NEO Energy has first gas from the Finlaggan field

NEO Energy has started gas production at the Finlaggan development in the Central North Sea, following delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The company confirmed first gas from the field, estimated to hold up to 27million recoverable barrels of oil equivalent (boe), on Wednesday following a year of delays due to the pandemic.

Finlaggan was initially planned to be onstream in late 2020, however delays to the planned maintenance at the Forties Pipeline and Britannia platform, led to first gas being pushed back to Q4 2021.

The gas condensate project has been developed as a two-well tie back to the Harbour Energy Britannia platform around 20miles to the north, and lies around 130miles east of Aberdeen.

Gas will be exported to the SAGE system and St Fergus, with liquids exported to the Forties pipeline system.

The field was a flagship project for Zennor Petroleum prior to its acquisition by NEO in March this year, as part of a £450 million deal which also secured the North Sea minnow’s non-operated interests in the Mungo and Monan, Britannia, Bacchus and Cormorant East fields.

The site in Block 21/5c was first drilled by ConocoPhilips in 2005. Zennor secured a licence in the 27th UK offshore licensing round and proved it was economically viable with an appraisal well in 2016.

Backed by private equity group HitecVision, NEO was founded in July 2019 as merger of Hitec’s two UK North Sea-focused investment vehicles, Neo E&P and Verus Petroleum.

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