Offshore staff
(Asia) - ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Malaysia Inc. (EMEPMI) has installed a $264.22 million gas compression platform at the Guntong E gas field in South China Sea, completing the first phase of Guntong Hub development for supplying gas to Peninsular Malaysia.
The Guntong Hub, presently consisting of two existing Guntong D production and compression platforms, would handle more than 800 MMcf/d of gas on reaching full operation next year, EMEPMI chairman Rob Fisher says.
Guntong E, located some 210 km off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, consists of an eight-leg jacket and six modules for gas receiving, separation, dehydration and compression.
It would also involve new wells, workover of existing wells, satellite platforms, inter-field pipelines and retrofit of existing platforms.
Malaysian companies undertook the project, says EMEPMI. Sime Darby Engineering completed the platform topsides and Ramunia Fabricators completed the jacket. Work started in February 2004. TL Offshore installed the 17,800-ton platform last month.
EMEPMI says it took more than four million work hours, involving over 1,500 workers to complete the project.
The Guntong E development is the first phase of the Guntong Hub development, which is expected to process a total of 4 tcf of gas for the Peninsular Malaysian market when fully developed.
The Indonesian state oil and gas company, PT Pertamina, expects to invest $3.6 billion, funded by its German partner Commerzbank AG, on exploiting the two recently acquired Libyan blocks over the 30-year concession periods.
"Pertamina will work with Commerzbank on the two blocks, with the German bank financing the project 100%," says Pertamina's vice president Mustiko Saleh.
Commerzbank would bear the financial risk of exploration up to the development stage, taking 45% of the contractor's production share.
The Sirte block, in the Sahara desert, is expected to produce 190,000 and 200,000 b/d and the offshore block in Sabratah would yield 40,000 b/d and 435 MMcf/d of gas, he says.
The Pertamina-Commerzbank joint venture would receive 11.7% of the net revenue from production in Sabratah and 8.8% from the Sirte block, he adds.
The partners would invest $2 billion on the Sabratah in the Mediterranean Sea, which has about 3.5 tcf of gas and 75 MMbbl of oil reserves.
A further $1.5-$1.6 billion would be invested on exploiting Sirte's 300-400 MMbbl barrels of oil reserves.
Exploration work on both blocks would start next year with first production expected from 2009.
10/12/05
