A Review of Exploration, Development, and Production Cost Offshore Newfoundland

Abstract

Operators have spent $84 billion Canadian dollars in exploration, development, and production offshore Newfoundland, Canada, between 1966 and 2019, and have produced about 2 billion barrels of an estimated 3.3 billion barrels recoverable oil. Four major projects have been developed—Hibernia, Terra Nova, White Rose/North Amethyst, and Hebron—using two development concepts, gravity-base structures and floating production storage and offloading vessels. The region is characterized by severe storm and sea conditions, including the presence of icebergs, which challenge all aspects of exploration and development. From 1998 to 2019, exploration and delineation drilling cost averaged $90.9 million per well and $26,494 per meter drilled. Development wells drilled from mobile offshore drilling units over the same period averaged $91.1 million per producer well and $68.8 million per injector well. Regional development cost was $32.5/bbl since the start of production and is expected to fall to $22/bbl when recoverable volumes circa 2020 have been extracted. Average regional production cost from 2006 to 2019 is estimated at $23.4/bbl and ranges from $16.8/bbl at Hibernia to about $35/bbl at Terra Nova and White Rose. This is the first detailed evaluation of exploration, development, and production cost offshore Newfoundland.