Production at Chevron’s Erskine project in the Central North Sea has hit a new snag, after Shell said that further work is needed on the recommissioning of the Lomond platform, according to partner Serica Energy.
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Erskine. Image from Chevron. |
According to Serica, Shell advised that recommissioning of the Lomond export facilities, which was expected to take one week, has taken longer than projected and that further work is required on the main Erskine condensate export pump, located on Lomond, before it can be brought fully on-line.
As a result, recommencement of full, continuous production of Erskine has been delayed, and is expected to take several more days, Serica said.
Oil and gas production has restarted at Erskine on 27 July, following a prolonged period to clear a blocked pipeline and undertake planned maintenance on the Lomond platform, which provides treatment and export facilities to Erskine.
The Erskine field lies approximately 150mi (241km) east of Aberdeen, Scotland, in the Central North Sea, in water depths of about 296ft (90m).
In March, the pipeline blockage inthe Lomond to Everest condensate export line was caused when a foam cleaning device (pig) became lodged in the pipeline due to a build-up of wax.
Erskine production was built up for a short period to flush the Lomond/Everest condensate export line and establish full flow through the system before being temporarily suspended for final clean-up operations and for re-commissioning of Lomond platform facilities to be completed.
Discovered in 1981 in Block 23/26, Erskine was the first high-pressure, high-temperature field to be developed in the UK Continental Shelf. First production was achieved in December 1997.
The field includes a normally unattended installation and is remotely controlled from Shell’s operated Lomond platform. An 18.6mi (30km) pipeline links the two facilities.
Processing takes place in a dedicated module on the Lomond platform. Gas and condensate are exported separately to Shell’s North Everest platforms before gas is finally exported via the Central Area Transmission System and condensate is exported through the Forties Pipeline System.
In 2015, Erskine’s net daily production averaged 2385 bbl of liquids and 13.92 MMcf of natural gas.
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