Williams’ Commitment
to the Gulf of Mexico Runs
“The Gulf of Mexico is resilient. Even in
the face of the worst plunge in oil prices
in years, it still has a lot to offer.”
Pat Carroll
VP and General Manager
Gulf West
Unlike onshore natural gas
production, which has been tapering
off as oil prices decline, production
in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico has
remained strong and is actually on
its way to setting a record in 2017.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)
projects Gulf production will average 1.63 million barrels
per day in 2016 and 1.79 million barrels per day in 2017,
reaching an all-time high of 1.91 million barrels per day
in December 2017.
At those rates, Gulf of Mexico production will account for
18% of total U.S. oil output in 2016 and 21% in 2017,
according to EIA.
Offshore Opportunity
According to Williams executives, strong deepwater
production has created an opportunity to expand
the company’s Gulf presence by offering a variety
of offshore services.
“There are only a few of us in the midstream infrastructure
space that can provide deepwater production handling
services because of the expense and technology required,”
2
said Mark Cizek, vice president & general manager
of Williams’ Gulf East franchise.
“Our ability to offer deepwater customers a full suite of
services, from production handling to gathering to onshore
natural gas liquids processing, places Williams in a very
unique position. Not many other companies can offer such a
comprehensive solution to deepwater plays.”
Williams operates 3,633 miles of oil and natural gas pipelines
in the Gulf, in addition to floating production platforms and
natural gas liquids processing facilities. In 2014 the company
completed the Gulfstar Floating Production System (FPS)
for the Tubular Bells Field development, an innovative
approach to classic spar development.
Gulfstar Model
“Gulfstar created an opportunity for Williams to develop an
FPS and construct a commercial model for leasing it, which
allowed us to move up one more step in the value chain.
It’s a great business model which provides a service that
the producers value,” Cizek says. “Moving forward, we are
investigating a variety of hull forms to offer a significant level
of flexibility within the Gulfstar product line, depending on
the needs of the producer.”
The first Gulfstar FPS currently operates in Mississippi
Canyon block 724, strategically located near some of the
Gulf ’s top deepwater production areas. Not far from it,
Williams owns the Devil’s Tower deepwater spar in
block 773.
CONNECT: A PUBLICATION FOR WILLIAMS CUSTOMERS | VOL. 4, ISSUE 1, 2016