ECONOMIC REPORT 2013
39
Talisman Sinopec Energy UK’s Montrose
Area Redevelopment
Talisman Sinopec Energy UK (TSE UK) is one
of the newest and most dynamic companies
exploring for and producing oil and gas in the
North Sea. TSE UK, based in Aberdeen, was
created in 2012 as a joint venture between
Talisman Energy Inc and Addax Petroleum UK
Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of China
Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group).
TSE UK is one of the largest operators on the
UKCS, with 26 fields, 11 offshore installations
and one onshore terminal.
The main purpose of the organisation is to
unlock opportunities in the North Sea and build
a safe, profitable and sustainable business. The
most recent effort to realise this potential is
the £1.6 billion Montrose Area Redevelopment
(MAR) project which will extend the life of one
of the UK’s oldest platforms – inaugurated in
1976 – to at least 2030.
TheMontrose platformwill undergo significant
modifications, including the development of
a new bridge linked platform (BLP) which is
planned to be installed in 2015. Two currently
undeveloped fields, Cayley and Shaw, will also
be brought into production by being tied back
to the BLP.
The MAR project will unlock 100 million
barrels of reserves when it comes on-stream
in 2016 and will create or sustain more than
2,000 jobs during construction, fabrication,
installation, subsea engineering and drilling.
The government has recognised its value to
the economy by making it the first project to
benefit from a Brown Field Allowance (BFA), a
tax relief introduced in 2012 to encourage the
renewal and life extension of existing fields
(see section 6 for more information about this
allowance).
Figure 29: MAR Milestones
•
1969:
Arbroath reservoir discovered, the first oil field on the UKCS
•
1971:
Montrose reservoir discovered
•
1976:
First oil from Montrose Field
•
1990:
First oil from Arbroath Field
•
1996:
Arkwright Field developed via a subsea tie-back to Arbroath
•
2005:
Brechin Field developed as a subsea tie-back to Arbroath
•
2007:
Wood Field developed as a subsea tie-back to Montrose
•
2007 to 2009:
A successful exploration campaign resulted in the discovery of the Cayley, Godwin and Shaw Fields
•
2011:
Sanction of the Godwin Field development
•
2012:
Sanction of integrated Montrose Area Redevelopment programme to develop Cayley and Shaw via a
bridge-linked platform at Montrose and to carry out further infill drilling in the Montrose field
•
2013 to 2014:
Godwin Field development by drilling extended reach well from Arbroath
•
Quarter 1 2016:
First expected oil from Cayley and Shaw Fields
