The Leman Field, Blocks 49/26, 49/27, 49/28, 53/1, 53/2, UK North Sea

1991 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 451-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. P. Hillier ◽  
B. P. J. Williams

AbstractDiscovered in 1966 and starting production in 1968, Leman was the second gas field to come into production in the UK sector of the North Sea. It is classified as a giant field with an estimated ultimate recovery of 11 500 BCF of gas in the aeolian dune sands of the Rotliegend Group. The field extends over five blocks and is being developed by two groups with Shell and Amoco being the operators. Despite being such an old field development drilling is still ongoing in the field with the less permeable northwest area currently being developed.

2003 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 761-770 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. P. Hillier

AbstractDiscovered in 1966 and starting production in 1968, Leman was the second gas field to come into production in the UK sector of the North Sea and is still producing gas today. It is classified as a giant field with an estimated initial gas-in-place of 397 BCM of gas in the aeolian dune sands of the Rotliegend Group. The field extends over five blocks and is being developed by two licence groups with Shell and Amoco (now BP Amoco) being the operators


1991 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 295-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. G. Mound ◽  
I. D. Robertson ◽  
R. J. Wallis

AbstractThe Cyrus Oilfield is located in Block 16/28 of the UK sector of the North Sea approximately 250 km (155 miles) NE of Aberdeen and 55 km (34 miles) NE of the Forties Field. The trap consists of a broad, very low relief four-way dip closure developed over a deeper tilted fault block. The reservoir consists of submarine-fan sandstones of late Palaeocene age, belonging to the Andrew Formation. Provenance was to the NW resulting from the early Tertiary sea-level fall which exposed the East Shetland Platform. The reservoir has been sub-divided into two zones, an upper zone of interbedded sandstones and mudstones with net to gross ratios of 0.4 to 0.6 and sandstone porositites of 12% to 18%, and a lower zone of massive fine-grained sandstones plus subordinate thin shales and limestones, with net to gross ratios in excess of 0.9 and porosities averaging 20%. The reservoir is filled with undersaturated oil of 35° API and is normally pressured. The estimate of initial oil-in-place is 75 MMBBL. Development of the field is centred on the use of BP's SWOPS (Single Well Offshore Production System) vessel using two horizontal field development wells which feed into a single seabed template for offtake. Ultimate recovery from the field is estimated to be approximately 12 MMBBL.


2020 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 664-678 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Camm ◽  
L. E. Armstrong ◽  
A. Patel

AbstractThe Lower Cretaceous Britannia Field development is one of the largest and most significant undertaken on the UK Continental Shelf. Production started in 1998 via 17 pre-drilled development wells and was followed by a decade of intensive drilling, whereby a further 40 wells were added. In 2000 Britannia's plateau production of 800 MMscfgd supplied 8% of the UK's domestic gas requirements.As the field has matured, so too has its development strategy. Initial near-field development drilling targeting optimal reservoir thickness was followed by extended reach wells into the stratigraphic pinchout region. In 2014 a further strategy shift was made, moving from infill drilling to a long-term compression project to maximize existing production. During its 20-year history the Britannia Platform has undergone numerous changes. In addition to compression, production from five satellite fields has been routed through the facility: Caledonia (2003), Callanish and Brodgar (2008), Enochdhu (2015) and Alder (2016). A new field, Finlaggan, is due to be brought through Britannia's facilities in 2020, helping to maximize value from the asset for years to come.As Britannia marks 20 years of production it has produced c. 600 MMboe – surpassing the original ultimate recoverable estimate of c. 570 MMboe – and is still going strong today.


Author(s):  
M.N Tsimplis ◽  
D.K Woolf ◽  
T.J Osborn ◽  
S Wakelin ◽  
J Wolf ◽  
...  

Within the framework of a Tyndall Centre research project, sea level and wave changes around the UK and in the North Sea have been analysed. This paper integrates the results of this project. Many aspects of the contribution of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) to sea level and wave height have been resolved. The NAO is a major forcing parameter for sea-level variability. Strong positive response to increasing NAO was observed in the shallow parts of the North Sea, while slightly negative response was found in the southwest part of the UK. The cause of the strong positive response is mainly the increased westerly winds. The NAO increase during the last decades has affected both the mean sea level and the extreme sea levels in the North Sea. The derived spatial distribution of the NAO-related variability of sea level allows the development of scenarios for future sea level and wave height in the region. Because the response of sea level to the NAO is found to be variable in time across all frequency bands, there is some inherent uncertainty in the use of the empirical relationships to develop scenarios of future sea level. Nevertheless, as it remains uncertain whether the multi-decadal NAO variability is related to climate change, the use of the empirical relationships in developing scenarios is justified. The resulting scenarios demonstrate: (i) that the use of regional estimates of sea level increase the projected range of sea-level change by 50% and (ii) that the contribution of the NAO to winter sea-level variability increases the range of uncertainty by a further 10–20 cm. On the assumption that the general circulation models have some skill in simulating the future NAO change, then the NAO contribution to sea-level change around the UK is expected to be very small (<4 cm) by 2080. Wave heights are also sensitive to the NAO changes, especially in the western coasts of the UK. Under the same scenarios for future NAO changes, the projected significant wave-height changes in the northeast Atlantic will exceed 0.4 m. In addition, wave-direction changes of around 20° per unit NAO index have been documented for one location. Such changes raise the possibility of consequential alteration of coastal erosion.


Author(s):  
J.W. Horwood ◽  
R.S. Millner

Large catches of sole (Solea solea) were made in early 1996 from the south-western North Sea. Sole suffer physiological damage in waters below 3–4 C. In February 1996 cold water of 3–4 C unusually extended from the Continental coast onto the Dogger Bank. It is likely that the increased catches were due to the consequential distribution and behaviour of the sole, making them more susceptible to capture.Exceptionally large catches of mature sole (Solea solea (L.)) were made in February 1996 by Lowestoft fishermen from the south-western North Sea. Surprisingly this was not welcome. The UK allocation of the North Sea sole is -4 % of the EU Total Allowable Catch (TAC), and fishermen are restricted nationally, and by the fishing companies, to a tightly managed ration. The Lowestoft Journal (8 March 1996) reported the suspension of a local fishing skipper for not throwing back 5000 kg of sole caught in the Silver Pits. We will show that the abnormal catches were due to exceptionally cold waters.Sole in the North Sea are at the northern extremity of their range, with sole seldom living in waters below 5°C (Horwood, 1993). In fact, North Sea sole were successfully introduced into Lake Quarun, Egypt, where they lived in temperatures in excess of 30°C (El-Zarka, 1965). Young sole migrate from their shallow inshore nursery grounds, such as the Waddensea, as winter approaches (Creutzberg & Fonds, 1971).


1991 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. J. Taylor ◽  
J. P. A. Dietvorst

AbstractThe Cormorant Oilfield is located approximately 150 km northeast of the Shetland Islands in Blocks 211/2la and 211/ 26a of the UK sector of the North Sea, in water depths of 500-550 ft. The field was discovered in 1972 by exploration well 211/ 26-1 and consists of four discrete accumulations spread along a major, north-south trending fault terrace. Hydrocarbons are produced from Middle Jurassic (Bajocian) sands of the Brent Group, which was deposited in a wave-dominated delta system. The reservoir has a typical gross thickness of 250-300 ft, locally increasing to 550 ft over faults active during sedimentation. Reservoir porosity varies from 16-28%, with average permeabilities ranging from tens of md to 1300md. The accumulation contains under-saturated 34-36° API oil which was initially overpressured by some 1000-1270 psi. The stock tank oil initially in place and ultimate recovery are estimated at 1568 MMBBL and 623 MMBBL, respectively, reflecting a recovery factor of 39%. The reserves are produced through crestally-located wells supported by down-dip water injectors, and exported via two fixed platforms and an underwater manifold centre. To date, 59 wells have been drilled and 324 MMBBL (52%) of the estimated reserves have been produced.


2011 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 589
Author(s):  
Kristian Aas ◽  
Lars Bjørheim

Gjøa was the largest field development project in Norway in 2010. Gjøa was proven in 1989 and are now being developed together with nearby Vega satellites. The combined reserves are estiThe recent Gjøa field development in the North Sea has many features that are relevant for the oil and gas developments north of Western Australia. While the field location is not very similar to the north of Western Australia, the field development solution is very relevant. Several subsea clusters are tied back to a semi-submersible platform with export of gas and condensate via pipelines to shore. Other aspects to the project that are relevant to Western Australia are split location engineering between Norway and India, fabrication of the hull in Korea and subsequent heavy lift transport to the assembly yard, pre-installation of the mooring system, and tow to field with ocean going tug boats. The semi concept, which was used for the Gjøa development, is a mature technology with few technical challenges on a conceptual level. On the other hand the building of an oil and gas platform for A$2 billion has many challenges, both economical and technical, that have to be solved to have a successful project for both the client and the contractor.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Kettle

&lt;p&gt;Storm Xaver impacted the northern Europe on 5-6 December 2013. &amp;#160;It developed southeast of Greenland and passed north of Scotland and across southern Norway on a trajectory that led to a cold air outbreak across the North Sea and intense convection activity in northern Europe.&amp;#160; Strong sustained north winds led to a high storm surge that impacted all countries bordering the North Sea. &amp;#160;Storm Xaver was a century scale event with certain locations around the North Sea reporting their highest ever water levels since the start of modern records.&amp;#160; Media reports from the time of the storm chronicle the scale of the disruptions, including many cancelled flights, interrupted rail networks, closed bridges and roads, coastal building collapses, and power blackouts across northern Europe. &amp;#160;Much of this was due to the strong winds, but coastal storm surge flooding was important in the UK, and it led to interrupted port operations around the North Sea.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The storm was important for energy infrastructure and particularly for wind energy infrastructure.&amp;#160; In the northern North Sea, petroleum platforms were evacuated and operations closed ahead of the storm as a precautionary measure.&amp;#160; A number of onshore wind turbines were badly damaged by high winds and lightning strikes in the UK and Germany.&amp;#160; Over the North Sea, wind speeds exceeded the turbine shutdown threshold of 25 m/s for an extended period of time, with economic impacts from the loss of power generation.&amp;#160;&amp;#160; In the German Bight, the FINO1 offshore wind energy research platform was damaged at the 15 m level by large waves. &amp;#160;This was the third report of storm damage to this platform after Storm Britta in 2006 and Storm Tilo in 2007. &amp;#160;Researchers have highlighted the need to reassess&amp;#160; the design criteria for offshore wind turbines based on these kinds of extreme meteorological events. &amp;#160;For the offshore wind industry, an important element of energy meteorology is to characterize both the evolving wind and wave fields during severe storms as both elements contribute to turbine loads and potential damage.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The present conference contribution presents a literature review of the major events during Storm Xaver and impacts on energy infrastructure.&amp;#160; Tide gauge records are reanalyzed to trace the progress of the storm surge wave around the North Sea.&amp;#160; A spectral analysis is used to separate the long period storm surge component, diurnal/semidiurnal tide, and short period components in the original water level record. &amp;#160;The short period component of the tide gauge record is important as it may be linked with infragravity waves that have been implicated in certain cases of offshore infrastructure damage in addition to coastal erosion. &amp;#160;Discussion is made of offshore wave records during the storm.&amp;#160; Storm Xaver is compared with two damaging offshore storms in 2006 and 2007.&lt;/p&gt;


Author(s):  
Beatriz Alonso Castro ◽  
Terje Birkenes ◽  
Huib Oosterveld

Decommissioning is an emerging sector in the UK and Norway, accounting for 2% of total industry expenditure in 2010 increasing to 8% in 2017. In accordance with existing regulations in the North Sea (OSPAR), dumping, and leaving wholly or partly in place disused offshore installations within the maritime area is prohibited. Over the next eight years, 200 platforms are expected to be removed in the North Sea. There are a number of methods to remove offshore installations: Piece small, Reverse installation and Single lift. In the Single lift approach the jacket or the topside is removed in one piece, minimizing significantly the time offshore and therefore the safety and health incidents. But the Piece Small and Reverse Installation are the most common methods and are established and secure although are time consuming and labor intensive [1]. Several potential candidates for single lift technology at varying levels of technical readiness were considered in the past. The majority of the concepts remained on the drawing board, while some were awaiting project commitment. The only that was matured further than this is the Pioneering Spirit. Yme, its first commercial lift, gave this concept the “proven” status. The Yme MOPU, owned by Repsol, was a jack-up type platform standing on three steel legs of 3.5 m diameter. The dry weight of the MOPU was approximately 13,500 t. The Yme MOPU was a challenging unit to remove mainly for three reasons: The platform motions due to the lack of stiffness in the leg support, its position in contact with the caisson wellhead platform, and the fact that the legs could not be pre-cut before the operation. The method selected to remove the platform was Single lift, using the dynamically positioned platform installation and removal vessel Pioneering Spirit. The lifting arrangement consisted of 12 lift beams combined and connected in pairs to yokes. Five specifically designed yokes were installed. The yokes connect the TLS with the MOPU. The structural integrity of each interface was assessed with FE analysis. The Ballast system was used to provide additional clearance. Pioneering Spirit has a total of eighty-seven ballast water tanks, including four so called ‘Quick Drop Ballast Water Tanks’. The removal of the MOPU was performed successfully the 22nd August 2016, after two days work offshore.


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