April 2014, Vol. 241 No. 4

Projects

Petrobras Achieves Output Record From Cascade And Chinook Fields In Gulf

On March 4 production at Cascade and Chinook fields hit 40,000 bpd, a new output record for these oilfields.

Cascade has three wells in operation and two in Chinook. The records were achieved by bringing on stream two new wells, Chinook-5 and Cascade-6, contributing a further 28,000 bpd to the previous output of 12,000 bpd.

Cascade and Chinook are located 260 km off the Louisiana coast and are 24 km apart, at a water depth of 2,500 meters. The wells have an average depth of 8,000 meters and are connected to the BW Pioneer, the first FPSO (Floating Production Storage and Offloading) approved for use in the U.S. sector of the Gulf of Mexico. The oil is transferred from the FPSO to shuttle tankers and delivered to refineries and terminals along the North American coast.

Petrobras is the operator of both fields, with a 100% stake in the Cascade field and a 66.7% stake the Chinook field, in partnership with Total E&P USA Inc. which holds the remaining 33.3%.