Oil major, BP plc (formerly The British Petroleum Company plc and BP Amoco plc) has started producing gas from the Raven field in Egypt marking the third stage of the US $9bn large West Nile Delta (WND) development comprising five gas fields across the North Alexandria and West Mediterranean Deepwater offshore concession blocks.
BP and its partners, working with the Ministry of Petroleum, have developed the project in three stages. The first, Taurus-Libra, began production in March 2017 while the second, Giza-Fayoum, began production in February 2019.
In total, the project involves 25 wells and three long distance subsea tiebacks to shore and all gas produced is fed into Egypt’s national grid. Currently, Raven’s gross production is 600 million std cu ft/d of gas (MMscfd). At its peak, Raven field is expected to deliver gross production of 900 MMscfd and 30,000 b/d of condensate (gross production).
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Egypt’s growing energy needs
“Completing this major multi-stage development in the face of many challenges is testament to BP’s long-term commitment to Egypt and our excellent working relationships with partners and the government. West Nile Delta will make an important contribution to meeting Egypt’s growing energy needs, by providing a cost-competitive and resilient gas supply from the country’s own resources,” said Bernard Looney, BP CEO.
The onshore facilities have a total gas processing capacity of around 1.4 bcf/d. BP operates the WND with an 82.75% interest while the remainder is controlled by the Wintershall Dea, Europe’s leading independent natural gas and Oil Company.
“Working together with the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum and our partners we can now explore the potential use of the West Nile Delta facilities for developing future infill and nearby exploration opportunities,” said Karim Alaa, the British multinational oil and Gas Company’s regional president for North Africa.
