New 120,000-ton platform to be located 130 miles south of New Orleans, reports say
Royal Dutch Shell’s largest tension leg platform left a construction dock near Corpus Christi, Texas on July 13 for a 425-mile journey to the Mars B Field in the Gulf of Mexico.
The Olympus is Shell’s sixth and largest tension leg platform and will be used to process oil and gas from two of Shell’s deep water discoveries, West Boreas and South Deimos, according to news reports.
Capt. David Morgan, with Captain Morgan Charters out of Venice, said he heard the big platform had arrived over the weekend.
“We’re for it,” Morgan said. “It’s more structure for us that holds fish. We visit those areas regularly at different times of the year.”
The existing Mars A platform, built in 1996, has produced about 700 million barrels to date, according to Shell.
Olympus is expected to start production in 2014, producing 100,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. The new platform will float in approximately 3,000-feet of water and is expected to extend the life of the Mars field to at least 2050, the report states.
Capt. Damon McKnight, with Super Strike Charters in Venice, said the arrival of Olympus will only improve fishing in the Mars field in the years to come.
“It’s going to make that area that much better,” McKnight said. “Olympus is supposed to be huge. The more they have out there, the better the fishing will be.”
