Chevron has ruled out any output from its deepwater Big Foot project until at least 2018 as the oil major continues to investigate the cause of a setback at its facility.
A total of nine tendons sunk to the sea floor after initially losing buoyancy.
The Big Foot deepwater oil project in the Gulf of Mexico had been months away from a planned initial startup for later in the year.
After the incident, four remotely-operated vehicle robots, which were equipped with cameras, were deployed to the site.
A spokesman said: “Site surveys and equipment inspections are in progress to determine whether the installed pipes and recovered tendons can be reused and what equipment will require replacement in order to complete the project.
“At this point, we are not expecting any Big Foot production in 2016 or 2017.”
The company has said the setback will not have an impact on its overall growth target as other projects will make up the shortfall.
Chevron said the platform is expected to produce 75,000 barrels of oil and 25 million cubic feet of natural gas per day once it opens.
The Big Foot field is about 225 miles south of New Orleans, in about 5,200 feet of water.
Chevron will operate Big Foot with a 60% share while Statoil holds 27.5%, and Japan’s Marubeni Oil and Gas has the remaining 12.5%.