BP plans for significant growth in deepwater Gulf of Mexico
BP has approved a major expansion at the Atlantis field in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and has identified significant additional oil resources that could create further development opportunities around the production hubs it operates in the region.
The $1.3 billion Atlantis Phase 3 development is the latest example of BP's strategy of growing advantaged oil production through its existing production facilities in the Gulf. The approval for this latest development comes after recent BP breakthroughs in advanced seismic imaging and reservoir characterization revealed an additional 400 million barrels of oil in place at the Atlantis field.
Application of the same technology and analysis has now identified an additional 1 billion barrels of oil in place at the Thunder Horse field. Elsewhere, two new discoveries near the Na Kika production facility could provide further tie-back development opportunities.
For more information, visit www.bp.com or call (281) 366-4463.
LLOG Exploration reports deepwater Gulf discovery
LLOG Exploration Co. LLC recently provided a detailed update on the status of its recent successes and ongoing projects. Key highlights included:
- Drilled successful discovery on LLOG's exploratory prospect, Nearly Headless Nick, in Mississippi Canyon 387.
- Brought on line five new fields in 2018, of which four initiated production in the fourth quarter, adding a total of eight new producing wells in 2018.
- The five LLOG-operated fields represents over half of the nine total fields brought on line in the entire deepwater Gulf of Mexico.
- Forecasting three new fields being brought on line in 2019 from five wells.
- Four additional development wells from existing fields also expected to be brought on line in 2019.
For more information, visit www.llog.com or call (985) 801-4300.
Offshore service market growth to outpace shale
Rystad Energy has forecasted offshore spending will outgrow spending on onshore shale activities this year. Service companies exposed to the offshore subsea market and the maintenance, modifications and operations sector are set to benefit from this trend reversal.
At current oil price levels, spending on land rigs, fracking and other services for the shale industry is likely to stay essentially flat in 2019. The offshore service market, too, will feel the effects of the recent oil price slide, but this sector is nevertheless projected to grow by a robust 4 percent this year, according to Rystad Energy.
Rystad Energy expects the uptick in offshore spending to be driven by exploration and greenfield projects. In addition, operational expenditure budgets will likely swell thanks to cost inflation, more fields coming on stream and a buildup of work that needs to be completed.
For more information, visit www.rystadenergy.com or call (281) 231-2600.
Study: Anadarko Basin has huge oil and gas reserves
The Greater Anadarko Basin, a prolific source of conventional U.S. oil and gas production since the 1950s, holds an estimated 16 billion barrels of oil and more than 200 trillion cubic feet of gas in unrisked, technically recoverable resources in unconventional reservoirs, according to new energy research from IHS Markit.
The IHS Markit analysis shows the basin is pushing toward new all-time production highs long after conventional oil and gas production peaked in the 1970s and 1980s, respectively. Horizontal drilling in the Anadarko Basin has increased sharply since 2008, and annual basin production volumes have already set new peak records.
For more information, visit www.ihsmarkit.com or call (713) 906-2901.
U.S. Gulf of Mexico poised for historic year
This year is shaping up to be a good one in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, with the first increase in drilling in four years, first-ever production from a Jurassic play, key new project sanctions and an uptick in M&A all in the cards, Wood Mackenzie said.
William Turner, senior research analyst at Wood Mackenzie, said, "We expect 2019 to be a strong year for the Gulf of Mexico. In addition to exciting new project sanctions, which could usher in more than $10 billion of investment into the region, a couple of historic firsts set to occur in 2019 could set the stage for years to come."
In its annual outlook, Wood Mackenzie said that after four years of steady decline, exploration activity is expected to increase next year by 30 percent. Shell and Chevron will lead the way, but the actual growth in exploration will come from new entrants: Kosmos Energy, Equinor, Total, Murphy and Fieldwood.
For more information, visit www.woodmac.com.