Hibiscus selects FPSO concept for Marigold cluster

Business & Finance

Malaysia’s Hibiscus Petroleum has selected an FPSO concept for the development of the Marigold cluster located in the UK North Sea. 

A concept select report for the development of Marigold and Sunflower fields was submitted to the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) on August 31, 2019, and a letter of no objection to the selected concept was issued by the OGA on October 15, 2019, Hibiscus said in an update on Thursday.

The Marigold Cluster currently includes the following licenses and fields: P198 – Block 15/13a (Marigold Discovery); P198 – Block 15/13b (Sunflower Discovery); and P2366 – Blocks 15/18d and 15/19b (Crown Discovery).

Block 15/13a contains a significant oil-bearing discovered field (Marigold), whilst Block 15/13b which lies northeast of Block 15/13a contains a smaller discovered field (Sunflower).

Based on an independent report by AGR TRACS International Limited, 2C Resources in the Blocks are estimated to be 60 million bbls of oil.

Hibiscus said that, for the next twelve months, its goal remains to high grade the contingent resources of the Marigold and Sunflower discovered fields into producible 2P Reserves through the preparation of a field development plan.

According to Hibiscus, a dedicated project team has been tasked to conduct the subsurface field development engineering studies and, with the support of third-party contractors, execute the concept select phase as part of the effort to establish a field development plan for Marigold and Sunflower by the end of calendar year 2020. Development options that have been considered include a fixed platform, a floating solution, as well as a tieback to existing, nearby infrastructure solutions.

Thirty-four development scenarios were studied to determine the optimum solution for development of the Marigold and Sunflower resources and select the concept that provided the best balance of cost, value, and risk.

The selected concept is to drill and complete subsea wells that are tied back to an FPSO unit via flexible flowlines and umbilicals. It will also facilitate a phased development approach to further mitigate project risks. The project is expected to proceed in two phases to mitigate subsurface uncertainties and minimize capital outlay required to achieve first oil production.

It is anticipated that in phase 1 of the development, three Marigold wells will be drilled, completed and tied back to the FPSO via a production manifold. Additional wells in Marigold, along with wells in the Sunflower discovered field and the recently acquired Crown discovered field (pending acquisition completion), could be developed in a second project phase. It is envisaged that wells in these fields will also be tied back to the FPSO.

Targeting producing assets in Southeast Asia

Hibiscus also said on Thursday that it is positioning for growth through further acquisitions of producing assets particularly in Southeast Asia. The company expects high-quality acquisition opportunities will be emanating in Southeast Asia as the fields in the area mature and established players look to review their portfolios.

The company is targeting to deliver 3.3 to 3.5 million barrels of oil in FY2020, which is up to 16% higher than the actual oil delivered in FY2019. With the current and future enhancement projects across both North Sabah and Anasuria assets, together with potential production from new acquisitions, the Group aims to achieve its 2021 Mission of 20,000 bbls of oil production per day.

Hibiscus Managing Director, Dr Kenneth Pereira, said: “By 2021, existing assets are expected to deliver 12,000 barrels of net oil per day. We will close the gap with an acquisition. We will be extremely selective and will only invest in assets that we believe will generate strong positive cashflows.”