The L10 gas field is a major natural gas producing field and hub in the Netherlands sector of the North Sea, about 65 km west of Den Helder. The field started producing gas in 1976 and was still operational in 2021.

L10 gas field
CountryNetherlands
RegionNorth Sea
Location/blockL10
Offshore/onshoreOffshore
Coordinates53°24′14″N 04°12′07″E / 53.40389°N 4.20194°E / 53.40389; 4.20194
OperatorsPlacid International Oil Limited; Gaz de France Suez; Neptune Energy
OwnerPlacid International Oil Limited; Gaz de France Suez; Neptune Energy
Field history
DiscoveryFebruary 1970
Start of development1972
Start of production1976
Production
Producing formationsRotliegendes sandstone

The field

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The L10 gas field is located in the Southern North Sea.[1] The field was discovered by Placid International Oil Limited in February 1970.[2] The gas reservoir is an Upper Rotliegendes sandstone at a depth of 3,772 to 3,800 metres. The properties of the gas are:[3][4]

L10 field typical gas properties
Gas composition and property Value
Methane 84.75 %
Carbon dioxide 2.73 %
Nitrogen 6.1 %
Hydrogen sulfide Nil
Gross calorific value 39.19 MJ/m3

Development

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The L10 gas reservoir was developed by a number of offshore installations across the L10 Block. The L10-A complex is the hub of the field, it receives gas from its bridge-linked riser platform, from L Block satellite platforms, and from the adjacent Block 12.[2][5][4]

L10 Field Offshore installations
Installation Coordinates Water depth Platform Function Type Legs Well slots Installed Production start Production to
L10-A Complex 53°24’14”N 04°12’07”E 28 m L10-A Drilling Platform Drilling, wellheads, accommodation Steel jacket 10 12 November 1972 1976 Bridge linked to L10-AP
L10-A Production Platform Processing Steel jacket 8 1974 1976 Uithuizen by 178 km 36-inch pipeline
L10-A Riser Platform Risers Steel jacket 4 Bridge linked to L10-AP
L10-AC Compression Platform Compression 1987 1987 Bridge linked to L10-AP
L10 -B Complex 53°27’28”N 04°13’59”E 27 m L10-B Wellhead Platform Drilling, wellhead, production Steel jackets 4 6 1974 July 1975 L10-A by 7.0 km, 14-inch pipeline
L10-BB  Wellhead Platform Wellhead Steel platform 3 4 July 1980 Bridge linked to L10-B
L10-C Platform 53°23’38”N 04°12’08”E 26.5 m L10-C Platform Drilling, production Steel jacket 4 6 1974 August 1975 L10-A by 1.1 km 10-inch pipeline
L10-D Platform 53°24’35”N 04°12’54”E 27.4 m L10-D Platform Wellhead Steel jacket 4 6 1977 July 1977 L10-A by 1.15 km 10-inch pipeline
L10-E Complex 53°25’57”N 04°14’13”E 29 m L10-E Platform Wellhead Steel jacket 4 6 1977 1977 L10-A by 4.1 km 10-inch pipeline
L10-EE Platform Wellhead Steel platform 3 4 September 1984 1984 L10-B to L10-A pipeline by 0.08 km 10-inch pipeline
L10-F Platform 53°23’13”N 04°15’39”E 26 m L10-F Platform Wellhead Steel jacket 4 6 July 1980 January 1981 L10-A by 4.2 km 10-inch spur pipeline
L10-G Platform 53°29’28”N 04°11’48”E 27 m L10-G Platform Wellhead Steel jacket 4 6 July 1984 August 1984 L10-B by 5 km 10-inch pipeline
L10-K Platform 53°29’38”N 04°16’14”E 27 m L10-K Platform Wellhead Steel jacket 4 6 September 1984 1984 L10-B by 4.8 km 10-inch pipeline
L10-L Platform 53.337542N

4.377599E

27.1 m L10-L Platform Wellhead 1988 1988 L10-A
L10-M Platform L10-M Platform Wellhead Steel platform 4 2000 2000 L10-A
L10-S Subsea completions L10-S1, S2, S3, S4 Wellhead subsea 4 1988 (S1), 1997 (S2, S3, S4) 1988, 1997 L10-AP by 6-inch flowlines

The L10-A complex also receives gas from K12-C/CC, K12-D, K12-G and K12-K platforms.[5]

Gas from the field is transported through the 178 km, 36-inch diameter Noordgastransport pipeline from the L10-A Complex to Uithuizen. The design capacity of the 36-inch pipeline is 33 million cubic metres per day.[2]

The field was initially operated by Placid International Oil Limited, then Gaz de France Suez, then by Neptune Energy.[2][6]

Decommissioning

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In June 2020 Neptune Energy announced that it had decommissioned three platforms in the L10 Field. These were the satellite platforms L10-C, L10-D and L10-G.[7]

In December 2020 Neptune Energy began a feasibility study into whether depleted gas fields near L10-A, L10-B and L10-E could be used to sequester carbon dioxide. The capacity of the reservoirs is around 120-150 million tonnes of CO2 and the annual injection rate would be about 5-8 million tonnes per year.[8]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Department of Trade and Industry (1994). The Energy Report. London: HMSO. pp. Map 3. ISBN 0115153802.
  2. ^ a b c d Oilfield Publications Limited (1985). The North Sea Platform Guide. Ledbury UK: Oilfield Publications Limited. pp. 434–53.
  3. ^ "Fact sheet L10-6" (PDF). Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Dutch Offshore Gas: a success story". wur.nl. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  5. ^ a b "L10 and L11a gas fields". abarrelfull. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  6. ^ "Neptune energy Our activities Activities". NeptuneEnergy.com. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  7. ^ "Neptune decommissions three platforms in Dutch North Sea". offshore-energy.biz. 24 June 2020. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  8. ^ "Neptune to conduct Dutch North Sea CCS feasibility study". 10 December 2020. Retrieved 8 October 2021.