The Oil & Gas Authority (OGA) recently published their “2018 UKCS Projects Insights Report”. On the UKCS there are currently more than 60 projects in the pre-FID ‘assessment’ and ‘authorisation’ phases, of which a significant number delayed a final investment decision (FID) in 2018. Reasons cited included funding, well data, sale/transfers of assets and longer FEED. Out of the projects at this stage, the average discovery age is currently 25 years and counting.
Of particular concern for this extended discovery to FID timeline is that if the trend continues, given the rate of production decline and fields reaching end of life, the current infrastructure may no longer be in service – at the expense of efforts to ‘maximise economic recovery’ of our national resources.
One means of extending field life, while maintaining the links to shore that enable continued exploration and development of smaller, nearby or satellite accumulations, is Gas2Wire. The switch from pipeline to cable reduces OPEX and allows fields and hubs to produce lower for longer, maximising economic recovery of both developed and undeveloped resources.