BG Group achieves first production from Bolivian gas field

BG Group announced Wednesday what it described as another key project delivery milestone for 2012 with the first phase of development at the Margarita gas field in Bolivia now on-stream.

"Margarita Phase I, delivered safely and to plan, will give BG Group additional net production of some 17,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), taking total net production from Margarita to over 25,000 boepd," said BG Group Chief Executive Sir Frank Chapman.

"Already this year we have delivered new production from projects in Egypt, Norway and Thailand and, together with the successful start-up of Margarita Phase 1, these developments keep us on track with our programme to deliver average 6 percent to 8 percent per annum production growth through to 2020."

Margarita Phase I is expected to reach capacity in the second quarter of 2012. The project involved the construction of a new 48-mile (77-kilometer) network of gas gathering and export pipelines, four wells and gas processing facilities.

A second phase of development at the Margarita gas field was sanctioned in July 2011. Margarita Phase II, comprising the installation of a new processing train, flowlines and at least three additional development wells, will at capacity increase BG Group net production from the Margarita field to around 42,000 boepd by the end of 2014.

BG Group has a 37.5-percent interest in the Caipipendi block, which contains the Margarita gas field. (Repsol Bolivia 37.5 percent, operator, and PAE E&P Bolivia Limited 25 percent.)