Whale

Shell Offshore Inc. announced one of its largest U.S. Gulf of Mexico exploration finds in the past decade from the Whale deep-water well.

The well encountered more than 1,400 net feet (427 meters) of oil bearing pay. Evaluation of the discovery is ongoing, and Shell says that appraisal drilling is underway to further delineate the discovery and define development options.

Whale is operated by Shell (60 percent) and co-owned by Chevron U.S.A. Inc. (40 percent). It was discovered in the Alaminos Canyon Block 772, adjacent to the Shell-operated Silvertip field and approximately 10 miles from the Shell-operated Perdido platform.

Royal Dutch Shell says it has added more than one billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) resources in the last decade in the Gulf of Mexico.

Shell currently has three Gulf of Mexico deep-water projects under construction: Appomattox, Kaikias, and Coulomb Phase 2. It also has investment options for additional subsea tiebacks and Vito, a potential new hub in the region. The Shell group expects its global deep-water production to exceed 900,000 boe per day by 2020, from already discovered, established areas.