NOPSEMA greenlights Esso Tarwhine, Seahorse abandonment plan

Esso Australia plans to permanently plug and abandon its Seahorse and Tarwhine field subsea wells in Bass Strait this month with completion expected no later than September 2021. The work is programmed to take about 30 days per well.

The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority approved the company’s P&A campaign proposal in production licenses Vic/L1 and Vic/L18 that includes use of the Noble Tom Prosser jack up rig.

The wells lie 15 km and 23 km off the Gippsland coast of eastern Victoria in water depths of 43 m.

Esso also is formulating plans to undertake well plug and abandonment works at other Bass Strait fields, including the Whiting platform, Mulloway-Whiptail and Perch-Dolphin.