Exxon Start Construction Of Xikomba Deepwater Development

ExxonMobil Corporation has started construction of the Xikomba deepwater development offshore West Africa. The Xikomba field in Angola's Block 15 was discovered in 1999 and has estimated recoverable resources of approximately 100 million barrels of oil with a target production of 80,000 barrels per day.

Located in the northwest corner of Angola Block 15, about 230 miles northwest of Luanda, the project will develop the Xikomba discovery in water depths of 4,000-5,000 feet. The Xikomba development project will consist of nine subsea wells tied back to a Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel. In order to accelerate the start-up of production, the company is utilizing an Early Production System which entails leasing the purpose built FPSO for this development. First oil is scheduled for late 2003, making it the first oil production on Esso-operated Block 15.

Commenting on the announcement, Morris Foster, president, ExxonMobil Development Company, said, "The Xikomba project development is an example of our ability to bring new discoveries into production quickly." He added, "The deployment of an Early Production System provides us further flexibility in future developments and demonstrates our capacity and commitment to develop global energy resources in a safe, environmentally sound, cost-effective and timely manner."

The Xikomba project includes the award of contracts and subcontracts to Angolan companies to provide in-country fabrication, logistics support, training, and development and employment of Angolan nationals. These contracts support sustained growth in Angolan capacity and expertise to support future oil and gas developments.

Commencement of the Xikomba development is another step in ExxonMobil's commitment to long-term business growth in Angola. In August 2001, ExxonMobil announced it had begun construction of the largest deepwater development offshore West Africa. The $3 billion world-class Kizomba A project, also in Angola's Block 15, has estimated recoverable resources of approximately one billion barrels of oil and target production of 250,000 barrels per day. First oil from Kizomba A is scheduled for 2004. In December 2001, ExxonMobil announced its first oil production in Angola with the startup of the Girassol development in the deepwater offshore area known as Block 17.

ExxonMobil has a leading position in nearly all the major exploration and production areas in the world. The company is also a leading holder of deepwater acreage in the world's most attractive deepwater regions, including West Africa where it has interests in 19 blocks totaling 18 million gross acres. In Angola, ExxonMobil holds interests in nine offshore deepwater blocks and one shallow-water block covering over 12 million gross acres. The company and its co-venturers have announced 22 discoveries in Angola, on Blocks 15 and 17, which represent world-class development opportunities with recoverable resource potential of more than 7.5 billion gross oil-equivalent barrels.

In addition to Esso (Operator, 40 percent), other participants in Block 15 are BP Exploration (Angola) Limited (26.67 percent), Agip Angola Exploration B.V. (20 percent), and Statoil Angola (13.33 percent). Sonangol is the concessionaire.

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