BP Boosts Oil Reserves in the Gulf of Mexico

abarrelfull wrote on 06 Aug 2012 19:57
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03 August 1995

BP said today that it has boosted its oil reserves in the Gulf of Mexico from 300 million barrels to between 600 and 700 million barrels and that it expects its share of production from the area to rise from a current 35,000 barrels a day to some 120,000 barrels a day by the end of the decade.

The company said the additional reserves were mainly from two new deep-water discoveries, Wasatch, in which BP holds a 33% interest and Ursa, where it has a 23% stake.

BP Exploration Chief Executive Rodney Chase described the discoveries as "further evidence of continuing success in an extensive exploration programme being carried out by BP and its partners in the deep-water Gulf."

He added: "BP has now established stakes in 389 blocks in water depths of more than 600 feet and we plan to drill at least four exploration wells a year over the next several years. We consider the deep-water Gulf has the potential to be an increasingly significant profit centre for BP into the 21st century."

The Wasatch discovery lies mainly in Green Canyon blocks 244 and 200 in some 2,670 feet of water, 260 kms south of New Orleans, and is operated by the Marathon Oil Company.

Ursa lies in 3,950 feet of water adjacent to the Mars field and covers six blocks centred around Mississippi Canyon block 809. Mars and Ursa are operated by Shell Offshore Inc.

Notes:
BP currently operates and produces oil and gas from six fields in the Gulf of Mexico: Snapper (BP, 100% ); Ewing Bank 826 (40%); Amberjack (66.3%); Mobile 821 (100%); West Cameron 143 (100%) and Pompano (75%).

It has a 29% interest in the Mars field, which will begin production in mid-1996, and a 12.5% stake in Popeye where first output is scheduled for later this year. Both fields are operated by Shell.

• BP Boosts Oil Reserves in the Gulf of Mexico

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