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BP second ultra-deep water discovery Off Angola
Posted: 28 July 2003
Sociedade Nacional de Combustíveis de Angola (Sonangol)
and BP announced the Saturno oil discovery in the ultra-deepwater
Block 31, offshore Angola.
This is the third exploration well BP has drilled in Block 31,
and the second successful discovery following the Plutao discovery
announced last September.
The Saturno-1 was drilled by the semi-submersible drilling rig,
the Leiv Eiriksson, in 1,804 metres water depth some 170 kilometres
off the Angolan coast and reached a total depth of 4,707 metres
below sea level.
Further work will be needed to evaluate the full extent of the
Saturno discovery. It lies some 14 kilometres to the north-east
of the Plutão discovery. Saturno flowed at 5,000 barrels
a day during tests.
Block 31 and its operatorship was awarded in 1999 by Angola’s
state oil company Sonangol to BP with a 26.67 per cent equity together
with its partners Esso Exploration and Production Angola (Block
31) Limited 25 per cent, Sonangol, E.P. 20 per cent, Statoil Angola
A.S.13.33 per cent, Marathon Petroleum Angola Block 31 Limited 10
per cent and EPA (Block 31) Ltd (a member of the Total group of
companies) 5 per cent.
BP’s involvement with Angola
- BP’s involvement with Angola goes back to the mid-1970s.
During the 1990s, BP made very substantial investments in Angola’s
offshore oil and it is now an important part of the company’s
upstream portfolio. BP has interests in four blocks with operatorship
of two.
- Operatorship of Block 31 was awarded to BP Exploration (Angola)
Limited in May 1999. The block covers an area of 5,349 square
kilometres and lies in water depths of between 1,500 and 2,500
metres. This is normally classified as ultra-deep water.
- BP also operates Block 18, which contains the Greater Plutonio
project. BP has 50 per cent equity in the block, Shell also has
50 per cent.
- BP’s other interests in Angola are:
- Block 15 operated by Esso (BP 26.67 per cent equity), which
contains the Kizomba A and B fields that are now being developed.
In May a fourteenth discovery, Clochas – 1 was announced
in the block.
- Block 17 operated by Total (BP 16.67 per cent equity), which
contains the Girassol field, which came on stream in December
2001 and the Dalia field, which was approved for development
by Sonangol in May 2003.
For more information see www.bp.com.
Posted by Richard Price,
Editor Pipeline Magazine
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