4:14 THE CHALLENGE
The hardest wells to abandon are the ones that matter most.
Many wells slated for abandonment have compromised integrity, collapsed casing, stuck tubing, or no usable surface access. Conventional methods rely on open-hole wireline runs that are slow, costly and carry well-control risk.
Old and unrecorded wells may have uncertain positions, and urban or offshore settings add access, environmental and regulatory pressure to every decision.
THE GUNNAR APPROACH
Intercept the well, seal it from the inside.
Gunnar uses active magnetic ranging to drill a relief-style path that intercepts the target casing precisely, then mills in and places a deep cement plug on the inside, guaranteeing a permanent, durable abandonment.
No-access ranging-while-drilling eliminates wireline round-trips and open-hole exposure, removing kick and blowout risk while dramatically cutting rig time and cost.
SCOPE OF WORK, ONE INTEGRATED TEAM
End-to-end abandonment, engineered and executed.
01
P&A planning & permitting
Intercept design, integrity assessment and regulatory documentation.
02
No-access active ranging
DeadSet™ and CTRWD™ locate the target without wireline exposure.
03
Mill, exit & re-entry
Outside-in milling to establish communication with the target casing.
04
Deep cement placement
Permanent plugs set inside the target wellbore with confidence.
05
Urban & offshore P&A
Compact systems for rig-constrained, urban and offshore environments.
06
Regulator-witnessed sign-off
Documented, compliant abandonment, including CalGEM-certified projects.
TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYED
Proprietary tools for this application.
CTRWD™
Coiled-tubing ranging-while-drilling, 3.5" tool deploys under pressure for deep, tight abandonment where rigs struggle.
DeadSet™
No-access wireline active ranging with ±1 ft accuracy, removes wireline kick and blowout risk.
CleanCut™
Precision milling simulation that converts intercept geometry into real-world milling parameters.
PROOF, 17 PROJECTS
Where we've done it.
North Dakota, USA · 2025
Relief-Well Intercept, Kill & P&A
~8,640 ftMD, intercepted at exact planned depth
California, USA · 2020 – ongoing
Relief-Well P&A, Legacy Gas Field
8 interceptsacross the 4-well campaign
Gulf of Mexico · 2025 – ongoing
Offshore Well Location & Intercept P&A
~28 wellsto locate, intercept & permanently P&A
Los Angeles, California, USA · 2024
Urban Legacy-Well Locate & Re-Entry
~1,760 ftMD, casing stub-top located for re-entry
Australia · 2025 – ongoing
Offshore Re-Abandonment & P&A Feasibility
Feasible2 wells, re-abandonment / P&A
Southern California, USA · 2024 – ongoing
Near-Surface Wellbore Detection & Positioning
±10 ftto target, vs. up to ~60 ft historical survey error
West Texas, USA · 2026
Near-Surface Detection, Emergency Well Location
+856 nTresidual anomaly, at the surface fluid expression
North Sea, UK · 2025
CCS Re-Abandonment Intercept Study
Feasible2 wells, CCS re-abandonment
Western Australia · 2025
High-Angle Intercept, Mill & Re-Enter for P&A
~50%time saved vs. forecast
Western Australia · 2024
Intercept, Mill & Re-Enter for P&A
~1,970 mtarget MD, barrier intercept set below the packer
Colorado, USA · 2023
Casing-Stump Locate & Re-Entry P&A
~1 ftto target, casing stump located at ~1,010 ft MD
Offshore Texas, USA · 2022
Offshore Orphan-Well Securing & P&A
2 wellssecured, leaking orphan wells on a derelict platform
New Mexico, USA · 2022
Two-Well Fish Ranging & Re-Intersection
2 wellsstuck-BHA fish re-intersected & abandoned
California, USA · 2021
Parted-Casing Sidetrack Intercept & Mill-In
0.5 ftcenter-to-center, closed to direct contact at ~802 ft MD
Los Angeles, California, USA · 2021
Urban Map-Then-Intercept Abandonment
Directcasing contact, paralleled the target over ~15 ft
Los Angeles, California, USA · 2021
1949 Orphan-Well Re-Abandonment
1949orphan well closed, stuck fish re-entered & cemented to surface
Los Angeles, California, USA · 2020
Urban Shallow Intercept for Abandonment
~258 ftpass-by depth, 10-3/4" stump located beneath partial 16" casing
WATCH, FROM THE FIELD
See it in motion.
4:14 
7:02 Intersecting Two Abandoned Wells Under Los Angeles (Part 1) | P&A Case Study
4:22 How to Plug & Abandon a Well With No Surface Access | Case Study
FREQUENTLY ASKED
Plug & Abandonment, your questions, answered.
How does ranging reduce P&A cost?
No-access ranging-while-drilling eliminates time-consuming open-hole wireline round-trips and the associated well-control risk. On complex P&A this can save roughly half the rig time and millions of dollars versus conventional methods.
Can you abandon wells with no surface access?
Yes. That is the core advantage of ranging-based P&A: by drilling a new path that intercepts the target wellbore underground, Gunnar can seal wells that are inaccessible, collapsed or unrecorded from surface.
Do you handle offshore and urban P&A?
Yes. Compact systems like the 3.5" CTRWD™ are suited to rig-constrained, urban and offshore settings, and Gunnar manages the environmental and regulatory requirements that come with them.
Is the abandonment permanent and compliant?
Plugs are placed inside the target casing and the work is regulator-witnessed. Gunnar has delivered CalGEM-certified abandonments approved for site redevelopment.