Multilateral Wells

•Like horizontal wells, multilateral wells justify their existence through their economics. •Defined as a single well with one or more wellbore branches radiating from the main borehole, they can be an exploration well, an infill development well or a re-entry into an existing well. –They all have a common goal of improving production while saving time and money. •Multilateral-well technology has not yet evolved to the point of horizontal-well technology. •The complexity of multilateral wells ranges from simple to extremely complex. •They may be as simple as a vertical wellbore with one sidetrack or as complex as a horizontal extended-reach well with multiple lateral and sublateralbranches. •While existing techniques are being applied and fresh approaches are being developed, complications remain, and the risks and chances of failure are still high.