Murphy advances development of Azurite oil field

Murphy West Africa let a work contract to Technip for the development of Azurite oil field on Mer Profonde Sud block, which covers more than 800,000 acres in 1,400 m of water 80 miles off Congo (formerly Zaire).

Sept. 24, 2007

2 min read

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Sept. 24 -- Murphy West Africa Ltd. has let an engineering, procurement, fabrication, testing, installation, and precommissioning contract to Technip for the development of Azurite oil field on Mer Profonde Sud (MPS) block, which covers more than 800,000 acres in 1,400 m of water 80 miles off Congo (formerly Zaire).

The $110 million contract covers two production and one water injection flexible risers, two production jumpers, and one umbilical. Technip also will supply 10 well jumpers and provide transportation, installation, and precommissioning for subsea equipment supplied by Murphy West Africa.

Technip's operations and engineering center in Paris will carry out the contract. Flexi France, one of the Group's flexible pipe plants in Le Trait, France, will manufacture the flexible pipe. The umbilical will be manufactured by Duco, Technip's subsidiary based in Newcastle, UK.

Offshore operations will be carried out using one of the Group's construction vessels during fourth quarter 2008.

Murphy, MPS block operator and 85% interest holder, made the Azurite discovery in early 2005 with the Azurite Marine-1 well. It encountered 160 ft of net oil pay with no associated water in multiple Lower Miocene reservoirs (OGJ Online, Mar. 29, 2005).

The discovery was appraised with a well that tested at 8,000 b/d of oil from one zone. A third well in early 2006 further appraised the Azurite area, and the field development plan was approved in late 2006.