Texaco scores heavily in Gulf of Mexico

Texaco Inc. is evaluating three discoveries in the Gulf of Mexico chalked up by the first wildcats in the company's multiyear gulf deepwater drilling program. (118607 bytes)

The deepwater exploration program, part of Texaco's worldwide plan for growth, aims to evaluate the company's inventory of high potential deepwater prospects. Texaco's deepwater leasehold in the gulf includes 115 exploration blocks covering a combined 536,304 acres in more than 1,300 ft of water.

The three discoveries unveiled last week are Petronius, Fuji, and Gemini, a subsalt reservoir. Texaco operates the discoveries, all of which were generated based on 3D seismic data. (4002 bytes)

The company, in announcing the discoveries, traced its ability to handle economic and technological challenges in the gulf's deep water to its work as leader of the DeepStar combine. DeepStar consists of a group of production and service companies working cooperatively to find ways to reduce the costs and risks of developing deepwater discoveries in the gulf.

To develop smaller deepwater fields or for staged development of larger deepwater strikes, the group envisions tying back subsea completions to host platforms as far as 60 miles away in shallower water. That's one of the techniques Texaco is evaluating for Fuji and Gemini.

Status of evaluations

Texaco and partners are evaluating the three new deepwater fields, with work in different stages at each.

Clarence P. Cazalot, president of Texaco Exploration & Production Inc., said the process is well under way to determine the best way to develop Petronius.

"A delineation well is planned for October to further evaluate reservoir extent, and the prospect could be brought to commercial production in about 3 years," Cazalot said.

Texaco and Marathon Oil Co. drilled the Petronius discovery well, the 1 Viosca Knoll 786 wildcat, about 130 miles southeast of New Orleans. The well flowed 7,700 bbl of 31 gravity oil and 4.4 MMcfd of gas last month. Texaco and Marathon are 50-50 partners in the well.

At Fuji, Cazalot said, Texaco and partner Shell Offshore Inc. expect to begin delineation drilling in late 1996. Plans include drilling wildcats on prospects surrounding Fuji to evaluate potential of a larger trend before settling on a development plan.

In the meantime, the companies are acquiring more seismic data using proprietary vertical cable technology. Texaco said the process significantly reduces computer processing costs. It also has the potential to improve imaging quality over conventional seismic methods, especially in difficult imaging areas like deep water.

Clustered leasehold

Located on three tracts about 150 miles southwest of New Orleans, Fuji is one of several Texaco prospects within a 22 tract, clustered leasehold covering 126,720 acres in the central gulf's Green Canyon area.

Partners temporarily abandoned the field's discovery well, the 1 Green Canyon 506 wildcat, last February. The discovery established significant hydrocarbons in the exploration trend and reduced the risk for several high potential prospects nearby.

Texaco holds a 75% interest in the three tract Fuji project and Shell 25%. Texaco also holds a 100% interest in 19 surrounding blocks.

At Gemini, Texaco and partner Chevron U.S.A. Inc. have well tests scheduled in 1996 to evaluate large reservoirs under 2,908 ft of tabular salt. Partners drilled Gemini's 1 Mississippi Canyon 292 discovery 90 miles southeast of New Orleans.

Despite its water depth, Cazalot said, Gemini is exceptionally well imaged for a subsalt prospect.

Texaco holds a 60% interest in Gemini and Chevron 40%.

Fuji, in about 1,750 ft of water, is a likely candidate for subsea development using DeepStar concepts. Petronius, in more than 4,200 ft of water, could require a more conventional approach.

Texaco said Petronius, Fuji, and Gemini augment the company's presence in the gulf. Its gulf production averages 61,000 b/d of oil and 870 MMcfd of gas.

Additional projects

Other major projects in the Gulf of Mexico in which Texaco holds interests include:

Hercules field, in 778 ft of water about 100 miles south of New Orleans, where production exceeds 46,000 b/d of oil from a 30 slot platform. Early completion of facilities by operator Marathon allowed production to start ahead of schedule in September 1994. Texaco owns a 33.3% interest in the field.
South Teal field, about 100 miles southwest of New Orleans, where production by mid-1996 is to peak at 8,000 b/d of oil and 5 MMcfd of gas. Seismic evaluation of acreage adjacent to producing fields in the Eugene Island federal planning area off Louisiana led to a farmout that enabled Texaco to drill the discovery. Texaco operates the field with a 100% working interest.
Conch prospect, about 25 miles south of Mobile, Ala., is a 1994 discovery based on reprocessed 3D seismic data. Conch production by yearend 1995 is to amount to about 45 MMcfd of gas. Texaco owns a 21% interest in the project.
Cornell prospect, on West Delta Block 109 about 90 miles southeast of New Orleans, is producing about 10,000 b/d of oil and 20 MMcfd of gas. Operator Texaco, with a 94% interest, is enlarging the Cornell platform so it can drill more wells to further increase production.
Shasta prospect, in 850 ft of water about 175 miles southwest of New Orleans. Production, to begin in November from two subsea wells, is expected to amount to about 50 MMcfd of gas. Gas will flow 8 miles through a subsea pipeline to Texaco's Kilauea platform on Green Canyon Block 6. Texaco holds a 58% interest in Shasta.

 TEXACO'S KEY GULF DEEPWATER PROSPECTS Water Drilled depth depth Block (ft) (ft) Working interests (%) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Petronius* Viosca Knoll 786 1,754 10,854 Texaco 50 Marathon 50 Fuji Green Canyon 506 4,243 21,200 Texaco 75 Shell 25 Gemini Mississippi Canyon 292 3,393 17,976 Texaco 60 Chevron 40 *Flowed 7,700 b/d of oil and 4.4 MMcfd of gas on test last month.