Hibernia South Extension oil production starts

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, June 29 -- ExxonMobil Canada Properties has started oil production from the Hibernia South Extension project on the Grand Banks off Newfoundland and Labrador.

Oil flowed from the Hibernia South Extension Unit KK well on June 25, said provincial energy firm Nalcor Energy Oil & Gas, which has a 10% working interest in the development.

Press reports said the well is the first of four production wells to be drilled from the Hibernia field platform. Hibernia South Extension ultimate recovery is expected to be 220 million bbl of oil (OGJ Online, June 16, 2009).

The four production wells will provide data about the formation’s production characteristics, enabling ExxonMobil to optimize the number and placement of water injection wells. As many as five injection wells will be drilled later from a mobile offshore drilling unit.

Hibernia field, which started up in 1997, itself is averaging 175,000 b/d, surpassing its production averages for 2008, 2009, and 2010. The higher rate is attributable to an extended reach well which at more than 10,000 m is Canada’s longest wellbore.

In addition to the Hibernia South Extension, Nalcor is a participant in two other offshore developments: the White Rose Growth Project and Hebron project.

First production from the White Rose Growth Project-North Amethyst field, in which Nalcor has a 5% working interest, began on May 31, 2010. Nalcor also has a 4.9% working interest in the Hebron project, which anticipates first oil production in 2017.

Nalcor’s partners in the Hibernia South Extension are ExxonMobil Canada, Suncor, Chevron Canada Ltd., Murphy Oil, Canada Hibernia Holding Corp., and Statoil Canada Ltd.