Strategic development alliance providing for fast-track program
The OPL 469 concession was granted to Japan Petroleum in 1971 but the company relinquished it in 1976. A Nigerian firm, Nugas Nigeria, likewise acquired and relinquished the lease before it was finally awarded to Amni International in August 1993. Abacan and partners formed a joint venture with Amni. Abacan is technical partner and 93.8% interest holder on the lease.
In an effort to fast-track development of the field, Abacan entered into a strategic development alliance with Schlumberger's Integrated Project Management (IPM) group.
Schlumberger's IPM supplied, among other pieces of the development, project management, well-site supervision, and well design. Once four wells had been drilled and tested and the field delineated, IPM calculated production unit requirements. It then located, engineered, and leased for five years, a Cliff's drilling jackup for conversion to an offshore production unit. The rig was leased bareback and all drilling-related equipment removed to provide the necessary deck space and variable load capacity to accommodate Sedco Forex's production equipment design.
"We ran it down to the wire," said Schlumberger's Ken Mielke. "When we made a decision on a producing unit we helped them engineer it and acquired access to a rig and had the equipment manufactured and installed and turned it over to them."
That production unit design includes a three-train production system capable of processing 50,000 b/d of oil and condensate, 25,000 b/d of water and 140 MMcfd. The production platform, the converted jackup, Langley, will ship the process fluids to a floating storage and offloading vessel with a one million bbl storage capacity. From there the oil is sold and offloaded to tankers.
In an effort to stave off effects typical of Niger Delta water drives, the production unit will have a 70 MMcf/d gas re-injection capacity to maintain formation pressure for as long as possible. The six wells that make up Abacan's Phase I development were drilled from a single surface location in 35 ft of water and surface-completed with a well protector. Five will produce and one will reinject.
The mobile offshore production unit (MOPU), being floated to West Africa on a dry carrier, is due on location by October 15, 1996 with all six wells completed and full production expected to commence in mid-December. However, initial production will not wait until then and is scheduled to coincide with the completion of the second well.
"The major accomplishment for the operator is a 50,000 b/d flow rate in less than two-and-a-half years after initial discovery," said Mielke. "The whole concept is built around the fact we spudded the well, hit a discovery, and went ahead and delineated it and when we had four we said there was enough there and did it all as a Schlumberger integrated project management project."
Beside Schlumberger Overseas and Sedco Forex all inclusive responsibility for engineering, operation, set up, and supply of the MOPU, three other key firms entered into strategic alliances with Abacan.
Dresser Rand was responsible for lease and operation of four gas compressor packages for gas re-injection. Taggart Shipping was charged with conversion and hookup of the FSO to be permanently moored in 85-ft waters 10.5 miles from the production facility. Saibos Construcoes Maritimas LDA will install 10.5 miles of 12-in. crude oil export pipeline, 1500 ft of 16-in. flare gas pipeline, and fabrication and installation of the wellhead protection platform, connecting bridge to the production facility, flare pile, and pipeline end manifold.
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