Maersk Oil Awards Well Head Contract for North Sea Culzean Gas Field

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) - Maersk Oil North Sea U.K. Limited has awarded a contract for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the well head platform (WHP) jacket for the Culzean development in the North Sea to Heerema Hartlepool Limited (London).

The Culzean development is a high-pressure/high-temperature (HP/HT) gas field located on the U.K. continental shelf (UKCS), approximately 145 miles east of Aberdeen. It sits in a water depth of around 88 metres and is expected to have a peak production rate of 400 to 500 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFD), and will supply around 5% of the U.K.'s total gas demand by 2020/21. The reservoir is located around 4.3 kilometres below sea level. The project will support 100 offshore and 20 onshore jobs.

Heerema will build the WHP jacket and piles, the well head access deck and access ways. The deck and access ways will be built in Hartlepool, while the WHP jacket will be put together in Vlissingen in the Netherlands. Maersk said that the contract is expected to be ready for 'sail away' ahead of drilling start-up on the project in the second quarter of 2016, subject to a final investment decision in 2015.

Progress at the Culzean project has accelerated recently with the company providing the new-build jack-up rig for the development, Hercules Offshore Inc, announcing a recruitment drive in Aberdeen and the establishment of a U.K. presence to support Culzean and other projects.

U.K. Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Priti Patel MP welcomed the news: "The Culzean project has the potential to meet around 5% of U.K. gas demand in 2020/21, and would not be possible without the Government's ultra high pressure, high temperature cluster area allowance. The new allowance builds on the existing work that the Government has done with industry through field allowances, which has helped create new jobs through record levels of investment. Oil & Gas UK estimates the Government's allowances directly incentivised £7 billion of investment last year."

Maersk Oil U.K. Managing Director, Martin Rune Pedersen, commented: "The Culzean project continues to progress well. This award has been made on schedule and three weeks after steel cutting began on the heavy duty jack-up rig which will commence drilling in Q2 2016, subject to final approvals."

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