OREANDA-NEWS. May 30, 2012. 1,500 PC 60 and 390 PC 80 balancer-free chain drives were manufactured at the Bugulma Mechanical Plant (BMZ) of JSC  TATNEFT.

Balancer-free chain drives manufactured by the Bugulma Mechanical Plant have been developed together with the experts of TatNIPIneft and are designed to drive downhole sucker rod pumps in the process of crude oil production. Being a manufacturer of PC 80 the BMZ was a winner of the contest "100 best goods of Russia" in 2009. At present there are 7 different chain drive modifications for the sucker-rod pump. The technical documentation has also been developed at the BMZ for chain drive prototypes to operate in the Far North conditions and in the areas of hot climate.

The chain drives (PC 60 and PC 80) have been operated at JSC  TATNEFT for 12 years.

The advantages of PC 60-18-3-0,5/2,5 (stroke length of 3 m) compared with a beam analogue include significant reduction of hydrodynamic drag force in the underground part of the downhole sucker rod pump installations; possibility of operating low-productivity wells in a continuous mode; reduction of specific energy consumption, dynamic loads, number of wells remedial servicing operations resulting from emulsification, number of rods parting and breaking, as well as increase of the downhole equipment life period.

The advantages of PC 80-6-1/4 (stroke length of 6 m) include possibility of operating high production wells with application of sucker rod pumps, including the wells producing extra-viscous oil and complicated with salt and asphaltene/resin/paraffin deposits; ability of operating the wells with additional production casing strings and small diameter wells without productivity loss. Application of PC 80 reduces dynamic loads, specific energy consumption for products lifting by 50 percent + compared with the ESP; increases the service life of the downhole equipment when operating large producing wells with application of sucker rod pumps. In contrast to the ESP, chain drives provide for possibility of adjusting the mode of the well operation within the drive's technical specifications without any loss of efficiency and bringing in a workover crew to replace the pumping unit with another size.