SPECIAL FOCUS: DEEPWATER TECHNOLOGY

Co-development of Spiderman and San Jacinto fields in GOM

Multiple companies considered a range of ultra-deepwater subsea development options to reach a mutually beneficial tie-back to Independence Hub.

C. M. Vercher, Eni, and D. Blakeley, Anadarko Petroleum Corp.

A unique partnership has developed from the needs of exploration and production companies and midstream energy companies to facilitate the development of several ultra-deepwater, natural gas discoveries in the eastern GOM, resulting in the Independence Project. Two of the anchor fields for this project are a natural fit for co-development. Five months after Anadarko discovered Spiderman field in November 2003, Eni announced the discovery of San Jacinto field. The proximity of these discoveries to each other along with their distance from the Independence Hub led to a beneficial commercial solution. This paper is an overview of the projects from discovery through development planning to project sanctioning.

The Atwater Valley Producers Group: Anadarko Petroleum Corp., Devon Energy Corp., Eni and Hydro Gulf of Mexico along with two midstream companies: Enterprise Products Partners and Helix Energy Solutions Group, have collaborated on a deepwater hub and export pipeline system to serve fields in southeastern Mississippi Canyon, southwestern De Soto Canyon, northeastern Atwater Valley and northwestern Lloyd Ridge areas. The Independence Project includes a floating production system with a capacity of 1 Bcfd of gas and a 134-mi., 24-in. diameter export pipeline to a new shallow-water platform in West Delta Block 68 that connects with the Tennessee Gas Pipeline system. To date, 10 anchor fields (15 wells) have dedicated production to the facility.

The discovery of the northernmost fields, Spiderman and San Jacinto, had a significant impact on the facility location selected, moving the hub northward, Fig. 1. Due to their distance from the facility and proximity to each other, Spiderman and San Jacinto fields were a natural fit for subsea co-development. However, with different operators and multiple interest owners a co-development proved challenging.