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    Legal challenges raise costs of Barossa offshore gas project

    Jan. 25, 2024
    Santos expects capex for its Barossa gas-condensate development in the Barents Sea to rise by $200 million to $300 million.
    Courtesy BW Offshore
    In late October 2023, the newbuild hull for the BW Opal FPSO started tow from the SK Oceanplant yard in South Korea to the integration shipyard in Singapore. BW Offshore says its BW Opal hull is one of the largest FPSO hulls ever built, with an overall length of 358 m, a width of 64 m.
    In late October 2023, the newbuild hull for the BW Opal FPSO started tow from the SK Oceanplant yard in South Korea to the integration shipyard in Singapore. BW Offshore says its BW Opal hull is one of the largest FPSO hulls ever built, with an overall length of 358 m, a width of 64 m.

    Offshore staff

    ADELAIDE, Australia — Santos expects capex for its Barossa gas-condensate development in the Barents Sea to rise by $200 million to $300 million.

    This follows the judicial outcome to the Munkara v. Santos NA Barossa Pty Ltd. (No. 3) case, and Australian regulatory authority NOPSEMA accepting the revised drilling and completions environmental plan.

    Total estimated capex is now $4.5 billion to $4.6 billion, with first gas expected during third-quarter 2025.

    The project, which will backfill Darwin LNG, is currently 66.4% complete, including the Darwin Pipeline Duplication work.

    Installation of the northern section of the gas export pipeline started in November 2023, with the remainder to be laid in accordance with the environment plan.

    Following NOPSEMA’s approval in mid-December 2023, mobilization for drilling started soon afterward with activities resuming on the field on Jan. 13, 2024.

    At the Seatrium yard in Singapore, integration work has started on the FPSO hull with six topside modules loaded onto the hull by the end of last year.

    Offshore Western Australia, the Reindeer Field is still producing to the onshore Devil Creek facility, but field life is due to cease by mid-year. Feasibility studies continue on long-term storage of carbon in depleted gas reservoirs at Reindeer with FEED potentially starting this year.

    In addition, Santos is assessing long-term CO2 storage in upstream gas reservoirs tied back to the Varanus Island gas processing facilities.

    01.25.2024

    Related

    Courtesy Santos
    Courtesy Santos
    Courtesy Santos LinkedIn
    'The Northern Territory is poised to reap enormous economic benefits from Santos' Barossa Gas Project,' Santos said on its LinkedIn two weeks ago. When the 3-4 month pipelaying construction campaign begins, it will involve 500 Australian crew and about 300 expat crew and technical support personnel from Europe. Approximately 340 hotel rooms will be required to support offshore vessel mobilization, Santos said.