The Arbroath and Montrose Fields, Blocks 22/17, 18, UK North Sea

Abstract

Abstract The Arbroath Field was discovered by the Amoco operated group comprising Amoco (UK) Exploration Company, Gas Council (Exploration), Amerada Hess Ltd and Texas Eastern (UK) Ltd with the 22/18-1 well in May 1969 and was the first commercial oil field to be discovered in any sector of the northern North Sea. Two years later in 1971, the adjacent Montrose Field was discovered. Both Arbroath and Montrose are located 130 miles east of Aberdeen towards the northern end of the Central Graben area. The two fields have simple non-faulted, anticlinal structures separated by a structural saddle with only 15 ft of relief. The structures are a product of Alpine tectonism combined with differential compaction of the reservoir section. The hydrocarbons have a Kimmeridge Clay source and occur wholly within the Forties Sandstone interval. The oil is trapped by mudstones of the Sele Formation. The reservoir sandstones were deposited in a prograding submarine fan complex and have maintained an average porosity of 23% and a permeability of 80 md. To date only the Montrose Field has been produced. The main recovery mechanism is natural bottom water drive supplemented by water injection. First oil was produced in 1976 via a tanker mooring system, replaced by a dedicated pipeline in 1984. The Arbroath Field is under development and first oil was produced in April 1990.