BP Exploration will proceed with development of Hyde gas field in the southern part of the U.K. North Sea.
The company will sell an interest in the project to Norway's Den norske stats oljeselskap AS.
BP also is investigating the use of a leased jack up production system for Forth heavy oil field in the northern U.K. North Sea, which probably will act as the center for a joint development with Kerr-McGee's nearby Gryphon field.
On the North Sea exploration front, the British government detailed plans for a 14th licensing round later this year, while Agip (U.K.) Ltd. disclosed a gas discovery in the southern North Sea.
In other activity, British Gas Exploration & Production Ltd., Conoco U.K. Ltd., and Phillips Petroleum Co. U.K. completed successful appraisal wells.
Chevron U.K. Ltd. sold its interests in two British sector blocks to Repsol Exploration.
And off Norway, Statoil is seeking offers for an interest in Brage field, operated by Norsk Hydro and due on stream in early 1994.
HYDE FIELD
BP had written off Hyde field as uneconomic. But development was transformed into a profitable project by innovative thinking and a partnership arrangement with main contractors working on the project that will enable them to share in cost savings.
Hyde holds an estimated 135 bcf of reserves, 97% of which are thought to lie in Block 48/6, a 100% owned BP property. Statoil, which has a strategic alliance with BP, will take a 45% interest for an undisclosed sum, subject to U.K. government approval.
The project, based on a small, unmanned, minimum facilities platform, will produce from three horizontal wells. The unit will be tied back to existing gas process and transportation facilities at West Sole by a 7 mile, 12 in. pipeline. The project will cost 6.5 million ($11.8 million). Production is expected to begin near the end of next year.
BP said by allowing the two major Hyde contractors, UIE Scotland and Kvaerner H&G Offshore, to share in cost savings a more integrated, cost effective approach will be encouraged among teams working on the development project. The company suggested that this method could be applied to many other small North Sea fields.
FORTH FIELD
BP has been discussing with French engineers Technip Geoproduction possible use of the TGP-500 jack up production platform design for Forth field in U.K. Block 9/23b.
Leasing the unit is under consideration to remove the requirement for major spending before production start-up. The jack up would have capacity of about 100,000 b/d to handle an expected 45,000 b/d of 20-22 gravity crude from Forth and about 42,000 b/d of similar quality crude from nearby Gryphon field, which lies immediately north of Forth in Block 9/18b.
Forth and Gryphon oil, the heaviest in fields proposed for development in the North Sea, would be produced through a floating storage and offloading unit.
U.K. LICENSING ROUND
British Energy Minister Colin Moynihan said acreage for the 14th licensing round will be announced in three stages.
Initially, the U.K. Department of Energy has earmarked all remaining unlicensed acreage in main mature areas of the British North Sea.
Moynihan said at the end of July a second announcement will cover acreage on the edges of the main mature areas, which are considered more speculative. And at the end of November a third announcement will cover frontier acreage.
Deadline for applications in the first and second categories is Dec. 16, 1992. Frontier round applications must be made by Mar. 9, 1993.
WELL TESTS
Agip tested 19.5 MMcfd of gas through a 1 in. choke from pay below 9,800 ft in its Block 43/21-2 well, drilled to 16,311 ft.
Agip holds a 35% interest in the block in the lightly explored area north of North Ravenspurn field. Partners are North Sea Sun 30%, Deminex North Sea 20%, and OMV North Sea 15%.
British Gas said its 30/18-5 well, drilled downdip from the 30/18-1 discovery, flowed 1, 389 b/d of 43.9 gravity oil and 1.35 MMcfd of gas on a restricted choke from Paleocene Forties sandstone.
The structure, east of Clyde field, has been named Orion.
Interest owners are British Gas 37.5%, Hamilton Oil Great Britain plc 16%, Lasmo plc 12.5%, Goal Petroleum plc 10%, Ultramar Exploration Ltd. 6.25%, Hamilton Bros. U.K. Petroleum Corp. 4%, Elf U.K. plc 12.5%, and Monument Resources 1.25%.
Two drillstem tests in Conoco's Block 29/2a-7 appraisal, 150 miles east of Aberdeen, flowed at a combined stabilized rate of 3,200 b/d of 38.5 gravity oil and 1.75 MMcfd of gas through a 36/64 in. choke. The lower zone did not flow to capacity because of hole damage. The well is suspended as a possible future producer.
The discovery well flowed 9,000 b/d and 5.9 MMcfd of gas from three intervals last October.
Conoco owns a 34.5% interest in Block 29/2a. Its partners are Enterprise Oil plc 19.41%, Lasmo plc unit Watson Petroleum Inc. 14.705%, Ranger Oil (U.K.) Ltd. 14.515%, Hardy Oil & Gas (U.K.) Ltd. 10.6%, and Union jack Oil plc 6.27%.
Phillips' 30/7a-11z appraisal well in Judy field in the U.K. North Sea flowed at a rate of 3,975 b/d of 43 gravity oil and 23 MMcfd of gas on drillstem test of the pre-Cretaceous.
The well was sidetracked as a straight hole and drilled to 13,031 ft. It was sidetracked from the original hole, 30/7a-11, a deviated well drilled to 10,097 ft true vertical depth 1 mile northwest of surface location.
Phillips, which has finished conceptual development studies for Judy field, has let a front end engineering design contract to Kvaerner H&G for concept design.
The concept calls for a 24 slot platform in Judy with a satellite 14 well subsea development of nearby Joanne field. Joanne multiphase production will move to Judy, with all fluids processed on the Judy platform.
Oil and gas will be shipped from Judy platform through separate pipelines. Production start-up is targeted for April 1996.
Phillips, with a 35.8725% interest in Block 30/7a, is evaluating bids for a development drilling contract. Its partners are Agip 32.6775%, Chevron 25%, and British Gas 6.45%.
INTEREST SALES
Statoil is seeking offers for a 5% interest in Brage field in the Norwegian North Sea.
The Norwegian government acquired the interest through application of a sliding scale when the field was given development approval. The sale would reduce the state's interest to 33.4%. Statoil's interest would be unchanged at 17.6%.
Statoil wants to conclude the sale by midyear.
Brage is due to start production in January 1994. Production is scheduled to build to a peak of 82,000 b/d in 1995.
Chevron sold its 33% interest in Blocks 9/18a and 9/19 to Repsol, the Spanish state oil company.
The blocks, operated by Conoco, hold a number of discoveries, including the Buckland oil fields and parts of the Forth-Gryphon complex.
In other Norwegian action, Statoil awarded a letter of intent to Kvaerner Engineering Ltd. for preliminary engineering for West Sleipner gas field development. The two platform development is due on stream in 1996.
The project requires approval by the Norwegian government.
Copyright 1992 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.
