The Rodaballo-1
oil field, near the Casablanca off-shore rig at Tarragona, went into production
last week. This field is on the Angula concession, and was discovered in the
summer of last year.
Repsol operates this concession through
its affiliate Repsol Investigaciones Petrol�feras (RIPSA), owning a 69.42%
stake. Other companies in the consortium are CNWL Oil Espa�a, S.A., (a
subsidiary of Sherrit International Corporation) with 15.58%, and Ciepsa, with
15%. Recoverable reserves are estimated at 2.8 million barrels of top quality
crude oil. The production span is expected to cover the next five years at an
initial output of 4,000 barrels per day.
The field has been prepared for
production in a record time of 10 months, and total investment for the project
was 6 million dollars.
At a depth of 3,400 metres and beneath 109 metres
of water, exploitation of Rodaballo-1 well is carried out via a flexible
pipeline, 10.5 kilometres long and with a 4" internal diameter, connecting it to
the Casablanca rig. Extracted oil is processed at the Casablanca rig and sent to
land through the underwater pipeline (50 km. long and 12" in diameter), linking
the rig to Repsol's Tarragona refinery.
Exploiting Rodaballo will
lengthen Casablanca field's productive lifespan, having the double effect of
prolonging its activity and increasing its production.
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