Construction of deepwater Gunashli facilities nears halfway

The drilling, utilities, and quarters deck, which is being fabricated in Azerbaijan, is 37% finished, and the jacket - the support structure on which the deck will be installed - is now two-thirds built.

The platform is designed to be installed in a water depth of 175 m, with production start-up planned for 2Q 2008.

The development also involves installation of six subsea water injection wells and a subsea drilling center to be situated about 5 km away from the platform - the first facilities of their kind in the Caspian Sea, says BP.

The ACG field, operated by BP on behalf of Azerbaijan International Oil Co., is the largest development in the southern Caspian Sea, with recoverable reserves in excess of 4.5 Bbbl of oil.

The field has been on production since 1997 and will revert to state operations in 2025.

The development of the reservoir is expected to increase total oil production from the ACG field to a peak of over 1 MMb/d.

ACG participating interests are: BP (operator ? 34.1%); Unocal (10.2%); SOCAR (10%); INPEX (10%); Statoil (8,6%); ExxonMobil (8%); TPAO (6.8%); Devon (5.6%); ITOCHU (3.9%); and Amerada Hess (2.7%).

/ogj.pennnet.com/