Last updated Sunday, 20 December 2020, 10:30 by Denis Chabrol
The fuel pipe leading from the FPSO, Liza Destiny, to the Cap Philippe for the transfer of Guyana’s first million barrels of raw.
ExxonMobil announced on Sunday that its Guyana offshore Production, Storage and Unloading (FPSO) ship had reached full production capacity of 120,000 barrels and the company had significantly reduced natural gas torching when commissioning its sprinkler system gas.
“Earlier this month, Liza Destiny’s floating production storage and unloading vessel (FPSO) reached full capacity of 120,000 barrels of oil a day and successfully commissioned the gas injection system,” the company said in a accompanying statement with his one year anniversary. commercial oil production from Liza 1 well.
A faulty gas injection system caused the company to flame significant amounts of natural gas into the atmosphere, raising concerns among critics and environmental advocates. Ultimately, in an attempt to reduce torching ExxonMobil cut its production output here down to about 75,000 to 80,000 barrels per day and then increased it to 100,000 barrels before hitting its full capacity.
“ExxonMobil Guyana is committed to responsible development of the country’s natural resources and will not use normal torches during our operations,” ExxonMobil Guyana President Alistair Routledge said in a company statement. “We are disappointed with the number of equipment issues experienced and, due to these issues and COVID-19, commissioning the gas injection system took longer than originally anticipated. We took significant steps to limit torching and are incorporating lessons learned for future projects. ”
The company began production less than five years after hydrocarbons were first discovered, well ahead of the industry average for deepwater developments.
“We are extremely proud of our team’s tremendous work in overcoming the challenges of the past year and bringing us safely to where we are today,” said Mr Routledge. “This resilient group, which includes a growing number of Guyanese professionals, continues to persevere through the pandemic challenges and the initial start-up of COVID-19 to deliver a world-class project,” he added.
The company said more than six thousand personnel had been transferred offshore without a safety incident or outbreak of COVID-19 on the offshore facilities. In total, FPSO’s Liza Destiny team has achieved a year and more than a million hours of work without a recordable security incident.
ExxonMobil said investment in the local economy continued to increase as the Liza and Payara Phase Two projects progressed. More than 2,100 Guyanese now support activities on and offshore. ExxonMobil and its key contractors have spent over GY $ 69 billion with more than 700 local companies since 2015.
Liza and Payara’s advances are in the Stabroek Block, operated by Esso Exploration and Production affiliate Guyana Limited’s ExxonMobil which holds a 45 percent interest in the Block. Hess has Guyana Exploration Ltd. 30 per cent interest and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of CNOOC Limited, has a 25 per cent interest.