Total has launched front-end engineering and design (FEED) for the North Platte discovery in the deepwater US Gulf of Mexico, marking its return to the region as an operator. A final investment decision is expected in 2021.
North Platte field straddles four blocks of the Garden Banks area, 275 km off the coast of Louisiana in 1,300 m of water. The reservoir is of high quality, both in porosity and permeability, with thickness in places exceeding 1,200 m.
Discovered in 2012 by Total and Cobalt International Energy Inc. in the Wilcox play, North Platte covers Blocks 915, 916, 958, and 959. The field is now fully appraised with a total of three wells and three sidetracks (OGJ Online, Dec. 5, 2012; Jan. 4, 2017) .
Like Anchor, sanctioned by operator partner Chevron (62.86%), North Platte requires the use of 20 kpsi technologies (OGJ Online, Dec. 12, 2019). The field development plan is based on eight subsea wells and two subsea drilling bases connected via two production loops to a newbuild, lightweight floating production unit (FPU). Production will be exported through existing oil and gas subsea networks.
Total operates North Platte with a 60% working interest, alongside Equinor, 40%. With Equinor (then Statoil) in April 2018, Total E&P USA bid $339 million for the North Platte prospect on Garden Banks during the bankruptcy auction of Cobalt (OGJ Online, Apr. 11, 2018).
Oil production at plateau level is expected to average 75,000 b/d. Output will include associated gas. Total also holds interests in high-potential exploration acreage in the Greater North Platte Area, and the FPU design provides for a possible future tie-in.
