Minerva

Location

VIC/L22 permit, Otway Basin, offshore Victoria, approximately 10 kilometres from Port Campbell in 60 metres of water.

Participants

BHP Billiton – 90% (operator)
Santos – 10%

Discovered

The Minerva field was discovered in 1993 by the Minerva 1 exploration well.

First Production

Production commenced at the end of 2004.

Cost to Develop

Approximately A$250 million.

Facility Details

Santos has participated in the Minerva gas field since 1996. Upon completion, gas plant capacity is approximately 150 terajoules per day. The field initially produced at approximately 130-140 terajoules per day and 530-575 barrels of condensate per day.  The Minerva field continues to produce at a approximately 60 terajoules per day.

The field has two subsea production wells, which produce through a 10 kilometre subsea pipeline to shore. The gas and condesate then flows under the shoreline via a directionally drilled crossing through to the gas processing plant a further 4.5 kilometres inland.

Gas plant processing includes inlet separation / slugcatchers, water removal using glycol, condensate recovery via separators and pipeline compression. The Minerva plant has recently been upgraded to further enhance field life by reducing plant inlet pressure.

The gas plant is connected to the SEAGas Pipeline providing access to South Australian and Victorian markets.

The area has a high level of tourist activity, being located on the Great Ocean Road near the Twelve Apostles rock formations. The development has therefore been carried out to strict environmental requirements.