Offshore staff
HOUSTON – Shell has decided to make a multi-billion dollar investment to develop the Cardamom oil and gas field in deepwater Gulf of Mexico. At its peak, Shell says the development will produce 50,000 boe/d with 140 MMboe over its life.
The Cardamom is in Garden Banks block 427, approximately 362 km (225 mi) southwest of New Orleans in more than 800 m (2,720 ft) of water. The completed subsea system will include five well expandable manifolds, a dual 20-cm (8-in.) flowline, and eight well umbilicals.
The Cardamom discovery well was drilled from the Auger platform and features a measured depth of 9,642 m (31,634 ft), a reach of more than 4,570 m (15,000 ft), and a vertical depth greater than 7,620 m (25,000 ft).
Modifications to the Auger platform will include additional subsea receiving equipment, a new production train and weight mitigation, which is expected to significantly increase the Cardamom liquid handling, cooling, and production capacities.
The first Cardamom exploration well has been producing directly from the Auger platform since December 2010.
The Cardamom discovery is a result of advances in seismic imaging and extended reach drilling. The potential of Cardamom was first recognized early in the Auger development, but could not be fully assessed due to a layer of salt nearby which affected the quality of traditional seismic images. Advances in seismic imaging helped achieve significant improvements.
06/08/2011
