By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Oct. 5 -- Saudi Aramco will start development of offshore Manifa oil and gas field in the first quarter of 2007 with a production target of 900,000 b/d of Arab Heavy crude.
It expects to let a lump-sum, turnkey contract by yearend for construction of a causeway to shallow-water parts of the field. The causeway will have a 21-km main artery and branches totaling 20 km to 27 drilling islands.
In addition to the causeway, the project will include a central processing facility; a primary gas-oil separation plant; utility and water supply plants; a water-injection facility with capacity of 1.74 million b/d; offshore platforms including jackets, platforms, and electric submersible pumps; offshore crude and water-injection trunklines, flowlines, and electrical cables; pipelines to the Khursaniyah gas plant and Ras Tanura and Juaymah oil terminals; and an upgrade at Khursaniyah to handle 120 MMscfd of Manifa gas.
The completion target is mid-2011. Aramco has received bids for the front-end engineering and design of onshore parts of the project and hopes to let the contract by the end of October. It plans to award offshore lump-sum bid packages early in 2007.
