Welcome to the Plug and Abandonment Technical Section (P&ATS)

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Well Decommissioning • Leakage Prevention • Well Integrity

Plug and Abandonment Technical Section

Advancing the science, engineering, and practice of permanent well decommissioning.

The SPE Plug and Abandonment Technical Section brings together professionals working across well integrity, barrier design, diagnostics, remediation, regulatory strategy, offshore and onshore decommissioning, and emerging reuse interfaces such as CCS, CCUS, and geothermal. This community is focused on practical, technically sound, and societally credible abandonment of deep wells.

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Why P&A Matters Technical Scope Featured Article Member Value Priority Themes Leadership FAQ
Why this section exists

P&A is no longer a narrow end-of-life task

Plug and Abandonment (P&A) is a core well engineering discipline, not just an end-of-life activity. It requires robust barrier design, reliable zonal isolation, and proven methods to ensure long-term well integrity. This section focuses on the technical execution of P&A, including barrier philosophy, cementing, section milling, and emerging technologies. It provides a platform to share field experience, challenges, and best practices across basins and well types. The goal is simple: improve how we deliver safe, verifiable, and durable well abandonment.
01

Prevent Leakage and Protect the Environment

P&A decisions directly affect methane emissions risk, groundwater isolation, crossflow control, and the long-term containment of fluids and pressure. Strong abandonment practice is central to leakage prevention.

02

Manage Integrity and Liability Across the Full Life Cycle

Permanent abandonment depends on credible barrier design, verification methods, materials selection, failure analysis, and remediation pathways for legacy or inadequately abandoned wells.

03

Enable Future Subsurface Stewardship

As CCS, geothermal, and other geo-energy pathways expand, old well penetrations become part of the risk picture. P&A expertise is increasingly important to repurposing decisions and storage assurance.

Our technical scope

Relevant content for the full P&A workflow

Barrier Philosophy and Design

Permanent barrier concepts, zonal isolation, materials selection, cement and non-cement systems, and placement strategies.

  • Primary and secondary barriers
  • Annular isolation and crossflow control
  • Design for long-term containment

Diagnostics, Verification, and Integrity Evaluation

Methods to assess pre-P&A conditions and verify abandonment quality using logs, pressure behavior, surveillance, and risk screening.

  • Leak-path identification
  • Integrity testing and logging
  • Evidence-based acceptance criteria

Remediation and Re-Abandonment

Repair of failed, legacy, or inadequate abandonments, including wells completed under historical practices or changing expectations.

  • Root-cause review of barrier failure
  • Intervention planning
  • Risk-prioritized remediation

Offshore, Subsea, and Platform Decommissioning Interfaces

Integration of well P&A with broader decommissioning campaigns, vessel logistics, rigless methods, and offshore regulation.

  • Campaign sequencing
  • Rig vs rigless tradeoffs
  • Regional offshore rules and lessons

Methane, Aquifer, and Environmental Risk

How P&A supports leakage prevention, emissions reduction, water protection, and stronger public confidence in subsurface stewardship.

  • Surface expression and seep risk
  • Aquifer isolation
  • Monitoring and post-closure confidence

CCS, CCUS, Geothermal, and Repurposing Interfaces

Assessment of whether a well should be repurposed, suspended, or permanently abandoned in the context of evolving subsurface use.

  • Legacy well risk to storage projects
  • Integrity requirements for reuse
  • Abandon vs repurpose decision framing
Featured article

Well decommissioning, risk, and long-term stewardship

A timely perspective on how the industry can think more clearly about risk, uncertainty, and execution quality in well decommissioning.

LinkedIn Article

De-risking Risk

Featured reading

Well Decommissioning: De-risking Risk

Steven Allan Canny’s article offers a relevant discussion for the P&A community: how abandonment decisions are shaped not only by technical execution, but also by the way risk is framed, communicated, and reduced through credible planning.

For members working across barrier design, well integrity, environmental protection, and decommissioning strategy, this article provides a useful entry point for deeper technical conversation.

Read the Featured Article
What members gain

A technical community built around practical exchange

The section is positioned to connect operators, service companies, regulators, researchers, and consultants around the real engineering problems behind safe and efficient abandonment.

A

Case Histories

Lessons from field execution, difficult wells, legacy inventories, and regional decommissioning programs.

B

Methods and Standards

Exchange on barrier criteria, verification approaches, material performance, and fit-for-purpose acceptance logic.

C

Regulatory and Stakeholder Insight

Discussion of how technical practice intersects with expectations on environmental protection, liabilities, and social license.

D

Cross-Sector Learning

Shared perspectives spanning oil and gas, geothermal, storage projects, disposal wells, and adjacent decommissioning domains.

Priority themes
I

Permanent Barriers

What “good” looks like for abandonment quality, long-term containment, and verification confidence.

II

Legacy Wells and Re-Abandonment

How to assess and prioritize older wells that may not meet today’s expectations or present leakage risk.

III

Future Use of the Subsurface

How abandonment, repurposing, and storage assurance connect as the energy system evolves.

Leadership and participation

Powered by volunteer technical leadership

The officer page highlights leadership across section management, programming, membership, communications, stakeholder engagement, and regional liaison roles. The homepage should point members to that structure while keeping the home page itself focused on mission, scope, and value.

✓
Programming Webinars, discussions, and technical exchange on practical abandonment challenges.
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Membership and Community A place for engineers, scientists, operators, researchers, and stakeholders with a shared P&A focus.
✓
Global Liaison Regional and stakeholder connectivity reflecting the international nature of decommissioning practice.
Quick links

Go directly to the section resources

Section Officers Our Events Library Discussions P&ATS on YouTube
Common questions

FAQ

A concise section to help first-time visitors immediately understand what this technical section covers.

What is in scope for this section?

The section is centered on plugging and abandonment of deep wells, including technical, operational, environmental, regulatory, and integrity-related topics across onshore and offshore settings.

Who should join?

Operators, service companies, drilling and well integrity specialists, decommissioning engineers, researchers, consultants, regulators, and others working on well abandonment or the risks and stewardship issues around legacy wells.

Why is P&A increasingly important now?

Because abandonment now affects methane and water risk, long-tail liabilities, public confidence, and the safety case for future subsurface applications such as carbon storage and geothermal reuse.

Get involved

Join the Plug and Abandonment Technical Section community

Connect with professionals working on permanent abandonment, well integrity, diagnostics, remediation, and decommissioning strategy across the global energy industry.

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