Petrobras hits record oil production of 40,000 b/d from Cascade and Chinook
03/07/2014
Offshore staff
RIO DE JANEIRO – Petrobras has set a new production record of 40,000 b/d of oil from the Cascade and Chinook fields of the Gulf of Mexico. Cascade has three wells in operation and Chinook has two wells. The records were achieved by bringing onstream two new wells, Chinook-5 and Cascade-6, contributing a further 28,000 b/d to the previous output of 12,000 b/d. Cascade and Chinook are located 260 km (162 mi) south of the Louisiana coast and are 24 km (15 mi) apart, at a water depth of 2,500 m (8,202 ft).
The wells have an average depth of 8,000 m (26,247 ft) and are connected to the BW Pioneer, the first FPSO approved for use in the US sector of the Gulf of Mexico. The oil is transferred from the FPSO to shuttle tankers, and delivered to refineries and terminals along the North American coast.
Petrobras is the operator of both fields, with a 100% stake in the Cascade field and a 66.7% stake in the Chinook field, in partnership with Total E&P USA Inc., which holds the remaining 33.3%.