ConocoPhillips lets contract for Ekofisk water-injection facility

Guntis Moritis
OGJ Production Editor

HOUSTON, Mar. 20 -- ConocoPhillips Skandinavia AS has awarded Technip SA a lump-sum installation contract for the Ekofisk VA subsea water-injection project in Block 2/4 off Norway. The contract provides for the installation, tie-in, and commissioning of subsea facilities between the existing Ekofisk facilities and a new eight-well subsea injection template (2/4 VA).

The contract includes installation engineering; procurement of installation equipment; installation of client provided spools, flexible flowlines, and umbilicals; design, fabrication, and installation of protection covers; and tie-in and commissioning.

ConocoPhillips will provide the detailed design and other equipment.

Offshore installation is scheduled for 2009.

Several vessels will perform the installation including Technip's newbuilt diving-support vessel, the Skandi Arctic.

ConocoPhillips plans to drill the eight water-injection wells with the Maersk Innovator jack up. Drilling is to start in April.

The injection wells will replace existing water-injection wells that ConocoPhillips plans to shut in.

Waterflooding started at Ekofisk in 1987 after two successful pilot projects and has helped increase ConocoPhillips' estimated oil recovery from the fractured chalk reservoir to the current target of 50% from an initial 17%.

Other investments ConocoPhillips plans in the Greater Ekofisk area include:

-- Water injection in Ekofisk South, an area not yet waterflooded.

-- Development of Eldfisk II with two new platforms, 40-50 new producing wells, and a major waterflood expansion.

-- Development of Tommeliten Alpha gas-condensate discovery. ConocoPhillips expects to select the field's development concept in 2009.

Contact Guntis Moritis at [email protected].