Shell keen to unlock full potential of Gulf of Mexico discoveries

Oil major Shell has made a material discovery at the Blacktip North prospect in the deepwater of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, providing an opportunity to increase the production in the Perdido Corridor by using existing infrastructure.

As reported by Shell on Wednesday, the Blacktip North well encountered approximately 300 feet net oil pay at multiple levels and evaluation is ongoing to further define development options as the discovery is located in the vicinity of the existing infrastructure.

“The Blacktip North prospect is the latest example of discovering new resources in our advantaged corridors,” said Paul Goodfellow, Executive Vice President of Deep Water.

“Our strategic positions, like the Perdido Corridor, are at the heart of value creation in the Gulf of Mexico, and they represent an opportunity to use our existing infrastructure to unlock the full-value potential of our discoveries.”

Shell emphasised that Blacktip, Blacktip North, and Leopard discoveries are all opportunities to increase production in the Perdido Corridor, where Shell’s Great White, Silvertip, and Tobago fields are already producing.

Blacktip North is located in OCS block Alaminos Canyon (AC) 336, approximately 4.5 miles northeast of the recently appraised Blacktip discovery, 25 miles northeast of the recently announced Leopard discovery, 30 miles northeast of the planned Whale host, and 42 miles from the Perdido host.

Earlier this year, Shell announced a final investment decision for the Whale deepwater development, which is also located in the Perdido Corridor. The Whale project is part of Shell’s Gulf of Mexico portfolio, where its production, according to Shell, is among the lowest greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity in the world for producing oil.

As the latest edition to its low GHG intensity portfolio in the Gulf, the Whale development will feature energy-efficient gas turbines and compression systems. Furthermore, the development features a 99 per cent replicated hull and an 80 per cent replication of the topsides from the Vito project and it will be the second Shell-operated deepwater development in the Gulf of Mexico to employ a simplified, cost-efficient host design.