Creative thinking

To get Redoubt in production before Kustatan facility finished, Forest Oil uses West McArthur to power production and process oil from Osprey platform

Kristen Nelson

PNA Editor-in-Chief

Forest Oil Corp. began production from its Redoubt Shoal field in Cook Inlet Dec. 9, although its onshore power and production facility at Kustatan won't be in operation until February.

To get into production, Forest Oil's Gary Carlson, senior vice president for Alaska, told Petroleum News Alaska Jan. 21, the company made use of power generating and crude oil processing facilities at its West McArthur River field, some five miles north of Kustatan on the West Forelands.

The result, he said, was that 22 months from the time the company announced a commercial discovery it had the Redoubt Shoal field on production.

Carlson said work at Kustatan was delayed a month or so last spring because of bad weather. The company had excess capacity at its West McArthur River field, he said, so they “installed some additional treating facilities and are producing from the platform through our pipeline system to West McArthur River and treating the oil there and delivering it to Cook Inlet Pipeline Co.” Some existing equipment and tankage at West McArthur River had to be isolated to keep production from the two fields separate.

The company has enough treating facilities at West McArthur River to handle about 3,000 barrels a day from Redoubt Shoal, Carlson said.

Commissioning work begun

Commissioning the Kustatan facility will take place over the next six weeks, he said, and “some of that can be going on while we're installing the final electronics in our other building.”

The generators will be tested over the next two weeks, Carlson said “while we're completing the rest of the system.” Meanwhile, power to the Osprey platform is coming from West McArthur River.

The platform and pipelines are in and tested, “it's just the treating facilities and power generation facilities at Kustatan that need to be completed.” That is expected to happen in February, Carlson said.

Drilling ongoing

“It would be nice to see 5,000 barrels a day right after we get online,” but until the two additional wells are on production “and tested for a while, it's hard to predict,” Carlson said.

Forest is drilling the No. 6 well at Redoubt.

The company expects to drill at least four wells a year.

Secondary recovery with water flood probably won't start until late 2004, he said. The original plan was to start water flood in late 2003 or early 2004, but delays in drilling in drilling have shifted that out in time. The “facilities are in to add secondary recovery, so it wouldn't take long to gear up and so that,” Carlson said.

Exploration ahead

“We're going to have a go-no go decision for 2003 by early February,” Carlson said, but it will be for Forest prospects only; other companies with prospects aren't ready to proceed this year.

Forest has done the necessary pre-work and worked on its permits, he said, so if it and its partners are ready to go then a jack-up could be brought in this year, with Forest Oil driving the project.

But, he said, none of the leases will be lost if they aren't drilled this year.

And time is slipping away.

“The key is not to waste any time by getting out there late.” The drilling season is limited in Cook Inlet, and if a jack-up rig doesn't arrive until June, “we would lose two to three months of drilling opportunities,” Carlson said. With the costs to mobilize and demobilize a rig to Cook Inlet, “every day that you're not drilling is costing you money.”

So, be cause it is already late January, the project may be put off until March or April of 2004. In addition to partner agreement, a rig has to be available.

“The rig search has been ongoing but it could be a timing problem,” Carlson said.

“I think we can proceed … unless here's a rig problem,” he said. “We can proceed this year if we can get our deals made and plans made by early February — very early February.”