Senex secures pipeline for Snatcher
JETT RINK: Australian energy company Senex Energy, as Operator on behalf of the PEL 111 Snatcher oil field joint venture (Senex 60%) has reached agreement on key commercial terms with Santos, as Operator of the PPL 177 Charo oil field joint venture, for pipeline transportation of crude oil from Snatcher to the Tirrawarra oil and gas field, and then to Moomba.
The agreement provides for the South Australian Cooper Basin (SACB) Parties, comprising Santos, Delhi Petroleum, and Origin Energy Resources to upgrade the proposed four inch diameter Charo to Tirrawarra pipeline to six inch diameter.
The upgrading of the pipeline will enable transportation of the additional crude oil from the PEL 111 joint venture.
The Snatcher oil field will be connected via a new flowline to be constructed between the Snatcher oil field facilities and Charo.
“The agreement with the SACB Parties to increase the capacity of the Charo to Tirrawarra pipeline is a great outcome for all parties as it delivers cost efficiencies and security of production across both the Snatcher and Charo fields,” Senex Energy managing director Ian Davies said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.
“Investment in infrastructure such as this and the western flank flowline demonstrate Senex’s strong commitment to the continuing growth of the Cooper Basin as a key oil and gas province in Australia.”
The SACB Parties pipeline project comprises the construction of a six inch liquids trunkline with an initial capacity of up to 4,800 barrels of oil per day to enable the transportation of crude oil from Charo to Tirrawarra.
The SACB Parties will own and operate the trunkline.
The PEL 111 joint venture will contribute A$4.1 million for the pipeline upgrade, which will be treated as a prepayment of transportation tariff at an agreed unit rate.
To connect Snatcher oil field crude, Senex will build and operate a flowline from Snatcher oil field to the Charo to Tirrawarra pipeline.
Access to the Charo to Tirrawarra pipeline will provide the PEL 111 joint venture with a flood-proof transportation route to market and will serve to significantly reduce costs as oil production increases.
It is expected that all construction and commissioning work in respect of the Snatcher flowline and tie-in, and the Charo to Tirrawarra trunkline will be completed by March 2012.