Name of the Project
Dorado oil and gas project.

Location
Bedout sub-basin, off the shore of Western Australia.

Project Owner/s
Santos (80%) and Carnarvon Petroleum (20%).

Santos is seeking interest from the market in nonoperated equity in Dorado and potentially other Western Australia oil assets.

Project Description
Dorado is an integrated oil and gas project that is planned to be developed in two phases.

Phase 1 development involves the production of oil and condensate through a wellhead platform (WHP), as well as floating production, storage and offloading facility (FPSO).

The selected concept of a FPSO and WHP allows for the optimal integrated development of the gas and liquids resource and retains sufficient flexibility to support future exploration success. Gas will be reinjected in the initial phase to enhance oil and condensate recovery.

Phase 2 will then develop the significant natural gas resources in the Bedout sub-basin and provide future backfill supply to Santos’ current Western Australia domestic gas infrastructure assets.

Dorado is expected to have an initial gross oil production rate of between 75 000 bbl/d and 100 000 bbl/d of high-quality crude, which is expected to earn a premium to regional pricing benchmarks.

Potential nearby tie-in opportunities, starting with the Pavo and Apus prospects, to be drilled early next year, could be easily tied back into the Dorado infrastructure and materially increase the value of the project.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Capital Expenditure
Phase 1 has an estimated gross capital cost of about $2-billion, assuming a purchased FPSO.

Planned Start/End Date
A final investment decision for the Dorado project is targeted for mid-2022, with first production scheduled for 2026.

Latest Developments
The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (Nopsema) has called for public comment on the Dorado development.

Nopsema has determined that the project proposal meets the regulatory requirements for it to be published for public comment, however, the regulatory body has not yet considered the acceptability of the project and associated environmental impacts. 

Once Santos has considered and addressed issues raised through public comment in their proposal, Nopsema can begin its assessment of the proposal’s acceptability against the requirements of the environmental regulations. 

If the proposal meets all of the regulatory requirements and is accepted by Nopsema, further regulatory approvals from Nopsema will be required, including environment plans, safety cases, and well operations management plans, before any activities can commence.

Nopsema has called on interested stakeholders to provide comment by October 29.

Meanwhile, Santos has awarded the front-end engineering design (FEED) contract for the FPSO facility.

The FPSO contract is the project’s biggest, comprising engineering, procurement, construction, installation, commissioning and testing of the facility.

The project entered the FEED phase in June, which involves numerous work fronts including the award of contracts for the FPSO and WHP. The FPSO contract will start with full definition engineering by Altera to confirm the technical requirements for the FPSO and associated disconnectable mooring system.

The project has a federal government approved Australian Industry Participation Plan ensuring full, fair and reasonable opportunities for Australian industry to compete for work. This is accessible through the Industry Capability Network website.

Further, Santos has awarded the FEED contract in the Bedout Sub-basin, offshore Western Australia, to Sapura Energy.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Altera (engineering) and Sapura Energy (FEED contract).

Contact Details for Project Information
Santos investor enquiries Andrew Nairn, tel +61 8 8116 5314 or email andrew.nairn@santos.com.
Santos media enquiries James Murphy, tel +61478333974 or email james.murphy@santos.com.