Eni, in partnership with PetroCi, yesterday celebrated the departure of the FPSO Firenze towards the Baleine field offshore the Ivory Coast in Dubai. The event was attended by Mamadou Sangafowa-Coulibaly, Minister of Mines, Oil and Energy of Côte d'Ivoire, and other dignitaries.
The FPSO Florence will allow the start of production of the Baleine field, which is to date the largest hydrocarbon discovery in the Ivory Coast, with an estimated oil in place of 2,5 billion barrels and 3,3 trillion cubic feet of associated gas. The Baleine development will also be Africa's first zero-emission (Scope 1 and 2) project.
The FPSO Firenze, which will be renamed Baleine after its arrival in the Ivory Coast, has been restructured and upgraded to allow it to process up to 15.000 bbl/d of oil and approximately 25 Mcfd/d of associated gas. All gas production will be delivered onshore via a newly constructed export pipeline. The installation of the subsea production system and the well completion campaign are underway and will ensure an accelerated production start-up by June 2023.
Eni's phased development model and fast track have proven effective, as the project is expected to start production less than 2 years after the discovery of Baleine 1X and one and a half years after the FID. Eni is already expeditiously proceeding with the second phase of the project, forecasting the start of production by December 2024 after taking the FID in December 2022.
Eni is committed to sustainable development and the net-zero emissions project at the Baleine field is a significant step towards achieving this goal. The company looks forward to contributing to the development of the Ivory Coast's hydrocarbon industry with the Baleine field and its other deepwater projects in the Ivory Coast.
The Baleine camp extends over blocks CI-101 and CI-802. Eni also owns stakes in four other blocks in the Ivorian deep waters: CI-205, CI-501, CI-401 and CI-801, all with the same partner, PetroCi Holding.