BP has started production of oil from the new $6bn Azeri Central East (ACE) platform on the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) field in the Azerbaijan part of the Caspian Sea.
Azeri Central East joins six other offshore platforms that were already installed on the ACG field, which has been producing since 1997. To date, the offshore Azerbaijani field, located off the coast of Baku, has yielded more than 4.3 billion barrels of oil.
The ACE platform and its associated facilities are engineered to handle a capacity of up to 100,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), with the project anticipated to yield approximately 300 million barrels throughout its operational lifespan.
The 48-slot production, drilling and quarters platform sits midway between the Central Azeri and East Azeri platforms in a water depth of 137m.
Oil undergoes processing on the platform before being transported roughly 130km via a newly established in-field pipeline to the Sangachal terminal onshore, connected to an existing 30″ subsea export line.
Production from ACE is projected to ramp up through 2024, to approximately 24,000bpd as two additional planned wells are drilled, completed, and integrated into operations.