Shell launches fourth phase of deepwater Malaysian project

Shell has commenced production from Phase 4 of the Gumusut-Kakap-Geronggong-Jagus East (GKGJE) deepwater development off the coast of Malaysia, the company announced this week.

Phase 4 output is being processed through the existing Gumusut-Kakap semi-submersible floating production system (GK-Semi FPS), located offshore Sabah, where Shell is the operator. The latest phase involves a subsea tie-back that extends across the Malaysia-Brunei border and includes the drilling of three producer wells and one water injection well.

Situated in waters 1,200 metres deep, Gumusut-Kakap was Shell’s first deepwater project in Malaysia, beginning production in 2014. The company said the successful launch of Phase 4 underscored its commitment to safe, reliable and sustainable operations.

“This achievement reaffirms Shell’s ongoing commitment in innovating and executing safe, reliable and sustainable projects that meet today’s energy needs,” it said.

Phase 4 of GKGJE is among another of upstream projects Shell plans to bring on stream globally between 2023 and 2025 that will yield a combined 500,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day at peak production. The Gumusut-Kakap Phase 4 final investment decision was taken in October 2022, with the development projected to produce an average of 21,000 boepd.

Shell operates two deepwater assets in Sabah, Gumusut-Kakap and Malikai, which were commissioned in 2014 and 2016 respectively. The Gumusut-Kakap Phase 3 development began production in July 2022, while Phase 2, which added four additional subsea tie-back wells to GK-Semi FPS, was completed in August 2019.

In March 2021, Brunei’s government and Malaysia’s national gas company Petronas signed a unitisation agreement setting out the terms for the joint development of oil and gas discoveries within the GKGJE fields across the two countries’ shared maritime boundary. Shell was designated as the unit operator for the project.

Shell is partnered at the GKGJE project with Petronas, ConocoPhillips, Thailand’s PTTEP, Indonesia’s Pertamina and Canam Brunei Oil.