system, remote operating platform and data acquisition & traceability system. Compatible with drilling, workover, sidetrack and re-perforating, and built for high-temperature, high-corrosion oilfield service, the DW20 cut single-well workover cycle by 50%, reduced labor by 60%, and drove safety accidents to zero — and has since been rolled out across multiple Daqing blocks.
Project Background & Challenge
Mature oilfields live or die by workover efficiency:
- Aging well stock: Daqing is in mid-to-late development, so old wells need repeated workover and sidetrack to keep production flowing.
- Manual, hard and risky: traditional workover depended on hands-on manual operation — very high labor intensity, low efficiency, frequent safety incidents, and no usable construction record.
- Intelligent-field mismatch: the old approach could not support the oilfield's push toward smarter, more efficient, data-driven operations.
What was needed was one machine that could drill, work over, sidetrack and re-perforate; survive high-temperature, high-corrosion service; and run unmanned with remote control.
Our Solution
The DW20 automated integrated drilling-and-workover rig was built for exactly that:
- Full electro-hydraulic dual control: combines electric and hydraulic control for precise, repeatable rig movements.
- Automatic tubular-handling system: makes up and breaks out tubing and rods without manual handling on the rig floor.
- Remote operating platform: crews operate from a remote station instead of on the dangerous rig floor.
- Data acquisition & traceability system: every job is recorded, so workover history is traceable per well.
- Multi-process compatibility: handles workover, sidetrack and re-perforating across the oilfield's high-temperature, high-corrosion well conditions, with unmanned remote operation.
Key Results
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Single-well workover cycle | Shortened by 50% |
| Labor requirement | Reduced by 60% |
| Safety accidents | Reduced to zero |
| Operations supported | Drilling, workover, sidetrack, re-perforating |
| Control architecture | Full electro-hydraulic dual control; remote operation; unmanned |
| Data | Automatic acquisition and traceability per well |
| Field deployment | Rolled out across multiple Daqing blocks |
| Equipment status | Stable operation, high reliability |
For the full technical specifications of the CORTECH® DW20, see the DW20 product page.
Customer Value & ROI
- Half the cycle, 60% less labor: shorter single-well workover means more wells serviced per season and lower day-rate cost; the headcount drop directly cuts one of the largest mature-field operating costs.
- Zero accidents: moving people off the rig floor to a remote station removed the dominant safety risk in manual workover.
- Data you can audit: per-well recorded data gives the operator traceability for compliance, planning and failure analysis.
- One machine, many jobs: compatibility across drilling, workover, sidetrack and re-perforating reduces the number of specialized rigs a block must own and mobilize.
FAQ
What is an automated workover rig?
It is a workover machine that replaces manual rig-floor labor with automated tubular handling, electro-hydraulic control and remote operation — as on the DW20, which also covers sidetracking and re-perforating.
How much can automation cut workover cycle time?
In the Daqing deployment, the DW20 shortened single-well workover cycle by 50%, cut labor by 60%, and drove safety accidents to zero.
Can a workover rig perform sidetracking?
Yes — the DW20 is an integrated drilling-and-workover rig designed to handle workover, sidetrack and re-perforating on the same unit across high-temperature, high-corrosion well conditions.
What is remote, unmanned workover operation?
Operators run the rig from a remote platform while an automatic tubular-handling system makes up and breaks out the string, with continuous data acquisition — keeping personnel off the dangerous rig floor.
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