Offshore staff
LUANDA, Angola -- Production began from the Greater Plutonio development area in block 18 offshore Angola on Oct. 1, 2007.
The Greater Plutonio offshore development area, which comprises the Galio, Cromio, Paladio, Plutonio, and Cobalto fields, is 160 km (mi) northwest of Luanda in water depths ranging from 1,200 to 1,450 m (3,937 to 4,757 ft). The development will contain 43 wells: 20 producers, 20 water injectors, and 3 gas injectors.
The FPSO producing Greater Plutonio is 310 m (1,017 ft) long and has an oil storage capacity of 1.77 MMbbl, oil processing capacity of 240,000 b/d, produced and treated water injection capacity of 450,000 b/d, and gas handling of up to 400 MMcf/d.
The heart of the Greater Plutonio subsea system is the longest single riser tower system of its kind in the world. At 1,258 m (4,127 ft), it connects the FPSO to a network of subsea flowline and control systems that include 150 km (93 mi) of flowlines, nine manifolds, and 110 km (68 mi) of instrument and control umbilicals.
Many components of the subsea systems, including the riser tower, were constructed and assembled in Angola, including six of the subsea manifolds, the world's largest CALM (catenary anchor leg mooring) offloading buoy, and the first-ever Angolan assembled and tested subsea trees, BP says.
Speaking in Luanda at the FPSO inauguration last week, Tony Hayward, BP chief executive said, "The successful startup of this complex of fields has significantly advanced BP's development and use of innovative deepwater technology that will prove so important in accessing new resources around the world."
BP Angola (Block 18) BV operates the Greater Plutonio development. Partners include Sociedade Nacional de Combustíveis de Angola, and Sonangol Sinopec International Ltd. Greater Plutonio is the first BP-operated asset in Angola.
10/3/2007
