UK authorities have given Hurricane Energy permission to forge ahead with the early production system (EPS) for the Lancaster field, west of Shetland.
Hurricane said earlier this month that it had taken a final investment decision (FID) on the EPS and expected final regulatory approval to follow “shortly”.
London-listed Hurricane said today that it has now received development and production consent for the EPS, which is expected to produce 17,000 barrels of oil per day over an initial six year period.
First oil is slated for the first half of 2019.
Hurricane chief executive Robert Trice said: “The Lancaster EPS is not only an essential step in planning for the full field development of the Company’s Rona Ridge assets, but also represents a substantial development in its own right, with planned production of 17,000 barrels of oil per day.
“I would like to thank the Oil and Gas Authority, the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, and the Health & Safety Executive for their support in our achieving the first approval of a field development plan for a UK basement field. This is an important step in demonstrating the potential of basement west of Shetland and in the UKCS more generally.
“We greatly appreciate the contributions provided to date by our key contractors and partners: Bluewater Energy Services, TechnipFMC, and Transocean. We look forward to providing further updates as we move forward with engineering, procurement, installation and commissioning (EPIC) activities.”