Critical Sour Drilling IRP for Canadian Oil & Gas Industry

Critical Sour Drilling Industry Recommended Practice (IRP) for the Canadian Oil & Gas Industry.

Critical sour refers to wells where the formation fluids are expected to contain hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in sufficient quantities such that the potential release during a blowout would have a significant impact on the public (either high release rate or close proximity to the public).
Critical sour or the equivalent designation is usually explicitly specified by the applicable jurisdictional regulation, such as in Alberta Directive 056: Energy Development Applications and Schedules.

The goal of this IRP is to provide a set of best practices that will prevent a blowout while drilling a critical sour well.

This IRP applies to overbalanced drilling of high H2S (sour) wells using jointed drill strings on conventional drilling or modified service rigs.
It comprises a set of equipment specifications, practices, and procedures to address sour drilling issues.