VIDEO: How date seeds are helping our drilling operations

In 2015, one of our senior researchers was tending to his date tree. Harvesting and enjoying a few of his dates triggered his inherent curiosity. He started considering the potential use of the dates’ various waste components.

At the time, Aramco was utilizing imported nutshells to address the issue of partial circulation loss of drilling fluids, which is one of the challenges in drilling operations. Upon initial testing, we found that the date seeds’ unique properties make them more effective than nutshells in addressing the challenge at hand.

This innovative solution was then patented and marketed under the name “ARC Plug”, a local date seed-based lost circulation material. With this product, we were able to connect the Kingdom’s ancient date plantations to our oil and gas operations, reinforcing our commitment to innovation and helping drive value and efficiency in our drilling operations.