Senegal: Woodside unblocks the Sangomar treasury

Woodside has extracted the first barrel of oil from the Sangomar field off the coast of Senegal, marking the safe completion of the country's first offshore oil project.

The first phase of the Sangomar field development is a deepwater project comprising a self-contained floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) facility, with a nominal capacity of 100,000 barrels per day, and subsea infrastructure designed to accommodate future development phases.

This first phase includes the FPSO Léopold Sédar Senghor, named in honor of Senegal's first president, moored around 100 kilometers off the Senegalese coast. This vessel has a storage capacity of 1.3 million barrels.

This development phase comprises 23 wells (11 production wells, 10 water injection wells and two gas injection wells). To date, 21 of the 23 wells have been drilled and completed, including nine production wells. The RSSD joint venture has also approved a 24th well (production well), which will be completed during the current campaign.

The Sangomar project is being developed by the joint venture Rufisque Offshore, Sangomar Offshore and Sangomar Deep Offshore (RSSD), made up of Woodside (operator, with an 82% stake) and Société des Pétroles du Sénégal (PETROSEN) (with an 18% stake).

The estimated cost of the project for this first phase of development is in the expected range of $4.9 to $5.2 billion. The drilling campaign at Sangomar is underway, and Woodside plans to continue commissioning activities and safely ramp up production until 2024.

The quality of the crude is estimated at around 31 degrees API, which is highly sought-after on European and Asian markets.

"This is a historic day for Senegal and for Woodside," said Woodside CEO Meg O'Neill. "First oil production from the Sangomar field is a key milestone and reflects the realization of our strategy. The Sangomar project is expected to generate shareholder value under the terms of the production sharing contract.

"Safely completing Senegal's first offshore oil project, through a period of unprecedented global challenges, demonstrates Woodside's world-class project execution capability. We are proud of the relationships we have built with PETROSEN, the Government of Senegal and our key international and local partners to develop this nationally important resource."

PETROSEN E&P Managing Director Thierno Ly expressed his satisfaction at this achievement. "The first oil production from the Sangomar field marks a new era for our country's industry and economy, but above all for our people.

"This success is the fruit of the unwavering commitment of our teams, who have worked diligently to meet the challenges and achieve our strategic objectives in a complex and demanding environment. We are now better placed to seize opportunities for growth, innovation and success in our country's economic and social development."

Woodside's historic acquisition of the RSSD joint venture interests from Capricorn Energy and FAR included certain contingent payments. Given the current timing of first oil and oil prices, Woodside expects to make these payments. Final payments are subject to ongoing production performance and oil prices.