BP starts gas production from third stage of West Nile Delta development in Egypt
BP has announced gas production from Raven field, the third stage of its major West Nile Delta (WND) development off the Mediterranean coast in Egypt. The approximately $9 billion WND development includes five gas fields across the North Alexandria and West Mediterranean deepwater offshore concession blocks in the Mediterranean Sea.
“Completing this major multistage 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,” said Bernard Looney, BP CEO. “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”.
Raven follows the Taurus/Libra and Giza/Fayoum projects, which started production in 2017 and 2019, respectively. It produces gas to a new onshore processing facility, alongside the existing West Nile Delta onshore processing plant.
Raven is currently producing approximately 600 million standard cu ft/day of gas. At its peak, the Raven field has the potential to produce 900 million cu ft/day and 30,000 bbl/day of condensate.
Karim Alaa, BP regional president for North Africa, added: “The safe startup of Raven in an extremely difficult period would not have been possible without commitment and close co-operation from the team. Working together with the 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.”
In total, the WND development encompasses 25 wells producing gas to the onshore processing plant via three long-distance subsea tiebacks. The onshore facilities – including the new Raven facility – now have a total gas processing capacity of around 1.4 billion standard cu ft/day of gas. All gas produced is fed into Egypt’s national grid.
BP is the operator and has an 82.75% stake in the West Nile Delta development, with Wintershall Deaholding the remaining 17.25% interest.
