French energy group Total officially launched a major new natural gas project in the United Kingdom on Monday.
The Laggan-Tormore gas project, which started operating in February 2016, is located west of the Shetland Islands some 600 meters (1,968 feet) underwater in the North Sea. Because of the extremely harsh weather conditions, Total used subsea-to-shore technology for the first time — completely eliminating surface infrastructure by installing the equipment directly on the seabed.
The Laggan and Tormore gas and condensate fields will produce 90,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day (boe/d).
An underwater structure connects the four wells to an island-based gas processing plant, which has a daily production capacity of 500 million cubic meters. After processing, the gas is sent to the British mainland via the Shetland Island Regional Gas Export System (SIRGE) pipeline, while the condensates are exported via the Sullom Voe Terminal.
According to Total, the site will supply 8 percent of the U.K.’s natural gas requirements, or the equivalent of about two million homes.
“Laggan-Tormore is a key component of our production growth in 2016 and beyond. The innovative subsea-to-shore development concept, the first of its kind in the United Kingdom, has no offshore surface infrastructure and benefits from both improved safety performance and lower costs,” said Arnaud Breuillac, president of Exploration & Production. “By opening up this new production hub in the deep offshore waters of the West of Shetland, Total is also boosting the United Kingdom’s production capacity and Europe’s energy security.”
Total E&P U.K. operates Laggan-Tormore with a 60 percent interest alongside its partners DONG E&P (U.K.) Ltd. (20 percent) and SSE E&P U.K. Ltd. (20 percent).
