With over 800 operations worldwide, and recognised as a leading technology provider in well integrity, the company is redefining how operators approach well integrity, sustainability, and field life extension

As the oil and gas industry in the Middle East evolves to maximise recovery from aging assets, operators face growing challenges related to well integrity, environmental compliance, and cost efficiency.

Mature reservoirs, declining discoveries, and tightening sustainability regulations have placed unprecedented pressure on operators to do more with existing wells, while ensuring absolute containment and safety.

In this new operational landscape, Wellcem, a Norwegian based technology company, has emerged as a trusted partner for some of the region’s biggest operators in the Middle East.

Its proprietary ThermaSet® resin technology offers a proven alternative to traditional cementing and mechanical sealing methods, delivering permanent, adaptable, and rigless integrity solutions that are transforming the region’s well maintenance philosophy.

AGEING FIELDS DEMAND SMARTER SEALING

Many Middle Eastern oilfields have been producing for decades, and the passage of time brings challenges, such as micro-annuli formation (microscopic gaps between casing and cement that often cause gas migration), casing corrosion, and cement deterioration.

Jerry Minor

Conventional cement repair jobs often fail to provide a lasting seal due to its inability to penetrate deep into narrow leak paths. Cement tends to crack or offer only poor bonding.

ThermaSet® was engineered precisely to overcome these limitations. The resin forms a high-strength, pressure-tight, impermeable barrier that bonds well to steel, cement, and formation rock.

Its thermosetting nature ensures it cures at a very specific temperature and retains its mechanical properties, even in fluctuating downhole conditions.

This unique performance characteristic has enabled operators in Middle East to extend the productive life of their wells without resorting to expensive workovers or abandonments.

As regulators across the GCC strengthen environmental frameworks, operators are prioritising technologies that prevent unwanted fluid migration and surface leaks.

Wellcem’s solution directly supports this agenda.

ThermaSet® can be precisely placed to eliminate sustained casing pressures, isolate and seal casing leaks, ensuring that hydrocarbons are produced efficiently while minimising emissions and formation crossflow.

"Every sealed annulus contributes to safer and cleaner production," says Jerry Minor, Regional Manager ME & SEA.

"Our technology is enabling operators to achieve sustainability targets while maintaining operational performance."

This capability is particularly valued by national oil companies (NOCs) that have committed to zero methane leak initiatives and flare reduction programmes under the broader sustainability visions of Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

RIGLESS RESTORATION OF WELL INTEGRITY

One of Wellcem’s most impactful contributions to regional operators is its ability to repair wells with integrity issues without a workover rig.

ThermaSet® offers a proven alternative and exceeds performance characteristics of conventional cement

Through targeted resin injection techniques, the company’s specialists can restore annular integrity, seal packer leaks, wellhead leaks, and plug control lines without the cost and complexity of mobilising a rig.

Sustained casing pressure (SCP) has long been a persistent challenge in regional oil and gas wells.

Conventional cement squeezes often fail to penetrate sufficiently deep into micro-annuli or tiny leak paths, leading to recurring pressure issues.

ThermaSet® addresses this problem through its low-viscosity, highly penetrative flow characteristics.

Once pumped reaching the target zone, it fills the smallest voids and micro-fractures, displaces fluids, and then cures into a solid, pressure-resistant seal.

The system’s controllable setting time allows Wellcem’s engineers to fine-tune the operation to the exact downhole environment, ensuring complete and durable sealing.

For operators in the Middle East, this has meant restoring well integrity without repeated interventions, reducing both cost and risk.

At the AIMCS EXPO 2025, Wellcem’s Middle East operations team demonstrated how ThermaSet® can penetrate and seal micro-annuli.

Using rheological control and chemical bonding, the resin infiltrates areas unreachable by cement, delivering permanent zonal isolation in even the most complex completions.

ThermaSet® is lab-tested under simulated downhole conditions

The same principle applies to packer leaks and casing repairs, where Wellcem’s interventions have proven capable of restoring pressure integrity without pulling the completion string.

This translates to enhanced safety, reduced NPT, and significant savings — benefits that resonate strongly in high-cost offshore environments.

CONQUERING LOST CIRCULATION WITH RESIN PRECISION

Lost circulation remains a costly and unpredictable drilling hazard, particularly in fractured carbonate and depleted formations common across the Middle East.

Traditional lost circulation materials (LCMs) tend to provide only temporary fixes, bridging fractures rather than sealing them.

ThermaSet® offers a fundamentally different approach. By penetrating the loss zone internally, the resin solidifies into a high-strength, impermeable plug, creating a permanent barrier that withstands subsequent drilling pressures.

This has allowed operators to regain circulation safely and resume drilling without repeated treatments — a critical advantage in both exploration and redevelopment campaigns.

Every resin blend is lab-tested under simulated downhole conditions to match specific requirements of density, cure kinetics, and mechanical properties. The result is a solution that performs consistently at required temperatures and pressures.

These tailored applications have solved liner and casing integrity challenges for leading operators, proving that resin-based technology can deliver where conventional cement fails.

With over 800 successful interventions worldwide, Wellcem has observed a clear global trend: operators are increasingly turning to resin-based sealing systems to achieve higher reliability, lower emissions, and greater cost efficiency.

Driven by mature assets, regulatory pressure, and sustainability goals, regions, such as the North Sea and the Middle East are leading this shift.

"The next decade of well integrity will be shaped by materials science," says Minor.

"ThermaSet® represents that evolution — a smarter, more adaptable alternative that addresses the industry’s most persistent integrity challenges," he adds.

A FUTURE BUILT ON PERMANENT INTEGRITY

Wellcem’s mission remains consistent: To provide innovative, durable, and environmentally responsible sealing solutions that safeguard wells for decades to come.

As the company continues to invest in regional expertise and laboratory testing, its focus remains clear: To make well integrity permanent.

Through ThermaSet®, Wellcem isn’t just sealing leaks; it’s sealing the future of the industry - one well at a time.