The expected date for a Final Investment Decision (FID) on Premier Oil’s Sea Lion FPSO project offshore the Falkland Islands appears to be sliding further to the right.

After 40% partner Rockhopper Exploration first confirmed last month that it would be April 2016 that the full field development plan would be submitted for sanction (see DI, 24 November 2014, page 9), its latest update is now just giving “mid-2016” as the FID target. Premier had confirmed last month that it was adopting a phased, lower cost solution for the north-east part of the Sea Lion field in the South Atlantic, deciding to use a leased FPSO rather than its original concept of a Tension Leg Platform (which ironically Premier had previously chosen over an original FPSO solution).

Pierre Jungels, chairman of Rockhopper, said: “Adoption of a phased lower cost development solution for Sea Lion, together with revised commercial arrangements with Premier, significantly de-risks the development and allows us to move towards project sanction without the need to bring in a third party. While the expected date for project sanction has been delayed to mid-2016, we continue to target first oil during 2019.”

The Eirik Raude rig has already been secured for the 4-well exploration drilling campaign in the North Falkland Basin. Rockhopper confirmed that the first well (on the Zebedee prospect) is planned to spud in early March 2015, with the company saying the wells will target a total of approximately 160 MMbbl of prospective resources net to Rockhopper, with further upside in the Isobel/Elaine region.