BP is assessing a further phase development on its west of Shetland Clair field, which could see another new, large central processing facility built in the field.
The move will seek widely spread areas of the estimated 7-8 billion barrel oil originally in place Clair field, in areas of poorer quality rock than have been tapped until now under the field’s existing phased developments.
Image: The Clair Ridge jackets installed west of Shetland earlier this year. Photo from BP.
The next phases of development at Clair are likely to require an additional central processing facility, with topsides weighing around 14,000-18,000-tonne, and with 60-100,000b/d capacity, the firm revealed at Oil & Gas UK’s Pilot Fair Share, held in Aberdeen yesterday (5 November).
BP said it is evaluating subsea and heavy duty jackup and wellhead tower technologies. BP’s appraisal general manager Adrian Littler said the facilities could require investment totaling between $10-15 billion.
The oil major is currently mid-way through offshore construction work on its £4.5 billion Clair Ridge development, which is the phase 2 development of the Clair field. Phase 1, which came on stream in 2005, is a single fixed facility. The Phase 2 (Clair Ridge), when complete, will comprise two bridge-linked platform.
A six-well appraisal program, designed to address the spatial distribution potential of Clair’s potential resources, and running 2013-2015, has led the firm to consider building a new central processing facility to tap the “Greater Clair” resources.
Five of the six wells have been drilled to-date, with mixed results, the firm said in its presentation yesterday. But, the resources are spread over such a wide area, a minimum of three drill centers are likely to be required.
The Clair field lies 75km to the west of the Shetland Islands. Topsides installation on phase 2, called Clair Ridge, is scheduled in 2015, with production expected to commence in late 2016.
The Clair Ridge development will have the capability to produce an estimated 640MM bbl over a 40 year period, with peak production expected to be up to 120,000 bbl/d.
Clair Ridge is the first sanctioned large-scale offshore enhanced oil recovery (EOR) scheme using reduced salinity water injection (LoSal EOR) to extract a higher proportion of oil over the life of the field.
The Clair Field is managed under a unitisation agreement executed in 1997 and comprises four licenses (P165, P168, P169 and P170) and six blocks (206/7a, 206/8, 206/9, 206/11a, 206/12 and 206/13) and is owned by the four co-venturers – BP (28.6015% and Op), Shell (27.9731%), ConocoPhillips (24.0029%) and Chevron (19.4225%).
Oil (ca. 22 - 25⁰ API) is exported from the Clair field via a dedicated & owned 22in oil pipeline and gas via the 20in West of Shetland (WoSP) pipeline, both to the Sullom Voe Terminal onshore Shetland. Oil is sold directly from the terminal; Clair Phase 1 gas is sold to Britoil offshore and subsequently exported to Magnus for their gas enhanced oil recovery scheme via the EOSPS line. Clair Ridge gas will be exported via the Total-owned SIRGE pipeline infrastructure to the St. Fergus onshore terminal via the FUKA system.
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