Chevron to Enhance Oil and Natural Gas Recovery at Two Gulf of Mexico Facilities

On September 3, 2024, Chevron Corporation announced the initiation of water injection operations at two key projects aimed at enhancing oil and natural gas recovery at its existing Jack/St. Malo and Tahiti facilities in the deepwater U.S. Gulf of Mexico. These facilities are known for producing some of the lowest carbon intensity oil and gas globally. Bruce Niemeyer, president of Chevron Americas Exploration & Production, highlighted the significance of these projects, stating, “The successful delivery of these two projects not only maximizes returns from our existing resource base but also contributes to our goal of reaching 300,000 net barrels of oil equivalent per day in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico by 2026.” He also emphasized that these milestones follow the recent production startup at the high-pressure Anchor field, further solidifying Chevron’s leadership in technological innovation and project execution in the Gulf.

At the Jack/St. Malo facility, Chevron has commenced the first water injection operations at the St. Malo field, marking the company’s inaugural waterflood project in the deepwater Wilcox trend. This project, delivered under budget, involved the installation of water injection facilities, the drilling of two new production wells, and the creation of two new injection wells. The water injection initiative is projected to add approximately 175 million barrels of oil equivalent to the St. Malo field’s gross ultimate recovery. Located approximately 280 miles (450 km) south of New Orleans, Louisiana, in about 7,000 feet (2,134 m) of water, the Jack/St. Malo facility has been a significant contributor to Chevron’s production portfolio. Since production began in 2014, the Jack and St. Malo fields have collectively produced nearly 400 million gross barrels of oil equivalent.

Meanwhile, at the Tahiti facility, Chevron has started water injection into its first deepwater Gulf producer-to-injector conversion wells. This project involved the installation of a new water injection manifold and the laying of 20,000 feet of flexible water injection flowline. The Tahiti facility, situated about 190 miles (306 km) south of New Orleans in around 4,100 feet (1,250 m) of water, has been a robust producer since operations began in 2009. Recently, it surpassed 500 million gross barrels of oil-equivalent cumulative production. Chevron continues to explore advanced drilling, completion, and production technologies that could be applied in future development phases at both the Tahiti and Jack/St. Malo fields, potentially further increasing recovery from these significant resources.

Chevron operates the St. Malo field through its subsidiary, Union Oil Company of California, holding a 51 percent working interest. The other stakeholders include MP Gulf of Mexico, LLC with a 25 percent interest, Equinor Gulf of Mexico LLC with 21.5 percent, Exxon Mobil Corporation with 1.25 percent, and Eni Petroleum US LLC with 1.25 percent. Chevron U.S.A Inc. is the operator of the Tahiti facility, holding a 58 percent working interest, while co-owners Equinor Gulf of Mexico LLC and TotalEnergies E&P USA, Inc. hold 25 percent and 17 percent interests, respectively.