Oil production from Thai company PTTEP’s Montara field in the Timor Sea has been halted following several potentially injurious safety incidents and cannot resume until cleared by Australia’s offshore safety regulator, the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA).
In the latest incident, attempts to start oil production from the unmanned Montara platform had resulted in risk of fire or explosion. The field produces 10,000 b/d.
NOPSEMA said workers had gone out to the platform to pump pressurized lift gas into the well to start oil flowing despite a safety valve failing a leak test the previous day. Gas had leaked into the well’s outer annulus and the pressure there was high. To get the oil flowing, more lift gas was introduced to the well and this increased the pressure in the outer annulus to nearly four times the allowable level.
Workers then vented gas to reduce the pressure after which PTTEP voluntarily halted production on Nov. 1.
NOPSEMA’s report welcomed this action and continued to monitor the company’s steps, but then told PTTEP that it could not restart production until the company demonstrated it could operate safety equipment properly and had proper safety management systems in place.
Montara field was the scene of a wellhead blowout and rig fire in 2009 that spilled oil into the Timor Sea.
More recently, in September, PTTEP received four notices that included running equipment too hot with potential to cause an explosion and for leaky, corroded pipework.
In the same month, Jadestone Energy completed a $195-million acquisition of Montara field, but PTTEP remains as operator until a handover to Jadestone is approved by NOPSEMA.
