Origin Energy Ltd. says the delayed arrival of the Ensco 107 drilling rig will not affect the Kupe gas project. A contract extension offshore Vietnam has delayed the rig's arrival until September.
Offshore staff
MELBOURNE, Australia -- Origin Energy Ltd. says the delayed arrival of the Ensco 107 drilling rig will not affect the Kupe gas project. A contract extension offshore Vietnam has delayed the rig's arrival until September.
The $667-million project is expected to be online by mid-2009, producing approximately 254 petajoules of natural gas, 1.1 million metric tons of LPG, and 14.7 MMbbl of light oil for the New Zealand market, Origin says.
Initial work on the project includes drilling two 2.2-km (1.4-mi) tunnels under the south Taranaki cliffs to carry the main gas pipeline and control umbilical from the seabed to the production station site a few hundred meters from the cliff top. Work is also progressing around the onshore production station site near Hawera, the company says.
Origin subsidiary Origin Energy Resources (Kupe) Ltd. operates the project with 50% interest. Partners include Genesis Energy with 31% interest, New Zealand Oil & Gas Ltd. with 15% interest, and Mitsui E&P (New Zealand) Ltd. with 4% interest.
