This talk reviews the 2011 Aphrodite gas discovery offshore Cyprus, exploring why it has yet to generate revenue despite continued regional gas developments. It examines ongoing exploration, nearby successful projects, and discusses practical options for developing Cyprus’s existing and future discoveries.
Location
Room B20, University of Nicosia
Date
20th February 2019
Time
3:00 PM
Bio/Abstract
In 4Q 2011, it was announced that a significant gas discovery had been made in Block 12 offshore Cyprus. The discovery was given a name – Aphrodite. The Aphrodite discovery was made during a 116-day drilling programme that began on September 20th, 2011, which had reached a depth of 5,860 m below sea level.
Aphrodite is located 160 km south of Limassol and 30 km northwest of the Leviathan field. The drilling programme had been instigated by the consortium of reservoir partners who now comprise Noble Energy (35%), Shell (35%), and Delek Drilling (30%).
Back in late 2011, the gas discovery announcement caused public and media jubilation, and a large number from within Cyprus and elsewhere were dwelling on the perceived wealth that this discovery would create. Just over seven years later, however, no income or wealth has been generated from the seven-year-old discovery.
This talk will endeavour to explain why. It will also consider that gas exploration has continued, further discoveries have been made, and the successful development of discovered fields has begun in our East Med neighbouring states. The talk will also cover very loosely what the current options and the practicalities are for developing the known discoveries, and how these and possible future discoveries could be best developed.
Bio:
Pete Wallace has been in the oil & gas and power generation industry for more than 40 years. He has managed multiple projects, from conception to commissioning, in offshore and onshore design, engineering and construction in the fields of oil and gas processing, pipelines, LNG, FLNG, FSRUs, FPSOs, CNG, LPG, petrochemical, water treatment, pharmaceutical plant, and power generation. He has been engaged as the Chief Engineer for Lavar Shipping since 2016 and has recently Project Managed the onshore aspects of the pipe laying programme for Noble Energy’s Leviathan Field Development Project, as well as being extensively involved in the design and development of Halliburton’s Liquid Mud Plant facility at Limassol Port for the Exxon Mobil drilling programme currently being carried out in Cyprus offshore Block 10.
He holds a BSc Honours degree in Technology (UK), Diplomas in Pollution Control, Environment & Development, Design & Innovation and Management. He is a registered Chartered Engineer with the Engineering Council in the UK, a Chartered Energy Engineer and a member of the Energy Institute (EI) in London. He is a member of the Institute of Engineering & Technology, the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), and he is a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.
