Exxon ‘squarely focused’ on meeting full re-injection, not flare, of Liza Phase 2 gas – Production Manager

ExxonMobil’s present focus at the offshore Liza Phase 2 operation is commissioning the gas compression equipment to ensure there is complete re-injection of the associated gas being produced there.

Production Manager at ExxonMobil’s local subsidiary, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) Mike Ryan, made this comment in an interview the company released last Friday, when it announced the start-up of Liza Phase 2.

“We still have a lot of work to do. The spirit of the team is confidence and calmness and resilience to continue the journey, really towards full gas compression and injection, and that’s where we want to get. And you know, we’ll continue to ramp up production numbers, but at the moment, we’re squarely focused on commissioning the gas compression train,” Ryan said.

The permits granted to ExxonMobil for production at its operations allow it to flare gas for a brief period during project start-up, to commission the gas compression equipment. However, equipment defects at Liza Phase 1 led to considerable flaring beyond the start-up period, and has been a matter of controversy for the last two years.

Ryan said ExxonMobil is disappointed in the challenges which have occurred at Phase One, and that the team continues to work hard to resolve the issue and minimise the flare level.

Onto Phase 2, the production manager said the compression train has been tested fully, but has not yet felt the full reservoir pressure. Expectedly, the team will be able to fully commission the equipment and reduce flaring down to pilot level, which is the minimum level of flaring required to safely maintain the operation.

Notably, the official revealed that the compression equipment at the Liza Unity FPSO has a different design altogether.

“So, on Destiny, we have a screw type compressor manufactured by MAN Energy for the second and third stage. The Unity FPSO [floating production, storage and offloading vessel] has a centrifugal compressor for second and third stage, manufactured by Baker Hughes GE. So, it’s a different machine. It’s been fully tested. We have all the experts available during the start-up process. We will step back if we have anything we’re not happy with, and ensure that we meet all our expectations.”

Ryan said that the team has learned lessons from the Liza Destiny, the FPSO operating at the Phase 1 site.

“The lessons from Destiny, what I would say, have been fully engrained in our processes, meaning that each of the engineers fully understand what the learnings were through the start-up phase and have applied them into design, applied them into testing, and we’re applying them as we bring on hydrocarbon and as we get the gas compression system ready to go.” Ryan said.

The government remains committed to its promise to promote the extraction of Guyana’s natural resources for Guyana’s development, in a sustainable manner. It has instituted a system of fees charged to ExxonMobil for any above pilot flaring which occurs at its FPSOs, and is working with the Stabroek block consortium to resolve the challenges faced at Liza Phase 1.