The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA), the Australian Government’s offshore energy regulator responsible for health and safety, well integrity and environmental management for offshore oil and gas, has accepted Woodside Energy’s plans to decommission the Minerva Field.
The field, previously operated by BHP Petroleum, is located in Commonwealth waters with the wells laying approximately 11 km southwest of Port Campbell in water depths of approximately 50-60 m. Woodside plans to remove all subsea infrastructure and equipment from the seabed associated with the Minerva development. According to NOPSEMA, activities covered by the decommissioning include:
• Ongoing field management activities (inspection and monitoring) for the Minerva subsea and well infrastructure until decommissioning;
• Removal of the Minerva gas pipeline bundle in Commonwealth waters. The pipeline comprises of approximately 4.9 km of 10-inch concrete coated rigid-steel flowline, bunded with an electro hydraulic umbilical and two 2-inch steel chemical injection lines and stabilisation materials;
• Removal of Minerva subsea infrastructure within VIC-L22 in Commonwealth Waters comprising of five inline pipeline structures, five tie-in spools, and associated equipment and stabilisation material.
Equipment removal activities are planned to commence as early as Q4 2024 and require approximately three to five months, subject to vessel availability and weather constraints.
The plans for the decommissioning were submitted to NOPSEMA earlier this year. Click here to learn more.
