Energy giant Shell (LON: SHEL) is gearing up to carry out drilling work at its Jackdaw field in the Central North Sea.
A notice to mariners posted by Kingfisher Information Services shows the window for the Valaris 122 rig to be on location opens today.
The total duration of drilling and completion activities is expected to last about 538 days, meaning it could wrap up in February 2025, according to the update.
During that time the Valaris 122 will drill four wells – 30/2a-JD02, JD03, JD05, JD06 – through the newly installed Jackdaw platform.
Valaris’ latest fleet status report shows the ultra-premium harsh environment jack-up has been on lease to Shell from November 2022.
That contract finishes this month and will be replaced by another, which will run from September to January 2025 – it has a value of over $60 million, based on an estimated duration of 500 days.
Field details
Shell expects Jackdaw, located about 155 miles east of Aberdeen, to begin producing in the mid-2020s.
The field will be made up of a wellhead platform, along with subsea infrastructure tied-back to the existing Shearwater production hub.
At peak production rates, Jackdaw is estimated to yield 40,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, and could account for over 6% of projected UK North Sea gas production.
Shell is on record as saying it will spend £500 million in the UK in order to deliver the project, estimated for start-up in 2025.
© Supplied by ShellJust over a year ago Aker Solutions was awarded a contract for the engineering, procurement, construction and installation of the Jackdaw platform.
It expects to deliver the first part of the work – the steel substructure, complete with pre-drilling – to Shell in 2023.
The topside will follow in 2024, with fabrication taking place at Aker Solutions’ yard in Verdal, Norway – at its peak the project will employ over 300 people.
Opposition mounting
There remains legal and protestor opposition to the development of Jackdaw though, while the project has also had to appease regulators.
The UK’s Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment (OPRED) knocked back the scheme’s environmental statement in October 2021, leaving its future up in the air.
But a renewed focus on domestic production gave Jackdaw fresh impetus and it was approved in June 2022 – a final investment decision from Shell followed shortly after.
Around that time the Stop Jackdaw campaign group – a splinter of the Stop Cambo campaign – emerged to oppose the development of the field.
And one day after Shell took the investment plunge on Jackdaw, Greenpeace launched a legal challenge against the UK Government’s decision to approve it.
The action is currently on hold “pending the decision by the UK Supreme Court on another case which concerns similar legal issues”.
Greenpeace alleges that OPRED rubber stamped Jackdaw without accounting for emissions of burning the gas produced, something the department has disputed.
In its 2023 annual report Shell said “there is a relatively low risk of disruption” to the project arising from the challenge.
Greenpeace is also seeking a judicial review of the decision made by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the North Sea Transition Authority on environmental grounds.
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