ExxonMobil readying West Barracouta final infrastructure

ExxonMobil subsidiary Esso Australia Pty Ltd is nearing completion of its West Barracouta gas project in Bass Strait. The unit is readying construction of the project’s final subsea infrastructure.

The arrival of the Subsea 7 Seven Eagle Diving Support Vessel in Victoria this month means the company is on-track to have West Barracouta gas flowing to the Australian domestic gas market this year.

The development, in licence VIC/L1 in the offshore Gippsland basin of Victoria, will be tied back to the existing Barracouta production infrastructure.

“The Esso-BHP Gippsland Joint Venture has been the largest supplier of gas to the eastern Australia market for more than 50 years. In fact, Barracouta is the first offshore field ever discovered in Australia,” said Nathan Fay, chairman, Esso Australia.

Over that time, the company’s operations have delivered more than four billion bbl of oil and ten tcf of natural gas to Australia, more than half of all the oil ever produced in Australia, and enough gas to power almost every home in Australia for a decade, he said.

Esso Australia Pty Ltd operates the Gippsland basin 50-50 joint venture with BHP Billiton Petroleum (Bass Strait) Pty Ltd.

Source: Oil & Gas Journal