Harbour Energy starts up Tolmount gas project in UK output boost

London-listed Harbour Energy has launched production from the long-delayed Tolmount gas field development in the southern part of the North Sea, it said April 25.

The startup, after a number of delays, provides a much-needed boost to UK energy security following renewed attention to the country's declining supplies in the wake of a European gas crisis and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Harbour, which was formed in 2021 in a merger of UK-based Chrysaor and Premier Oil, has said plateau production rates should be around 40,000 b/d of oil equivalent once all four Tolmount wells are on stream, equivalent to around 200 MMcf/d.

That level would amount to 6.5% of the UK's 2021 gas production levels.

In late-2021, Harbour announced it would be lowering the field's earlier reserves estimate of 500 Bcf. However, the company is also developing the Tolmount East project, to be tied in to the main facilities, with reserves put at 160 Bcf.

Drilling on Tolmount East is due to start in the second half of 2022, with production starting in 2023, according to Harbour's recent annual report.

Harbour owns the license jointly with South Korea's Dana Petroleum and inherited the project from Premier Oil.

Security focus

UK gas production dropped by 17% in 2021, leading to an equivalent jump in imports and a 29% drop in exports as domestic demand rose by 5%, according to government data. Output was hampered by high levels of North Sea maintenance including a major shutdown of the Forties liquids pipeline, but also natural decline and a lack of recent investment.

Some recovery is expected this year, however, with two other fields brought on stream in March -- Blythe and Elgood -- and following the startup of the Finlaggan gas field in October 2021.

In April, the authorities launched a revamped 'British Energy Security Strategy' intended to boost oil and gas supply alongside climate goals, through measures such as a resumption of offshore licensing and support for expediting North Sea project developments.