China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has announced the commencement of production at the Liuhua 11-1/4-1 oilfield secondary development project.
The project, which includes the Liuhua 11-1 and Liuhua 4-1 oilfields, is situated in an area with an average water depth of approximately 305m in the eastern South China Sea.
The production infrastructure for the Liuhua oilfield secondary development comprises a new deepwater jacket platform, Haiji-2, and a cylindrical floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit, Haikui-1.
CNOOC said the project is set to commission a total of 32 development wells and is expected to reach peak production of roughly 17,900 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) by 2026.
The oil produced is classified as heavy crude, and CNOOC holds full ownership and operational control of the project.
CNOOC CEO and president Zhou Xinhuai said: “It is the first oilfield in Asia to be developed with the 'Deepwater Jacket Platform + Cylindrical FPSO' mode. The company has overcome various technological challenges to complete the project.
“While revitalising the deepwater oilfields with original oil in place over 100 million tonnes, the new mode has substantially reduced the construction and production costs. It provides a Chinese solution for the efficient development of similar deepwater oil and gas fields.”
Recently, CNOOC initiated production at the Wushi 23-5 oilfield, the first in the South China Sea to be powered from shore.
The Wushi 23-5 oilfield development includes two new wellhead platforms and the upgraded Wushi terminal.
Located in the Beibu Gulf at an average water depth of around 28m, the oilfield is anticipated to reach peak production of around 18,100boepd by 2026, with the oil being light crude.
Last week, CNOOC said it achieved a breakthrough in ultra-deepwater natural gas exploration by successfully drilling a well in the Liwan 4-1 structure within the Pearl River Mouth Basin.
Positioned in the Baiyun Sag, roughly 300km south-east of Shenzhen, the well reached a water depth of nearly 1,640m.
The well's testing yielded an absolute open flow natural gas production rate of 430,000m³ per day.
