bp announced the safe start-up of the Manuel project in the US Gulf of Mexico, the fourth of five major projects expected to be delivered globally in 2021. Manuel includes a new subsea production system for two new wells tied into the Na Kika platform. The wells are expected to boost gross platform production by an estimated 20,100 barrels of oil equivant a day (boe/d).

The bp-operated wells, drilled to a depth of approximately 21,000 feet, are located on Mississippi Canyon block 520, east of the bp-operated Na Kika platform in 6,625 feet of water, approximately 140 miles off the coast of New Orleans. bp and Shell each hold a 50% working interest in the Manuel development.

bp is a leading producer in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, operating four production platforms—Thunder Horse, Atlantis, Mad Dog and Na Kika—with a fifth platform, Argos, expected to come online in 2022. bp anticipates growth in its production in the US Gulf of Mexico to more than 400,000 boe/d by the mid-2020s.

Manuel is exactly the type of high-value project that is critical to growing our business here in the Gulf of Mexico. bp’s focused and resilient hydrocarbons business is a key pillar of our strategy. This start-up is another example of our team’s commitment to safe and reliable operations.

—Starlee Sykes, bp senior vice president Gulf of Mexico and Canada

Our disciplined investment in Manuel is part of our target to add 900,000 boe/d of production from new projects by the end of 2021. The safe production of resilient hydrocarbons in the basins we know best is core to advancing our strategy to transform into an integrated energy company.

—Ewan Drummond, bp senior vice president of projects, production and operations