Columbus

Location

The Columbus gas field is located primarily in Block 23/16f, with a portion extending into Block 23/21, in the central North Sea. It is approximately 230km east of Peterhead, Scotland, and about five miles (8km) west of the British–Norwegian median line.

Operators and Ownership

The field is operated by Serica Energy UK, which holds a 50% stake. The remaining ownership is equally divided between Endeavour Energy UK and EOG Resources United Kingdom.

Geology and Reserves

The Columbus field is a condensate-rich gas field, with the natural gas found in the Palaeocene Forties sands. The discovery well (23/16f-11) encountered a gross gas column of 38.1m and flowed at an average rate of 17.5 million standard cubic feet of gas during a production test. The field is estimated to have maximum recoverable reserves of 130.9 billion standard cubic feet of gas and 4.9 million barrels of condensate.

Development and Production

The development plan includes a single subsea production well connected to the Arran-to-Shearwater subsea tie-in pipeline. The gas and condensate produced will be transferred to the Shearwater platform for processing. Processed gas will be compressed and exported to the St Fergus terminal via the Shell Esso gas and associated liquids (SEGAL) system, while the processed condensate will be shipped to the Forties pipeline system (FPS) via the Graben area export line (GAEL).

• Peak Production: Expected to reach 337 million cubic metres of gas per year and 82,177 cubic metres per year of condensate.
• Field Life: Anticipated to be around 14 years.
• First Production: Expected by the second quarter of 2021.

Drilling and Appraisal History

• The Columbus discovery was made in October 2006 via the exploratory well 23/16f-11.
• A vertical appraisal well (23/16f-12) was drilled in November 2007, approximately 1.8 miles (2.9km) north of the discovery well, encountering a net pay of 12.1m in the Palaeocene sands.

Subsea Infrastructure

• The subsea production well will have a length of nearly 6,608m and a total vertical depth of 2,986m.
• The pipeline and chemical injection umbilical will be laid in separate trenches, with the pipeline buried with backfill soil and the umbilical left in an open trench for natural backfilling.
• Installation works for the pipeline and umbilicals were scheduled for the second and third quarters of 2020, with the installation of the subsea infrastructure, hook-up, and commissioning activities planned for the second quarter of 2021.

Licensing and Blocks

The field is located within production licences P1314 and P101, covering blocks 23/16f and 23/21.