據離岸能源網站6月7日報道稱，美國石油和天然氣巨頭雪佛龍的子公司雪佛龍澳大利亞公司及其合作伙伴Gorgon合資公司在西澳大利亞西北海岸的Gorgon二期開發項目中實現了首次天然氣生產，預計將為能源市場帶來更多液化天然氣。

雪佛龍Gorgon開發項目擴大了Gorgon項目現有的海底集氣網絡，這家美國能源巨頭稱該項目是世界上最大的天然氣項目之一，也是澳大利亞歷史上最大的單一資源項目。該項目向亞太地區的客戶出口液化天然氣，并為西澳大利亞市場生產國內天然氣。

Gorgon氣田位于西澳大利亞西北海岸約130公里處，巴羅島西北65公里處，水深約200米。最初的油田開發于2015年投入使用，包括油井和海底基礎設施，包括原料氣管道。第一批液化天然氣貨物于2016年3月21日離開巴羅島，而西澳大利亞市場的國內天然氣供應于2016年12月開始。

Gorgon第二階段(GS2)擴大了該油田的開發，該階段通過11口外部井、配套的海上生產管道和海底基礎設施豐富了Gorgon和Jansz-Io氣田，以維持未來對巴羅島三條現有液化天然氣生產線和天然氣處理設施的天然氣供應。Gorgon天然氣開發項目的運行設計壽命預計為50年。

雪佛龍澳大利亞公司總經理Mark Hatfield表示，“Gorgon第二階段第一批天然氣標志著Gorgon項目下一階段順利開始，表明我們致力于提供可靠和負擔得起的能源，以支持該地區的能源安全。重要的是，該團隊完成了復雜的海上安裝工作，迄今為止總計超過320萬小時，沒有發生任何嚴重傷亡或事故。這一發展支持了Gorgon項目的長久運營，并在未來幾十年繼續維持當前顯著的效益，包括當地高技能崗位的就業、經濟活動以及州和聯邦政府的收入”。

雪佛龍認為，在未來幾十年里，該項目將繼續是澳大利亞經濟的重要支柱，因此，在美國釋放這種能源時，石油巨頭的觀點是，使澳大利亞處于滿足未來需求和提供“國內外清潔燃燒燃料”的首要地位。

雪佛龍運營的Gorgon項目是雪佛龍（權益比47.3%）、埃克森美孚（25%）、殼牌（25%）和大阪天然氣公司（1.25%）、東京天然氣公司（1%）和日本天然氣公司澳大利亞分公司（0.417%）的合資企業。

這并不是雪佛龍在澳大利亞運營的唯一項目，因為除了Gorgon，雪佛龍還擔任惠斯通天然氣項目的運營商，持有西北大陸架項目權益，并在巴羅島運營著澳大利亞最大的陸上油田。

王佳晶 摘譯自 離岸能源 網站

原文如下：

First gas uplifts Chevron’s Gorgon project to next level, setting the stage for more LNG exports

Chevron Australia, a subsidiary of the U.S. oil and gas giant Chevron, and its Gorgon Joint Venture partners have achieved the first gas production from the Gorgon stage two development off the northwest coast of Western Australia. This supports long-term energy supply as it is expected to bring more liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the energy market.

Chevron’s Gorgon development expands the existing subsea gas gathering network of the Gorgon project, which the U.S. energy giant describes as one of the world’s largest natural gas projects and the largest single resource project in Australia’s history. This project exports liquefied natural gas to customers across the Asia Pacific and produces domestic gas for the Western Australian market.  

The Gorgon gas field is located around 130 kilometres off the northwest coast of Western Australia and 65 kilometres northwest of Barrow Island in water depths of approximately 200 metres. The initial field development was commissioned in 2015, consisting of wells and subsea infrastructure, including the feed gas pipeline. This led to the first LNG cargo departing Barrow Island on 21 March 2016 while the domestic gas supply to the Western Australian market began in December 2016.

This field development is expanded by Gorgon stage 2 (GS2), which enriches the Gorgon and Jansz-Io gas fields with 11 additional wells and accompanying offshore production pipelines and subsea infrastructure to maintain future gas supply to the three existing LNG trains and the gas processing facilities on Barrow Island. The Gorgon gas development is expected to have a nominal operational design life of 50 years.

Mark Hatfield, Chevron Australia managing director, commented “Gorgon stage two first gas marks the next phase of the Gorgon project and demonstrates our commitment to providing reliable and affordable energy that supports the region’s energy security. importantly, the team completed the complex offshore installation work, totalling more than 3.2 million hours to date, without any serious injuries or incidents.

“The development supports the longevity of the Gorgon project and the continuation of its already significant ongoing benefits including highly skilled local employment, economic activity as well as state and federal government revenue for decades to come.”

Chevron believes that this project will continue to be an important pillar of the Australian economy for decades to come, thus, unlocking this energy in the U.S, oil major’s view puts Australia in a prime position to meet future demand and provide “a clean-burning fuel, both at home and overseas.”

The Chevron-operated Gorgon project is a joint venture between the Australian subsidiaries of Chevron (47.3 per cent), ExxonMobil (25 per cent), Shell (25 per cent), Osaka Gas (1.25 per cent), Tokyo Gas (1 per cent) and JERA (0.417 per cent).

This is not the only project Chevron operates in Australia, as aside from Gorgon, Chevron also acts as the operator of the Wheatstone natural gas project, holds an interest in the North West Shelf project, and operates Australia’s largest onshore oilfield on Barrow Island.