Pre-Commissioning Works Begin at CNOOC’s Central Processing Facility

Engineers at the China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) Uganda limited have embarked on pre-commissioning works at the central processing facility (CPF) for the Kingfisher Oil field development area (KFDA) in Kikuube district.

The China National Offshore Oil Company, Uganda (CUL) is the operator of KFDA on behalf of the Joint Venture Partners (JVPs) comprising TotalEnergies Exploration, and Production, Uganda (TEPU) with the majority participating interest of 56.67%, Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) with 15%, and CNOOC Uganda Limited (CUL) with 28.33%.
The Central Processing Facility (CPF), which is the apex of the Kingfisher Oil field Development area (KFDA), has had major works accomplished. The facility separates crude oil from water and gas, stabilises it, and prepares it for export.

The Central processing facility (CPF) for the Kingfisher oil development area whose construction commenced in 2023 will have the capacity to process fourty thousand (40,000) barrels of oil per day during peak production.
The processed crude oil will be transported to the Delivery Point at Nyamasoga village in Kabaale parish, Kabaale sub-county in Hoima district through a 10” inner diameter Feeder pipeline that is approximately forty- eight (48) km long.

The construction works and installation of vital machines of the CPF are being executed by CCJV.

Andrew Mbigiti, the senior supervisor media and publicity at CNOOC told Uganda Radio Network (URN) in an interview that major components for the Central processing facility (CPF) have all been installed.
They include the installation of the on-spec tanks, sludge storage area, construction of Pipeline investigation gauge (PIG), Construction Fuel gas compressor, water treatment plant, fuel gas super heaters, construction of a substation, construction of a warehouse and the office building , separators, fire water pump, warehouse, fire water tank, substation, office building, Basic sediment and water plant (BS$W) and truck loading skid among other facilities.

Other components that have been fully installed are the de-ethanizer towers, reflux drums, export tanks and reboiler tanks, construction of over eighteen (18) km of buried flow lines, a Lake Water Abstraction station together with supporting infrastructure, which includes camps, a Support base, a Materials yard, a Safety checkpoint, a jetty, and access roads among others.
According to Mbigiti, after all these components have been fully installed, engineers have now embarked on the pre-commissioning works to detect whether all systems and equipment are installed correctly, functional, and ready for the final commissioning and start-up of the crucial CPF.

He says, this stage is very critical because it bridges the gap between construction completion and full commissioning.
“The is a crucial stage since it helps our engineers to detect whether the equipment and systems are installed correctly, free from damage, and ready for operational testing by ensuring safety, integrity, and functionality before the plant or facility becomes operational, “he stated.

He further stated that, there are other key infrastructure developments in the area that will support crude oil handling once production begins.
The final investment decision (FID) for KFDA was announced in February 2022 alongside that for the sister project Tilenga and the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP).

The Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) for the KFDA Project was completed in February 2018.
The Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) was completed, and a certificate was issued by the National Environment Management Authority in February 2020.
The development of the Kingfisher field is planned to be undertaken through onshore drilling of thirty-one (31) Development Wells from four (4) wells using one (1) drilling rig.
On January 24th, 2023, President Yoweri Museveni launched spudding (drilling) following the successful erection of a rig; LR8001 specially designed for the deep offshore oil wells.