Serica Energy Co. subsidiary Tailwind Energy Chinook Ltd. was awarded 100% interest in UK Block 29/2a in the UKCS 33rd Offshore Licensing Round. Serica’s internal preliminary mid-case estimate of recoverable resources from the redeveloped field is about 9 million bbl of oil.
Block 29/2a contains the decommissioned Kyle oil field which ceased production in June 2020. The host FPSO was subsequently removed. Serica will have no obligations in respect of the prior decommissioning because of the license award.
During an initial 2-year license period, Serica will carry out studies to determine the feasibility of redeveloping Kyle field by means of a subsea tie-back to the Triton FPSO vessel via Bittern field infrastructure. Serica has a 46.42% interest in the Triton FPSO vessel and a 64.63% interest in Bittern field. Both are operated by Dana Petroleum.
Mitch Flegg, chief executive of Serica, said that the decision to proceed with the redevelopment of Kyle “will depend on the results of our studies and the fiscal and regulatory situation at the end of the initial 2-year term of the license.”
The 33rd Oil and Gas Licensing Round was launched Oct. 7, 2022, with 931 blocks and part-blocks made available for application. In total, the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) received 115 applications from 76 companies for 258 blocks/part-blocks when the application window closed on Jan. 12, 2023 (OGJ Online, Oct. 30, 2023).
The award is subject to the execution of license documentation.
Alex Procyk | Upstream Editor
Alex Procyk is Upstream Editor at Oil & Gas Journal. He has also served as a principal technical professional at Halliburton and as a completion engineer at ConocoPhillips. He holds a BS in chemistry (1987) from Kent State University and a PhD in chemistry (1992) from Carnegie Mellon University. He is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).
