Barracuda gas project : Shell begins production from offshore gas field in T&T

Oil and gas giant Royal Dutch Shell has drawn the first gas from the Barracuda gas project in Block C, offshore Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) a little over one and a half years after taking a final investment decision (FID).

Barracuda is a backfill project located in the East Coast Marine Area (ECMA).

It is projected to yield close to 140 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscf/d) of gas, that is 25,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d).

Barracuda’s peak production is expected to be approximately 220mmscf/d of gas or 40,000boe/d.

The Barracuda gas project comprises a couple of subsea wells, that are fully owned by Royal Dutch Shell. While one well is located in the Endeavour field, the other has been drilled in the Bounty field.

Both the subsea wells were tied back to Royal Dutch Shell’s Dolphin platform. They are claimed to be the deepest development wells in Trinidad and Tobago.

The well in the Endeavour field was drilled to 20,000ft of depth, while the Bounty field well was spudded to 16,000ft of depth.

Royal Dutch Shell begins production from Barracuda gas project. Logo courtesy of PRNewsFoto/Shell Oil Company.

The Barracuda gas project is not only the oil giant’s first greenfield project in Trinidad and Tobago but also one of its largest in the Caribbean country since its acquisition of BG Group for $53 billion about five years ago.

Royal Dutch Shell is handling the offshore gas project through Shell Trinidad and Tobago, which is a subsidiary of BG International.

Eugene Okpere — Royal Dutch Shell Senior VP and Country Chair, commenting on the Barracuda gas project milestone, said: “We are immensely proud of our people and the remarkable work it took to achieve this milestone, particularly given that drilling began in May 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our execution strategy had to be completely overhauled to deliver our business plan, all while working remotely. It required tremendous resilience, adaptability and commitment.”

The start-up of the Barracuda gas project is said to be an important milestone for supplying gas to both the domestic and global markets via the Atlantic LNG plant. Royal Dutch Shell’s stake in the LNG facility is in the 46%-57.5% range in each of the four LNG trains.