Development of the largest undeveloped gas strike in the U.K. North Sea is unaffected by low spot market gas prices.
That's the word from Britannia Operator Ltd. (BOL), a joint venture of Chevron U.K. Ltd. and Conoco (U.K.) Ltd.
BOL was set up to develop Britannia, which holds estimated reserves of 2.6 tcf of gas and 140 million bbl of condensate. The venture is working on a 1.5 billion development program based on a steel platform in Block 16/26.
Project director Jeff Tetlow said gas sales contracts signed to date are enough to guarantee viability of Britannia development. BOL has not disclosed how much of the field's gas is under sales agreements.
Tetlow said there is no parallel between Britannia and the Judy-Joanne field development project. Judy-Joanne operator Phillips Petroleum Co. U.K. Ltd. is rethinking production plans after its gas purchaser, Enron Europe Ltd., chose not to buy gas for the first year of its contract (OGJ, Sept. 25, p. 38).
Although Britannia's gas sales contracts to date were negotiated through BOL, Tetlow said any future sales contracts must be negotiated by individual license partners.
Field operations
Britannia's platform will be able to produce 740 MMcfd of gas and 60,000 b/d of condensate. An 18 well drilling program is under way in preparation for first gas, due in October 1998 (OGJ, Dec. 26, 1994, p. 30).
Forty-five wells are believed required to deplete the reservoir, said Alan Leiper, project drilling superintendent. One third of the wells will be drilled in the field's subsea well center.
BOL will have two rigs in the field until first quarter 1997, working on predrilled wells. Sedco 711 is drilling at the platform site, while Sovereign Explorer is drilling at the subsea center 15 km away.
Leiper said both rigs are near completion of their third wells. Well results to date show the project is ahead of BOL's target in confirming reserves and meeting deliverability requirements.
Britannia partners are joint operator Conoco 42.41%, joint operator Chevron 30.2%, Union Texas Britannia Ltd. 9.42%, Santa Fe Exploration (U.K.) Ltd. 9.01%, Phillips 5.02%, Texaco North Sea U.K. Ltd. 2.18%, and Amerada Hess Ltd. 1.76%.
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