The Saturn Banks Project comprises six natural gas reservoirs and gas production facilities in the southern North Sea, 35-55 km north east of Bacton, Norfolk. The fields are under development and first gas is due in 2022.
The Saturn Banks Project includes the Blythe, Elgood, Southwark, Elland, Nailsworth and Goddard gas fields in the UK offshore Quadrants 48 and 49.
Details of the gas fields is summarised in the table.[1] [2] [3]
| Field name | Blythe | Elgood | Southwark | Elland | Nailsworth | Goddard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Former name | Vulcan South | Vulcan East | Vulcan North West | Glein | ||
| Blocks | 48/22 | 48/23 | 49/21c | 49/21a | 48/25a,b | 48/11 |
| Year discovered | 1966 | 1991 | 2000 | 2006 | 1987 | 1994 |
| Original licensee | Burmah | Enterprise Oil | ConocoPhillips | Silverstone Energy | Shell/Exxon | Arco |
| Gas reservoir geology | Permian Rotliegend | Rotliegend | Rotliegend | Rotliegend | Rotliegend | |
| Gas in place, billion cubic feet | 33 | 22 | 94.2 | 55 | 99.4 | 132 |
The Saturn Banks Project is being developed by IOG plc as the project operator; it holds a 50% stake and CalEnergy Resources (UK) also holds a 50% stake.[1]
The gas fields are developed in stages. The first phase comprised the Blythe, Elgood and Southwark fields. These are developed by offshore platforms, subsea wellheads and pipelines. Details are summarised in the table.[1] [4] [5]
| Field | Blythe | Elgood | Southwark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Block | 4/22 | 48/23 | 49/21 |
| Installation name | Blythe | – | Southwark |
| Installation type | Fixed steel platform | Subsea wellhead | Fixed steel platform |
| Coordinates | 53° 18.331'N 01° 23.171'E | ||
| Installed | June 2021 | June 2021 | |
| Water depth, metres | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Substructure weight, tonnes | 1,050 | 1,300 | |
| Topsides weight, tonnes | 750 | – | 900 |
| No. of legs | Monotower | – | 4 |
| No. of Wells | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Gas export to | Blythe hub on Thames pipeline | Blythe | Southwark hub on Thames pipeline |
| Export pipeline length, diameter | 24.5 km, 12-inch | 9.1 km, 6-inch | 5.9 km, 24-inch |
| Pipeline number (gas) | PL4943 | ||
| Control umbilical/ methanol supply | To Elgood | From Blythe | – |
| Umbilical length, diameter | 9.1 km, 5-inch | – | |
| Umbilical/Pipeline number | – | ||
The pipelines from Blythe and Southwark platforms are tied into the reused Thames to Bacton 24-inch pipeline (PL370), renamed the Saturn Banks Pipeline System.[4]
In addition to the offshore development the Saturn Banks reception facilities at Bacton gas terminal were installed.[6]
Later phases of the Saturn Banks Project will include the Nailsworth, Elland and Goddard gas fields. Nailsworth is projected to be produced through the Southwark platform.[6]
