The platform count for the Gulf of Mexico’s prolific deepwater Mars field will soon increase from one to two with Shell’s installation of its newest tension leg platform (TLP) dubbed “Olympus.”

“What’s unique about Olympus is that it was built for, and will be placed in, an existing field,” John Hollowell, Shell’s executive vice president for deep water, told a group of reporters during a recent tour of the platform. “This is the first time you will find that a company has built and placed an additional host in an existing Gulf of Mexico deepwater field.”

Mars field facts

Discovered in 1989, the Mars field began producing in 1996 with the installation of the Mars TLP. Since then more than 770 MMboe has been produced, surpassing the original in-place resource estimate of 700 MMboe. Shell estimates that there is 1.1 Bboe remaining in the field.

In September 2010 the company green lighted the Mars B development plan for a second TLP, Olympus, to join the Mars TLP in maximizing the production of recoverable resources. The Olympus TLP is designed to access reservoirs located at depths of 3,048 m to 6,706 m (10,000 ft to 22,000 ft), which is beyond the reach of the Mars TLP.

In addition, a new subsea system connecting the West Boreas field and South Deimos field to the Olympus TLP, as well an oil and gas export system that added a third shallow water platform to West Delta 143, were installed. The Mars B project extends the field life of Mars to at least 2050, according to the company.

Designed to drill deeper

Olympus will be the company’s sixth and largest TLP in the Gulf. It stands at a staggering 123 m (406 ft) from base of hull to top of derrick and weighs in at over 120,000 tons, or more than 200 Boeing 777 jumbo jets, according to the company.

Designed to operate in water depths of 914 m to 1,524 m (3,000 ft to 5,000 ft) and with a production capacity of 100,000 boe/d, the Olympus TLP has 24 well slots and a self-contained drilling rig.

The rig is sized to drill deeper than any other Shell platform rig currently in the Gulf, according to Derek Newberry, Shell’s Mars B business opportunity manager.

The TLP also provides processing infrastructure for the West Boreas field and South Deimos field.

Installation nears

The hull for Olympus arrived in Texas earlier this year after making a two-month, 28,968-km (18,000-mile) long trek from South Korea where it was constructed. It is currently docked at the Kiewit Offshore Services shipyard in Ingleside, Texas, where topsides integration is occurring.

The platform will be towed at the end of this month or early next to the Mars B site located about 209 km (130 miles) south of New Orleans. Sixteen steel tendons, or tension legs, will be installed once the platform reaches its final site. First oil is expected in 2014.

Shell owns 71.5% of the Mars B project and will operate it. The remaining 28.5% ownership interest is held by BP.

Contact the author, Jennifer Presley, at jpresley@hartenergy.com.

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