Total and its partners have taken the final investment decision to launch the Zinia 2 deep offshore development, 150 kilometres offshore Angola, Africa. The project will have a production capacity of 40,000 barrels per day (b/d).

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.

Arnaud Breuillac, President of Total Exploration & Production said the 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,” he said.

“The project is also a good example of capex discipline and cost optimisation: 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 metres, tied back to the Pazflor FPSO with a budget of US$1.2 billion.

Total operates the Block 17 with a 40% interest, alongside affiliates of Equinor (23.33%), Exxon Mobil (20%), and BP (16.67%). Sonangol, is concessionaire. It has four FPSOs — Girassol, Dalia, Pazflor and CLOV. In 2017, its production averaged 600,000 b/d.