Beacon Offshore Energy has taken a final investment decision to develop the Winterfell discovery which is operated by subsidiary BOE Exploration & Production LLC (BOE) and will be developed as a subsea tieback the Occidental’s Heidelberg spar.
The Winterfell discovery is a Miocene-aged project principally located in Green Canyon Blocks 943, 944, 987, and 988 with a water depth of around 5,200 ft. The field was initially discovered in 2021 with subsequent successful appraisal drilling conducted in 2022.
The field will be developed via a newly installed 13-mile subsea tieback to the Heidelberg spar located in Green Canyon Block 860. First oil is expected in second quarter 2024 and from three initial wells projected to deliver gross production of 22,000 BOE/D.
“Our technical and commercial teams continue to develop solutions that provide win-win outcomes for our partners,” said Scott Gutterman, Beacon Offshore chief executive. “At Winterfell we are unlocking the subsalt field’s potential via the execution of horizontal drilling technology applied to openhole completions while securing access to the nearby Heidelberg spar and associated downstream infrastructure with available ullage. The Winterfell development once again demonstrates the ability to produce oil and natural gas in the US Gulf of Mexico with a lower carbon footprint than almost all other regions.”
Working interest parties in Winterfell include Beacon Offshore Energy Exploration LLC (35.08%), BOE (0.33%), a subsidiary of Kosmos Energy (25.04%), Westlawn GOM Asset 3 Holdco LLC (15.0%), Red Willow Offshore, LLC (12.5%), Alta Mar Energy (Winterfell) LLC (7.55%), and CSL Exploration LP (4.5%).
In early 2022, Winterfell partner Kosmos Energy said the Winterfell-2 well was drilled to evaluate the adjacent fault block to the northwest of the original Winterfell discovery and was designed to test two horizons that were oil bearing in the Winterfell-1 well, with an exploration tail into a deeper horizon.
The well, drilled to a total depth of around 28,500 ft, discovered approximately 120 ft of net oil pay in the first and second horizons with better oil saturation and porosity than predrill expectations. The exploration tail has discovered an additional oil-bearing horizon in a deeper reservoir which is also prospective in the blocks immediately to the north. The results further defined the resource potential in the central Winterfell area, with a current estimate around 100 million bbl of gross oil equivalent.
