The Nova Scotia government has awarded Petrofac a major ultra-deepwater oil potential contract.
Under the deal, Petrofac will produce a development study for a prospective oil reservoir located 3,000 metres beneath the seabed. The reservoir also sits in 2,000 metres of water.
Deepwater exploration will play a criticial role in unlocking Nova Scotia’s offshore potential. Currently there is thought to be around 120 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and eight billion barrels of oil trapped in its offshore reserves.
Craig Muir, managing director for Petrofac’s ECS business, said: “The potential outcomes of this study are of strategic importance for the Nova Scotia Government and a great step forward for Petrofac in the ultra-deepwater market. The wider capability set of the Petrofac Group really helped us offer a value proposition. We now look forward to delivering that proposition for our customer.”
Petrofac’s subsea engineering business K W Subsea will lead on the contract work, roping in the expertise of the firm’s Engineering & Consulting Services (ECS) business.
The project, which includes process design, naval architecture, subsea engineering, cost estimating as well as a specific drilling scope, is expected to be delivered early next year.
Shell and BP both have ownership of a number of blocks surrounding Nova Scotia, with combined exploration commitments in excess of $2billion.