bp begins oil production from ACE platform offshore Azerbaijan

bp has started oil production from the new Azeri Central East (ACE) platform as part of Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) oil field development in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea.

The ACE platform, controlled from shore, is the seventh oil producing platform installed on bp-operated ACG field. ACG first began production in 1997 and has since produced over 4.3 billion bbl of oil (OGJ Online, Oct. 22, 2020).  

The $6-billion ACE platform and related infrastructure are designed to process up to 100,000 b/d of oil and the project is expected to produce up to 300 million bbl over its lifetime. Oil will pass through the processing infrastructure on the platform and then be exported around 130 km to the onshore Sangachal terminal via a new in-field pipeline linked to an existing 30-in. subsea export line.

ACE is a 48-slot production, drilling, and quarters platform sited midway between the existing Central Azeri and East Azeri platforms in a water depth of 137 m. The project also includes new infield pipelines to transfer oil and gas from the ACE platform to the existing ACG Phase 2 oil and gas export pipelines for transportation to the onshore Sangachal terminal. 

The platform contains three production risers - one water injection, one oil export, and one gas export.  The first production well was spudded from the platform in December 2023 and was drilled to total depth of 3,150 m. ACE production is expected to increase through 2024 to around 24,000 b/d as two more planned wells are drilled, completed, and brought online. 

bp is operator of ACG with 30.37% interest. Partners are SOCAR (25.0%), MOL (9.57%), INPEX (9.31%), Equinor (7.27%), ExxonMobil (6.79%), TPAO (5.73%), ITOCHU (3.65%), and ONGCVidesh (2.31%).