BP brought the Q/8-A offshore gas field on stream in October 1986. Q/8-A is the first fully integrated unmanned offshore development in the North Sea. Estimated reserves of only 37 bcf make the field the smallest offshore gas development in Europe.

Economic development of such a small reserve demanded the innovative use of proven technology. Minimum facilities compatible with safe and efficient operations were designed. An unmanned platform with free water knock-out, glycol injection and a sphere launcher, feeds gas via a pipeline beneath the coastal dunes to a dedicated onshore processing terminal.

A rigorous search for cost reductions during pre-project and project engineering, coupled with the favourable economic climate which the Netherlands provides, led to the viability of this most marginal of field developments.

Several lessons were learned from the Q/8-A development project. A minimum cost development with a short project schedule demands a tightly defined technical statement of requirements. Do not underestimate the level of detailed effort necessary to develop and to operate the smallest of reserves.

Keywords:
drillstem/well testing, onshore terminal, drillstem testing, reserves evaluation, terminal, buntsandstein, development planning, specification, horizontal drilling, exploration
Subjects:
Drilling Operations, Processing Systems and Design, Pipelines, Flowlines and Risers, Reservoir Characterization, Formation Evaluation & Management, Reserves Evaluation, Strategic Planning and Management, Drillstem/well testing, Project management
Copyright 1987, Society of Petroleum Engineers
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