East China Sea gas-condensate project eyed

Oct. 27, 2008
Primeline Energy signed an agreement in principle for sale of gas from the Lishui 36-1 (Vicky) gas-condensate discovery in the East China Sea and plans to prepare a stand-alone development plan.

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Oct. 27 -- Primeline Energy Holdings Inc., London, signed an agreement in principle for sale of gas from the Lishui 36-1 (Vicky) gas-condensate discovery in the East China Sea and plans to prepare a stand-alone development plan.

Gas would be shipped via pipeline to a processing terminal near Wenzhou.

The 1997 Vicky discovery well, in 280 ft of water 145 km southeast of Wenzhou on southern Block 25/34 (formerly 32/32), flowed 9.9 MMcfd and 117 b/d from the Upper Paleocene Lingfeng formation at 2,250 m. Most likely recoverable volumes are 660 bcf of gas and 8 million bbl of condensate. Gas analyzed 35% carbon dioxide.

Primeline said the initial development may not generate a substantial return, but establishing the production facility will considerably reduce the future development costs of realizing the potential value of the probable and possible resources in the discovery itself and any resources discovered nearby.

China National Offshore Oil Corp., on behalf of itself and Primeline, signed the agreement Oct. 27 with Zhejiang Natural Gas Development Co. Ltd.

Zhejiang Province is China's fourth largest economy, and Zhejiang Gas parent Zhejiang Provincial Energy Group Ltd. operates a 330-km pipeline grid in the northern part of the province.

The grid is planned to be expanded to connect other major cities in the province, including Wenzhou, to the proposed West-to-East Phase 2 pipeline, and to the Sichuan Gas to East pipeline, both of which are under construction, and to LNG imports.

Estimated throughput of the Zhejiang grid is 580 MMcfd in 2015.