Premier Oil is looking to sanction the Sea Lion development offshore the Falkland Islands in 2018, as revealed on Wednesday by partner company Rockhopper Exploration.
Both Premier and Rockhopper are UK-based. Sea Lion, located in the North Falkland Basin, is 60% held by Premier which would be the operator. Rockhopper has a 40% stake.
The Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) phase of Sea Lion is well advanced and focus this year will be primarily on securing funding.
Premier has estimated capital expenditure on the project to be $1.5bn while the break-even price has been reduced to $45 per barrel, from $55. That is with a peak daily production output of 75,000 barrels.
