PetroSA’s Project Ikhwezi, has been granted regulatory approval by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) to produce gas feedstock from the offshore F-O development fields, the company announced yesterday.
Project Ikhwezi is aimed at sustaining the life of the Mossel Bay GTL Refinery. The wells are based off the F-O field located 40km south-east of the offshore F-A production platform, off the south coast of South Africa. Production of the gas from the first well is planned for mid-2013.
PetroSA Group CEO Ms Nosizwe Nokwe-Macamo said Project Ikhwezi was one of the most important initiatives in the company’s history. “Project Ikhwezi creates a critical opportunity for sustaining the operations of our GTL Refinery. It ensures that we continue to play a vital role in the South African petrochemicals market. Most importantly, PetroSA will continue to be a source of much-needed employment in the Southern Cape,” she said.
Drillin in November
The drilling operation of the five Project Ikhwezi wells is scheduled to start in November 2012 and should be completed by the second quarter of 2015. It will take around six months to complete each of the five wells. The drilling activity accounts for 63% of the project’s total capital expenditure.
In parallel, work will proceed on installing sub-sea pipelines and production infrastructure before tying the pipelines back to the Mossel Bay refinery via PetroSA’s F-A platform. The subsea pipeline will be installed between September and December 2012. The rest of the sub-sea infrastructure will be installed in 2013.
[mappress] Offshore Energy Today Staff, July 11, 2012