Shell Green-lights GoM Dover Project
The Deepwater Poseidon drilled the Dover discovery well. (Source: Shell’s May 2018 announcement)

Shell has sanctioned its 2018 deepwater Dover discovery in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico as a subsea tieback to its operated Appomattox production hub.

The supermajor announced on March 15 it had taken a final investment decision (FID) on the project, which is expected to go onstream in late 2024 or early 2025 and produce up to 21,000 boe/d at peak rates.

In 2018, Shell announced the Dover find was the company’s sixth discovery in the Norphlet geologic play. At the time, the operator said Dover was “an attractive potential tieback” to the Appomattox host about 13 miles away. The discovery well in Mississippi Canyon Block 612 was in 7,500 ft water depth and encountered more than 800 net ft of pay.

The subsea development concept calls for two production wells to be produced through a 17.5-mile flowline and riser to the Appomattox production hub.

Last year, Shell took FID on Rydberg, which is another subsea tieback to Appomattox.

"Shell is a pioneer in the Norphlet reservoir with Appomattox, and we are building on our leading position in the reservoir with Dover," Paul Goodfellow, Shell's executive vice president for deepwater, said in a press release.

Shell Green-lights GoM Dover Project
The Dover discovery is 13 miles from the Appomattox production facility in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. (Source: Shell’s May 2018 announcement)

Shell holds 100% interest in the Dover discovery and 79% interest in the Appomattox production hub.