Repsol has started up the first producing well at the giant Perla field, the largest gas discovery in the company's history and the largest offshore gas field in Latin America, holding 17 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas in place.

Perla is located in the Cardón IV block, in shallow waters in the Gulf of Venezuela, 50 kilometers offshore. The company expects to start producing 150 million cubic feet (Mcf) of gas a day, rising to 450 Mcf/day by the end of 2015. This gas will be used for local consumption in Venezuela.

In the two following phases, output will rise to 1.2 Bcf/day in 2020, a volume that would be maintained until the end of the contract in 2036.

Repsol and Italian company Eni discovered the Cardón IV block in 2009, where the consortium has drilled seven of the 26 wells planned as part of the development plan, which will feed four producing platforms that use underwater connections to transport the gas onshore for processing. The Cardón IV license is held by the Cardón IV S.A. joint venture between Repsol (50%) and Eni (50%).

Tags: Repsol