The Zama Unit partners Wintershall Dea, Pemex (operator), Talos Energy and Harbour Energy have awarded the front-end engineering and design contract (FEED) for the development of the Zama oil field to the French engineering company DORIS.
“Zama is currently one of the most important energy projects in Mexico and we are very pleased to have reached the next milestone”, says Martin Jungbluth, Managing Director of Wintershall Dea in Mexico. “Our goal is to develop this large field safely, in the most efficient timeline and in the best possible technical way. With DORIS we have a very experienced partner for the FEED phase at our side.”
The FEED work will be based on the scope of the Unit Development Plan approved by the Mexican Hydrocarbon Commission (CNH) last year. It covers the planning of two offshore platforms, 68 km of pipelines and cables as well as a new onshore facility, fully dedicated to the Zama project, located in the Dos Bocas Maritime Terminal, in Paraiso, Tabasco. The Zama Unit partnership also plans to minimise greenhouse gas intensity by using the best available technology, produced gas for onshore power generation, as well as best use of existing storage and transport infrastructure.
DORIS will collaborate with the two Mexican engineering companies NOMARNA and SUMMUM to carry out the FEED work.
“The award of the FEED is a great result thanks to the good cooperation in our integrated project team (IPT), in which colleagues from all four Zama partner companies work together on this extensive and important key project every day. I am pleased that we are making good progress, together, as one team”, underlines Sylvain Petiteau, Vice President Zama Project.
Zama is one of the world's largest shallow water discoveries in the last 20 years and was the first discovery made by an international consortium in Mexico in 2017. With estimated gross resources of 600 – 800 million boe, Zama is expected to make a significant contribution to Mexico's energy supply over the next 25 years, creating activity that will support the growth of the country's energy sector and generate a large number of jobs in the coming years. The field is expected to produce up to 180 000 bpd at its peak, which corresponds to around 10% of Mexico's current total oil production.
Once these studies have been finalised, the Zama Unit partnership will proceed with the tendering process of the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts, followed by the final investment decision.