Pelican South

Location

The Pelican South field is situated within the Neptun Deep block, approximately 160 km offshore from the Romanian coast. The field is in an area characterized by water depths ranging between 100m and 1,700m, with the Pelican South field specifically located at a water depth of about 120m.

History and Exploration

Exploration activities in the Neptun Block began in 2008, when OMV Petrom and ExxonMobil formed a joint venture to explore and develop the area. The first deepwater well, Domino-1, was drilled in 2012, but it was the second drilling campaign in 2014-2015 that included the Pelican South-1 well, which led to the discovery of the Pelican South field. Following extensive exploration and appraisal activities, the Domino and Pelican South reservoirs were declared as commercial discoveries in December 2022.

Ownership and Operators

Initially, ExxonMobil was the operator with a 50% interest, and OMV Petrom held the remaining 50%. However, in 2019, ExxonMobil announced its decision to exit the project, and in May 2022, Romgaz acquired ExxonMobil's Romanian upstream affiliate. As a result, OMV Petrom became the operator, and both OMV Petrom and Romgaz now hold a 50% interest each in the project.

Development Plan

The development plan for the Pelican South field, along with the Domino field, was endorsed by Romania's National Agency for Mineral Resources in August 2023. Here are the key aspects of the development plan:

• Wells and Production: The Pelican South field will be produced from four wells connected to one subsea drill centre. These wells will be tied back to the Neptun unmanned shallow water platform via a 1.6km-long electrically heated flexible flowline.
• Infrastructure: The project includes the installation of three subsea production systems, associated flow lines, an offshore platform, a 30-inch, 160km-long gas pipeline to Tuzla, and a natural gas measurement station. Saipem has secured a contract to provide engineering, procurement, construction, installation, and commissioning (EPCIC) services for the offshore facilities.
• Production Capacity: The Neptun Deep project, including the Pelican South field, is expected to produce around 8 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas annually at plateau, which is approximately 140,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) for nearly ten years.

Investment and Timeline

The development of the Neptun Deep project, including the Pelican South field, involves an investment of up to €4 billion. Drilling activities are planned to commence in 2024, with first gas expected in 2027. The transport contract for the gas will run for 17 years from September 2026 to September 2042.

Environmental and Operational Aspects

The platform will be operated remotely using a digital twin, which will help in process optimization and reduce energy consumption and emissions. The gas from the deep fields will be processed at the unmanned shallow water platform, and the entire infrastructure is designed to be environmentally efficient.

In summary, the Pelican South field is a significant component of the Neptun Deep natural gas project, contributing to Romania's position as a major gas producer and enhancing the security of gas supply in the region.