Gannet F

Gannet F Oil and Gas Field Profile

Location

• The Gannet F oil and gas field is located in the Central North Sea, approximately 180 km east of Aberdeen, UK. It is situated within blocks 21/25, 21/30, 22/21, and 22/26a, at a water depth of about 95 meters.

Operator and Ownership

• The field is operated by Shell, with Shell and Esso each holding a 50% ownership stake.

Discovery and Production

• The Gannet field was originally discovered in 1973, but the specific development of Gannet F began later. The Final Investment Decision (FID) for Gannet F was made in 1989, and production started in 1997.

Reservoir Characteristics

• Gannet F is characterized as an unsaturated oil field without a gas cap. The oil has an API gravity of approximately 40°, which is significantly lighter than the oil in Gannet E.
  • Estimated reserves: 19 million barrels of oil.

Production Details

• Peak production rate: Expected to reach up to 12,000 barrels per day (b/d), though actual peak production was around 18,000 b/d.
  • Field life: Approximately 14 years.
  • Production in recent years:
    • In 2019, the field produced 1.96 million barrels of oil per year and 77.19 million cubic meters of gas per year.
    • In 2022, production was 0.89 million barrels of oil per year and 20.45 million cubic meters of gas per year.

Infrastructure

• Gannet F is developed with a single subsea well tied back to the Gannet A platform via a common subsea pipeline shared with Gannet E. The wells were drilled using the Sedco 704 rig.
  • The field does not require an electrical submersible pump (ESP) due to the lighter nature of the crude oil, unlike Gannet E.

Processing and Export

• The processed oil from Gannet F is exported through an infield pipeline to the Fulmar A installation and then via the Norpipe to Teesside.
  • Gas is exported through the Fulmar Gas Pipeline to the SEGAL St Fergus Gas Processing Terminal.

Development Costs

• The development of Gannet E and F fields together was estimated to cost £80 million (approximately $135 million at the time).

Maintenance and Upgrades

• In February 2013, Technip received a contract for the Gannet F reinstatement project, which included the replacement of the flow-line, fabrication and laying of an 11.8 km pipe-in-pipe, installation of a gas lift pipeline, and an 11.9 km umbilical.