THE COOPERATIVE DEVELOPMENT OF THE GOBE OIL FIELDS

Abstract

The proposed Gobe Petroleum Development Project includes the development of two separate oil fields, SE Gobe and Gobe Main. The fields are located, respectively, in the northwestern area of Petroleum Prospecting License (PPL) 56 and the southeastern area of PPL 161 in the Gulf and Southern Highlands provinces of Papua New Guinea, approximately 500 km northwest of Port Moresby, 80 km northwest of the town of Kikori and 85 km southeast of the Kutubu oil fields.

The Gobe anticline, on which the discovery wells were drilled, is a large east-southeast trending ridge situated at the leading edge of the Papuan Fold Belt. The surface of the anticline was formed by folded limestone which has weathered to produce a rugged terrain characterised by intense pinnacle karst topography. Dense rainforest covers all of the project area. The crest of the anticline is in excess of 1,300 m above sea level, with the hydrocarbons occurring between approximately 900 m and 1,200 m below sea level.

The Gobe Main Field is located entirely within PPL 161 which is operated by Chevron Niugini Pty. Ltd. The SE Gobe Field is located within both PPL 56 and PPL 161. The PPL 56 license is operated by Barracuda Pty Limited. Both of the fields are situated approximately 15 km from the existing Kutubu oil export pipeline. Development planning for the two fields is now at a mature phase and the two license groups are preparing to submit Petroleum Development License Applications (PDLA) to the PNG Government. Initial production is targeted for December of 1997 and the fields are forecast to produce at a combined peak rate of approximately 50,000 BOPD.

The potential economic return to participants and the state will be optimised by developing these fields in a cooperative manner with shared production facilities. Similarly, utilisation of the nearby Kutubu oil export pipeline will yield benefits to both the field developers and pipeline owners. The Gobe development serves as an example of how the economics of two 'marginal' field developments can be enhanced by employing existing infrastructure and sharing of facilities. This paper will provide an overview of this cooperative approach to development.