First production on the southern North Sea RWE Dea UK-operated Breagh gas field has been set back, again.
Sterling Resources, a partner on the project, said production start-up will now be delayed until mid-October, according to RWE.
During the plant start-up process it was discovered that remedial work on three small heat exchangers was required; one of which requires removal to a suitable repair facility.
Breagh phase one received development sanction in June 2010 and had been scheduled for first gas in 2012. See: http://oedigital.com/component/k2/item/209-homing-in-on-ukcs-prospects
Breagh is in blocks 42/12a and 42/13a in 62m water depth, about 100km east of Teesside. Gas is exported via a 20in. pipeline from the Breagh Alpha platform to Coatham Sands, Redcar, on the UK mainland, and then via an 11km onshore pipeline to the Teesside Gas Processing Plant (TGPP) at Seal Sands.
"The start-up of the Breagh gas field continues to be a challenging and frustrating process for Sterling," stated John Rapach, Sterling's CEO. "Previous mechanical problems with the gas-to-gas exchangers, which delayed start-up over the summer, have now been fully resolved. We continue to work with operator RWE Dea UK to achieve a safe and sustainable start-up of the Breagh field as expeditiously as possible."
Image: RWE Dea UK's Breagh Alpha platform