Uchenna Izundu
International Editor
LONDON, June 11 -- Oil production has begun from Brenda and Nicol fields in the UK Central North Sea. Production from the fields is expected to average 30,000 b/d of oil during the first full year.
Oilexco Inc., operator of both fields, said these were its first projects in the North Sea. Brenda field, which has four horizontal production wells, is a subsea development with oil coming from Paleocene sands. It is connected by an 8-km subsea tieback to the Balmoral floating production vessel on Block 16/21a. Oilexco owns a 7.9% nonoperated interest in the Balmoral facility.
During the second year of Brenda's production, Oilexco will drill and complete a fifth horizontal well in the Brenda West accumulation as defined by the 15/25b-9 and 15/25b-10 wells.
Oil from Nicol field, also from a Paleocene sands reservoir, is flowing from a single well with a 10-km subsea tieback to the Brenda manifold.
The Brenda and Nicol fields are on Blocks 15/25b and 15/25a, respectively, and were developed simultaneously.
Oil production from Brenda and Nicol was scheduled to come on stream late last year, but was severely delayed because of a divers' strike, which affected laying the subsea infrastructure, as well as atrocious weather in the North Sea.
Oilexco has a 100% working interest in Brenda and Nicol. It has a 70% revenue interest in Nicol and has agreed to pay £9 million to Eni SPA and ConocoPhillips to buy the outstanding 30% interest. The deal grants them the first right to lift 1.25 million bbl from 30% of the field's gross production. After this happens, Oilexco will have a full 100% working interest, a company spokesman told OGJ.
Contact Uchenna Izundu at [email protected].