A decade-long work stoppage for an oil platform off the California coast has ended, according to an announcement on May 19.
Houston's Sable Offshore Corp. (SOC) restarted oil production at the Santa Ynez Unit on May 15 after the company began flowing oil to its Las Flores Canyon processing facility.
In 2015, a pipeline leak at the platform was problematic enough that then-owner Exxon Mobil chose to shut down the unit. Sable eventually purchased the facility.
In October 2024, Sable announced that the repair project was about two-thirds complete. Most recently, on May 19, Sable said production is flowing from six wells at the unit at an average 6,000 bbl/d.
Sable said well performance has exceeded pre-closure benchmarks, with about 30% of Platform Harmony's 32 producing wells tested so far. Harmony is one of three platforms in the Santa Ynez unit. The other two platforms are expected to come online by August.
“The impressive well tests from Platform Harmony confirm the prolific nature of the Santa Ynez Unit reservoir after being dormant for ten years,” said Sable Offshore CEO Jim Flores. “SOC is excited about our development plan and prospects for the future.”