Premier prepares for Tolmount East appraisal well spud

Oil and gas company Premier Oil has said that drilling of the Tolmount East appraisal well located in the UK Southern North Sea will start shortly. 

In its trading and operations update on Wednesday, Premier said that drilling of the Tolmount East appraisal well has the potential to add significantly to the Tolmount resource.

The oil company last September awarded a drilling contract for this project to EnscoRowan. The contract was initially supposed to be fulfilled by Ensco 100 jack-up but the rig earlier this year won a nine-well contract with Faroe Petroleum.

As a result, EnscoRowan will provide its newbuild Ensco 123 jack-up rig for Premier’s drilling program in the UK North Sea. The rig was built by Keppel and delivered to its owner last April.

According to the drilling contractor’s fleet status report from April, the Ensco 123’s contract with Premier was scheduled to start in July and end at the end of October 2019. The deal also includes one one-well option.

The latest AIS data shows that the Ensco 123 is currently located at a port in Dundee.

Premier previously said that operations on the Tolmount East appraisal well were expected to last about 80 days.

When it comes to the Tolmount development, it remains on schedule and budget.

The construction of the platform for the 500 bcf Tolmount Main gas project began in Rosetti Marino’s Ravenna yard in December. Premier said in the update on Wednesday that Rosetti Marino is erecting the steel frame of the topsides and the construction of the jacket is well advanced.

In the UK, fabrication of the pipeline to shore is expected to start shortly while engineering and procurement for the Easington terminal modifications are underway with civil works having started at the site.

Data from the Greater Tolmount Area 3D seismic survey, which completed in April, is being processed to define additional prospectivity in the area, such as Tolmount Far East.

Offshore Energy Today Staff

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