BP and Shell Start Up Gulf of Mexico Project

The Manuel project at the Na Kika platform in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GOM) has successfully started production, BP (NYSE: BP) reported Wednesday.

BP and Shell (NYSE: RDS.A) each own a 50% working interest in the Manuel development, located on Mississippi Canyon block 520 southeast of the BP-operated Na Kika platform in 6,625 feet (2,019 meters) of water, BP noted in a written statement emailed to Rigzone.

“Manuel is exactly the type of high-value project that is critical to growing our business here in the Gulf of Mexico,” remarked Starlee Sykes, BP’s senior vice president GOM and Canada. “BP’s focused and resilient hydrocarbons business is a key pillar of our strategy. This start-up is another example of our team’s commitment to safe and reliable operations.”

Located approximately 140 miles (225 kilometers) from New Orleans, the Manuel development includes a new subsea production system for two wells – drilled to roughly 21,000 feet (6,408 meters) – that BP estimates will increase Na Kika’s gross production by 20,100 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd). The operator added that Manuel represents the fourth of five major projects it expects to deliver globally this year.

“Our disciplined investment in Manuel is part of our target to add 900,000 boepd of production from new projects by the end of 2021,” commented Ewan Drummond, BP’s senior vice president of projects, production, and operations. “The safe production of resilient hydrocarbons in the basins we know best is core to advancing our strategy to transform into an integrated energy company.”

IMAGE SOURCE: BP

Na Kika is one of four BP-operated deepwater GOM production platforms, with the others being Thunder Horse, Atlantis, and Mad Dog. As Rigzone reported in April of this year, BP plans to achieve first production from a fifth deepwater GOM platform – Argos – in 2022. The company stated that it expects to grow its U.S. GOM output to more than 400,000 boepd by the middle of this decade.

To contact the author, email mveazey@rigzone.com.