Shell Offshore Inc. will construct and fabricate a simplified host design and subsea infrastructure for Vito, a deepwater development covering four blocks in the Mississippi Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico. The development will consist of eight subsea wells with deep (18,000 ft) in-well gas lift and is expected to begin production in 2021.
The company said the final investment decision was made with a forward-looking, break-even price estimated to be less than $35/bbl.
Vito, which lies in more than 4,000 ft of water about 150 miles southeast of New Orleans, is expected to reach peak production of 100,000 boe/d. The development currently has an estimated recoverable resource of 300 million boe, the company said.
In 2015, Shell began to redesign the Vito project, reducing cost estimates by more than 70% by simplifying the design and working with vendors in areas including well design and completions, subsea, contracting, and topsides design (OGJ Online, Nov. 30, 2016).
Shell owns and operates the Vito development with a 63.11% interest. Statoil USA E&P Inc. holds 36.89%.
