Two more projects online as Asian giant pursues ‘green and low-carbon’ oil & gas development

Chinese state-owned oil and gas giant China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has brought on stream two oilfield projects off the coast of China, with the help of so-called intelligent technologies, which are said to unlock the doors of low-emission hydrocarbon development.

As the operator and sole owner, CNOOC has started production from the Caofeidian 6-4 oilfield comprehensive adjustment project and Wenchang 19-1 oilfield Phase II project using the design concept of what it describes as intelligent oil and gas fields.

According to the firm, some procedures, such as crude oil production, equipment maintenance, and safety management, were upgraded with intelligent technologies to enhance the efficiency of hydrocarbon development.

The Chinese giant claims to be committed to building intelligent offshore oil and gas fields and developing hydrocarbon resources in “a green and low-carbon manner, so that, it could provide the society with clean, reliable, and stable energy supplies.”

Thanks to this drive toward less emission-intensive oil and gas production, the associated gas of the Caofeidian 6-4 oilfield comprehensive adjustment project is reinjected back into the reservoir with gas injection compressors to curb carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 13,000 tons per year.

Located in the western part of the Bohai Sea, with an average water depth of approximately 20 meters, the project’s main production facility is a new production wellhead platform, which leverages the adjacent existing facilities for development.

With 25 development wells planned to be in production, the development entails 22 production wells and three water injection wells, with a peak production of around 11,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2026. The oil property is light crude.

On the other hand, the Wenchang 19-1 oilfield Phase II project utilizes a megawatt-level high-temperature flue gas ORC power generation unit, expected to generate up to 24 million kilowatt-hours of electricity and slash carbon dioxide emissions by around 23,000 tons per year.

Situated in the western part of the Pearl River Mouth Basin, with an average water depth of approximately 125 meters, the project’s main production facility is a new drilling and production platform, which also leverages the adjacent existing facilities for development.

CNOOC underlines that 13 development wells are planned to be put into production, with a peak production of about 12,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day anticipated in 2027. The oil property is medium crude.

These two projects began production weeks after the Chinese player fired up the Luda 5-2 North oilfield phase II development less than three years after production kicked off from phase I in 2022.

These projects align with CNOOC’s $19 billion budget plan to boost oil and gas production this year while pursuing lower-emission developments and artificial intelligence (AI) to bolster its hydrocarbon business.