Ballymore is a deepwater oil and gas field located approximately 120km offshore Louisiana, in the Mississippi Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico, US. The field lies in 6,536ft (1,992m) of water, approximately 5km away from the Blind Faith oil platform, which is operated by Chevron.
Chevron USA, a subsidiary of Chevron, operates the Ballymore deepwater project with a majority working interest of 60% while the remaining 40% interest is held by TotalEnergies E&P USA, a subsidiary of TotalEnergies (formerly known as Total).
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Total collaborated with Chevron on the Ballymore project under an exploration agreement signed in September 2017. The agreement included seven prospects covering 16 blocks in the Norphlet and Wilcox plays, located in the Eastern and Central Gulf of Mexico, respectively.
The project entered the front-end engineering design (FEED) stage in 2021. Chevron approved the development of the deepwater project in May 2022 and expects to achieve first production from the field in 2025.
Ballymore field production
The Ballymore field is expected to produce approximately 75,000 barrels of crude oil a day. It will provide a greater production capacity, increasing the supply of the US-produced energy to meet the global energy demand.
Ballymore deepwater project discovery and geology
Discovered in January 2018, the Ballymore project will be Chevron’s first development in the Norphlet play in the US Gulf of Mexico. The prospect is spread across four blocks within the Norphlet play, including Block Mississippi Canyon 607 where the discovery was made.
An exploratory well was drilled to a total measured depth of 29,194ft in the Mississippi Canyon by Pacific Drilling’s Sharav deepwater drillship in July 2017.
The well encountered a net oil pay of more than 670ft, with excellent reservoir and oil properties in the high-quality Norphlet reservoir. A sidetrack well was also drilled to further evaluate the discovery for development.
Ballymore is estimated to hold recoverable oil-equivalent resources of more than 150 million barrels.
Ballymore project development details
The Ballymore project development is estimated to involve an investment of approximately $1.6bn.
The development will include three production wells, which will be tied back to the nearby Blind Faith floating production unit through a flowline. The produced hydrocarbons will be transported through existing infrastructure.
The field’s proximity to existing infrastructure, the subsea tieback development concept, replicable engineering solutions, and use of standard equipment are expected to reduce the development costs and emission intensity of the project.
Blind Faith facility details
Blind Faith is one of the deepwater platforms operated by Chevron. Located 160 miles (257.5km) southeast of New Orleans, in the Gulf of Mexico, the field was discovered in June 2001 and produced its first oil in November 2008.
The crude oil is produced from four wells lying in 7,000ft of water through subsea systems and is transported to a deep-draft semi-submersible facility moored at a water depth of 6,500ft. The field produces approximately 65,000 barrels of crude oil and 55 million cubic feet of natural gas a day.
Contractors involved
Chevron awarded an engineering and procurement services contract to Worley to provide brownfield modification solutions for a subsea tieback for the Ballymore project in May 2021.
The contractual scope also includes supporting the subsea and topsides designs. Worley’s US Gulf Coast team is responsible for the topsides services and project management while Intecsea, which is part of Worley’s Advisian consulting business, is supporting the subsea part of the project.
