French oil major Total and its partners have launched the Zinia 2 deep offshore development with a production capacity of 40,000 barrels per day (b/d) in Block 17, 150 kilometres offshore Angola.

Zinia 2 is the first of several possible short-cycle developments on Block 17 that will unlock its full potential by connecting satellite reservoirs to the existing floating storage, production and offloading (FPSO) units.
 
“Zinia 2 opens a new chapter in the history of Block 17. This project will allow to extend the profitability of this prolific block, with over 2.6 billion barrels already produced. Thanks to the favourable fiscal framework introduced by the Angolan authorities for satellite developments, other projects similar to Zinia 2 are currently under consideration on Block 17,” said Arnaud Breuillac, President of Total Exploration & Production.

“The project is also a good example of capex discipline and cost optimization: the work carried out to simplify the design while capturing deflation allowed the partners to cut the development costs by more than a half.”
 
Zinia 2 comprises nine wells in water depths ranging from 600 to 1,200 meters, tied back to the Pazflor FPSO with a budget of $1.2 billion.
 
Total operates the Block 17 with a 40 per cent interest, alongside affiliates of Equinor (23.33 per cent), Exxon Mobil (20 per cent), and BP (16.67 per cent). Sonangol, is concessionaire. It has four FPSOs — Girassol, Dalia, Pazflor and CLOV. In 2017, its production averaged 600,000 b/d.  – TradeArabia News Service