Mafumeira Sul (South)

Location and Context

The Mafumeira Sul project is located in Block 0, approximately 24 kilometers (15 miles) offshore from the Cabinda province in Angola, at a water depth of 60 meters (200 feet).

Project Overview

Mafumeira Sul is the second phase of the development of the Mafumeira field, following the initial development of the northern section known as Mafumeira Norte, which began production in July 2009. The project is part of Chevron's full field development program aimed at expanding production capacity in Block 0 and supporting the growth of Angola's oil and gas industry.

Ownership and Partners

The project is operated by Chevron’s subsidiary, Cabinda Gulf Oil Company (CABGOC), which holds a 39.2% interest. Other partners include Sonangol with a 41% interest, Total with a 10% interest, and Eni with a 9.8% interest.

Development Details

• Facilities: The project includes a central production complex (CPC) with three bridge-connected platforms, two wellhead platforms (Mafumeira Sul and Mafumeira Centro), a 148-man living quarters platform (LQP), and a flare tower. Modifications were also made to the existing Mafumeira Norte wellhead platform.
• Wells: The development involved the drilling of 34 production wells and 16 water-injection wells.
• Pipelines and Infrastructure: The project includes approximately 121 kilometers (75 miles) of subsea pipelines, umbilical, riser, and flowline (URF) facilities, and a compression facility.
• Production Capacity: The design capacity of the Mafumeira Sul project is 150,000 barrels of liquids (crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG) and 350 million cubic feet of natural gas per day.

Production and Export

• Oil Export: The oil produced is exported to the existing Malongo Oil Terminal in Cabinda.
• Gas Export: Associated natural gas is conveyed to the onshore Angola Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plant in Soyo. Propane and butane are separated from the gas production, converted into LPG, and exported via pipeline to the Sanha floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel.

Contractors and Suppliers

Several contractors and suppliers were involved in the project:

• AMEC: Conducted pre-FEED and FEED activities.
• Saipem: Secured EPCI contracts for flowline installations, Norte platform modifications, and onshore pipeline segments.
• Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME): Constructed the wellhead platforms and collaborated with Wood Group on the CPC platform.
• McDermott: Awarded the EPC contract for the living quarters platform.
• Other Contractors: Included Cronus Technology, Geocean, AG&P, and various suppliers such as Generon IGS, Autronica Fire and Security, and others.

Local Content and Fabrication

Significant portions of the fabrication work were performed in Angola:

• Fabrication Yards: Work was carried out in Lobito, Porto Amboim, Ambriz, Soyo, and Cabinda. Some modules were also fabricated in Okpo, South Korea, and the living quarters building was fabricated in Mexico.

Production History

• First Production: The main production facility became operational in March 2017, and gas export to Angola LNG commenced by mid-2017.
• Production Averages: In 2017, daily production averaged 40,000 barrels of liquids and 69 million cubic feet of natural gas. By 2018, this increased to 52,000 barrels of liquids and 147 million cubic feet of natural gas. In 2019, production averaged 52,000 barrels of liquids and 124 million cubic feet of natural gas.
• COVID-19 Impact: Rig operations were suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with plans to restart in late 2021.

Reserves and Potential

The Mafumeira Sul project has potentially recoverable reserves of approximately 300 million barrels of oil-equivalent (boe).

Investment and Economic Impact

The project involved an investment of $5.6 billion, reflecting Chevron and its partners' commitment to expanding production capacity and supporting the Angolan oil and gas industry. The project has also contributed to the development of local fabrication yards, increased the knowledge of Angolan engineers, and added skilled employees to the Angolan workforce.