Project Profile
Value: US$200 million (capital expenditure)
Location: Block-6 concession, central Oman
Start-up Year: 2017
Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) and its main partner Royal Dutch Shell plc (Shell) are preparing to call for tender the first phase of the challenging Khulud Tight Gas project in its Block-6 concession of central Oman. In PDO the working interests are shared between Oman Government, Shell,Total and Partex. To reach Khulud, PDO and Shell had to drill up to 5,000 metres deep, which makes Khulud one of the deepest tight gas field in the world. In addition to the exceptional depth of the reservoir, Khulud lies in extreme tightness of rocks formation from where the extraction requires from PDO and Shell the most advanced recovery technologies. The Khulud sour gas temperature ranges around 180 degree centigrade. Assuming the Khulud Tight Gas Pilot project to be awarded at the end of 2015, PDO and Shell expect the first production from the Block-6 in central Oman by 2017.
In this context, the commercial viability of the Khulud Tight Gas field is not a given that PDO and Shell want to determine step by step after accumulating tests and reservoir deep understanding. Since 2010, PDO and Shell drilled a dozen of wells where its tested hydraulic fracturing (fracking). In 2014, PDO and Shell put in operations a first production station to gather and treat the first gas for further testing campaign. Through these fracking tests, PDO and Shell could acquire the first understanding on the way Khulud reservoirs reacts and the different combinations of technology employed. Therefore PDO and Shell have decided to move on the Khulud Tight Gas First Phase to design a build a pilot project. Calling for US$200 million capital expenditure, this Khulud pilot project should help PDO and Shell to measure the sustainability of the production rates with the selected technologies and to evaluate the commercial viability of a potential Khulud Tight Gas Full Field Development project in a second phase. In this perspective, PDO and Shell will call for tender the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) for:
- Khulud On-plot package
- Khulud Off-plot package
Operators:
Petroleum Development Oman (PDO)
PDO is owned by:
Oman Government: Operator with 60% interest
Shell: 34% interest
Total: 4% interest
Partex: 2% interest