Beacon Offshore completes Shenandoah Phase 1 wells ramp-up to 100,000 bbl/d

Beacon Offshore Energy has completed the rampup of the four Phase 1 development wells in its operated Shenandoah Field in the Gulf of Mexico to its target rate of 100,000 bbl/d of oil (117,000 boe/d). 

Beacon stated in its Oct. 9 release: "Well productivity as well as reliability and uptime metrics of the Shenandoah floating production system [FPS] have conformed to expectations, and the ramp-up to target rate was accomplished within 75 days following first production, evidencing the top tier operability of the Shenandoah FPS."

Production from the first of four producing wells began July 25.

The Shenandoah reserves, located at reservoir depths of about 30,000 ft TVD, are being developed using 20,000-psi technology to produce from a deepwater high-pressure field. Beacon added that it expects to facilitate development of other similarly situated fields in the Inboard Wilcox trend.

The Shenandoah FPS sailed away from HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea, to the Gulf of Mexico in mid-December 2024.

The Shenandoah FPS is now located on Walker Ridge 52 about 150 miles offshore Louisiana in a water depth of about 5,800 ft, and it has been placed into service with a nameplate capacity of 120,000 bbl/d of oil and 140 MMcf/d.

The Shenandoah FPS has been designed as a regional host facility that will enable development of additional resources including the Beacon-operated Monument and Shenandoah South discoveries, which together with Shenandoah are expected to hold recoverable resources of nearly 600 MMboe. 

Shenandoah South is expected to include the drilling and completion of two wells with initial production from the first well expected to occur in second-quarter 2028. 

Beacon is joined by HEQ Deepwater and Navitas Petroleum in the Shenandoah development.