Reliance Industries (RIL) and BP have announced the initiation of production from the MJ field after completing testing and commissioning activities.
This marks the finalization of the RIL-bp consortium’s trilogy of major deepwater developments in block KG D6, located off the eastern coast of India.
The commencement of gas and condensate production from the MJ field follows the successful launch of the R-Cluster field in December 2020 and the Satellite Cluster in April 2021. These three projects make use of the existing hub infrastructure within the block.
Once the MJ field reaches peak production, the collective output from all three fields is projected to reach approximately 30 million standard cubic meters of gas per day (1 billion cubic feet per day). This substantial volume is anticipated to account for roughly one third of India’s current domestic gas production and meet approximately 15 percent of the country’s demand.
Discovered in 2013 and approved for development in 2019, the MJ field is situated at water depths of up to 1,200 meters, about 30 kilometers away from the existing onshore terminal at Gadimoga on India’s east coast.
Notably, the MJ field is classified as a high-pressure and high-temperature (HPHT) gas and condensate field. It will utilize eight wells and is expected to achieve a peak gas production rate of approximately 12 million standard cubic meters per day (MMSCMD) along with 25,000 barrels of condensate per day.
The project encompasses the deployment of a new Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading (FPSO) vessel named the ‘Ruby,’ which will undertake the crucial tasks of processing, separating, and purifying the extracted condensate, gas, water, and impurities. The processed gas will be transported onshore for sale, while the condensate will be stored on the FPSO before being transferred to shuttle tankers for delivery to Indian refineries.
RIL assumes the role of the operator for the KG D6 block, holding a 66.67 percent participating interest, while BP maintains a 33.33 percent participating interest in the consortium.