FPSO off Gabon sports new gas lift compressor

Oslo-listed oil and gas E&P company BW Energy has installed and started using a new gas lift compressor (GLC) on a floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which is working on a project offshore Gabon.

According to BW Energy, the start-up of the new gas lift compressor on the FPSO BW Adolo comes after commissioning and a gradual ramp-up of gas lift capacity over the past weeks. This compressor is the second GLC unit installed on the FPSO to support production from the six Tortue wells. Once fully operational it is expected to add approximately 3,000 barrels per day of production.

The Tortue development in the Dussafu license consists of six production wells, tied back to the FPSO BW Adolo. The Dussafu license is situated within the Ruche Exclusive Exploitation Area (Ruche EEA), which covers 850 km2 and includes six discovered oil fields and numerous leads and prospects.

The average water depth is 116 metres. The production sharing contract (PSC) allows for the production of hydrocarbons from the Ruche EEA for up to 20 years from the first production, which was achieved in September 2018.

Phase 1 of the Dussafu development included two subsea horizontal production wells at the Tortue field with production aided by gas lift as the artificial lift mechanism. On the other hand, Tortue Phase 2 introduced four additional subsea production wells at the Tortue field.

The Hibiscus/Ruche development project in the Hibiscus and Ruche fields achieved the first oil in April 2023. This is transported by pipeline to the FPSO BW Adolo for processing and storage before offloading to oil tankers. 

The FPSO BW Adolo serves as the production hub for the fields in the Dussafu Marin permit. This vessel was converted from a very large crude carrier (VLCC) and is spread moored in the Tortue field. It started working at the field in 2018 and is expected to stay until 2038.

With an oil processing capacity of approximately 40,000 barrels per day (bpd) and a gas handling capacity of 18 million metric standard cubic feet per day (MMscfd), the FPSO has a storage capacity of 1.35 million barrels and a water injection capacity of 60,000bpd.