Shell has successfully produced final GTL products from the mammoth Pearl GTL facility in Ras Laffan, Qatar.
Andy Brown, Shell’s Executive Vice President for Qatar, told Oil & Gas Middle East when visiting the landmark facility that an initial batch of GTL products, including the odourless GTL Gasoil, came through production at 2am on Monday 30 May.
Brown is now aiming for the first commercial shipment of GTL Gasoil to depart the specially constructed Ras Laffan port by the end of June, aboard a ship from the company’s 25-strong Nakilat fleet. The first shipment will represent Shell’s formal assumption of production at Pearl.
Shell already sold 420,000 barrels of oil equivalent (boe) of GTL condensate via Tasweeq, the Qatari, on 30 April.
Shell has ploughed $18-19 billion into the Pearl GTL over the 10-year development of the project, with profits to be shared between the company and state-backed Qatar Petroleum.
Brown estimates that, when fully operational, the plant will deliver $4 billion a year of net revenue, assuming an oil price of $70 a barrel. He estimates the production cost of just $6 boe in upstream production.
Shell CEO Peter Voser announced today that Shell are predicting an 80% increase in their cashflow between 2009 and 2012. Once fully operational, Shell’s assets in Qatar will account for 10% of total production within the company.
The plant, having generated a successful test sample, is now bringing the various parts of the GTL train of Phase I on stream. The Phase II train is expected to come on stream in mid 2012.
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