Carolin Reese - RWE Dea
Earlier this year, RWE Dea launched its first major gas field development project offshore Egypt. It followed the signature of a long-term gas sales agreement with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corp. (EGPC) to deliver gas to the Egyptian market from the North Idku concession in the Nile Delta region.
In recent years, RWE Dea has recorded major gas discoveries in Egypt and significantly expanded its operations through new concessions. Being active in the country since 1974, the company is well placed in the prolific Nile Delta with concession shares ranging from 20% to 100%.
“We see huge growth potential in our core region of North Africa”, says Thomas Rappuhn, COO of RWE Dea. “The strategy we are pursuing involves a switch from our previous oil producer status to that of an established gas producer.”
Map of North Idku concession in the Nile Delta region.
It was only recently that RWE Dea took on a 100% interest in the North Idku concession by acquiring the remaining 30% held by Perenco Eastern Mediterranean.
“That means we can now conduct the project on our own,” says Hans-Hermann Andreae, RWE Dea’s general manager in Egypt. “North Idku is the first step towards developing the reserves we have discovered in the gas-prolific Nile Delta. The aim is to start production from North Idku in 2010.”
Following a successful exploratory campaign – four discoveries out of five exploration wells – RWE Dea declared commercial gas and condensate reserves in the concession. After the gas sales agreement was signed, the company immediately initiated the first development phase. Field development and subsequent production work will be in the hands of the North Idku Petroleum Co. (Nipetco), a joint venture between RWE Dea and EGPC, but executed by another RWE Dea and EGPC JV, Suez Oil Co. (SUCO).
Platform arrangement
The North Idku Development Lease Area with its gas and condensate accumulations lies in the Mediterranean Sea about 30 km (18.6 mi) east of Alexandria, Egypt, in Abu Qir Bay in water depths ranging from 60-100 m (197-329 ft).
Plans are for the accumulations to be developed using a central unmanned platform, designated NI-P1, with three platform wells flowing wet gas to WEPCO’s Meadia onshore processing facilities via a 16-in. (40.6-cm) pipeline. Meadia currently processes gas from the North and West Abu Qir fields. Plant capacity will have to expand to take the additional supplies from North Idku. Ultimately, 120 MMcf/d of gas is the production target. Another well will be drilled from a second unmanned platform, NI-P2, and tied back to the NI-P1 platform via a 10-in. (25.4-cm) interconnecting pipeline.
TheAurora jackup, which is scheduled to drill the North Idku development wells.
In planning and building the two production platforms, consideration has to be given to the difficult seabed conditions. “We are not only in the discharge area of the Nile, but also have the seabed falling away to the north, “explains Helmuth Buhr, the project manager at SUCO. “And we are dealing with very fine-grained river sediments.”
The long-term stability of the platforms will be guaranteed by driving piles through the legs and 90 m (295 ft) into the seabed. In view of the water depth and the soft river sediments, the company will deployAurora, a newbuild jackup under construction by Keppel Fels in Texas for Atwood and one of the biggest jackups available, to drill and complete the wells. RWE Dea has taken the rig on a two-year contract.
Environmental aspects also play a role in the construction of the platforms. The NI-P2 platform is to be equipped with solar modules to generate all the power it needs. No external energy sources will be necessary. Both production platforms will be unmanned, and operations steered and monitored from onshore. Technicians will travel to the production platforms by boat for regular maintenance.
