Chevron Australia and Partners Declare FID on Gorgon Stage 3
The Gorgon Phase 3 project will counter declining reservoir pressure to sustain gas supplies to Western Australia’s domestic market and support LNG exports to Asia.
Gorgon’s gas-processing facility on Barrow Island and its three-train LNG liquefaction plant represents the largest single resource project in Australia's history. Source: Chevron.
Chevron Australia has announced it has taken a final investment decision (FID) together with its partners in the Gorgon Joint Venture to launch Stage 3 of the Gorgon gas field development off the northwest coast of Western Australia.
The nearly $2-billion (AUD $3-billion) backfill project targeted for completion by 2030 will connect the offshore Geryon and Eurytion natural gas fields in the Greater Gorgon Area to Gorgon’s existing subsea gas-gathering infrastructure and processing facilities on Barrow Island.
Chevron’s Gorgon Project is located on Barrow Island approximately 60 km off the northwest coast of Western Australia.
Source: Chevron Australia
The development is intended to counter declining reservoir pressure to sustain gas deliveries to Western Australia’s domestic market and to support liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to Asia, Chevron Australia President Balaji Krishnamurthy said in a 5 December press release.
The Chevron-operated Gorgon Project is a joint venture between the Australian subsidiaries of Chevron (47.33%), ExxonMobil (25%), Shell (25%), Osaka Gas (1.25%), MidOcean (1%), and JERA (0.417%).
Gorgon shipped its first LNG cargo in March 2016. The project is expected to maintain gas and LNG production over a lifespan of 40 years.
Sticking With the Original Plan
Part of the original Gorgon development plan, Gorgon Stage 3 is the first in a series of planned subsea tiebacks that include installation of three manifolds, a 35-km production flowline, and related infrastructure.
Six wells will be drilled in the Geryon and Eurytion fields which lie about 100 km northwest of Barrow Island in 1,300 m of water.
“Gorgon Stage 3 is a cost-competitive development which will optimize existing infrastructure and complement the well-progressed Jansz-Io Compression Project and previously completed Gorgon Stage 2 infill development,” Krishnamurthy said. Gorgon has the capacity to process 300 TJ/d of gas for Western Australia’s domestic market and 15.6 mtpa of LNG for export from its three-train liquefaction facility, according to Chevron.
