Disc Contents © IPA, 2006 - 1st Annual Convention Proceedings, 1972

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i38 PROCEEDINGS INDONESIAN PETROLETJM ~ ~ Q C l A ~ ~ ~
Rrst Annual Convention, June 1932
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THE ATTAKA OIL FIELD -

DISCOVERY, DEVELOPMENT AND P ~ ~ D ~ ~ ~ I O

H.C. BURROUGHS. “1

INTRODUCTION. the 7 drill stem tests conducted in Attaka 1-A

The Attaka oil field is located 12 to 15 miles was 11,300 barrels of high gravity, low sulphur
off the coast of East Kalimantan, northeast of crude oil and 26 mmcf/d of gas. Subsequently,
the Mahakam River delta. The field is wholly six confirmation wells were drilled to establish
contamed within an 1 1 2 square mile operating the limits of the field.
unit jointly held by Unior, Oil Company of
Indonesia and Japex Indonesia. The unit, fkst RELATIONSHIP TO REGIONAL
of its kind in S.E. Asia, was formed in April STRATIGRAPHY.
1970 to allow mutual exploration of a structure Because there exists a certain degree of confu-
straddling the common boundaries of the two sion and ambiguity in past literature concerning
companies. As early seismic structure maps had East Kalimantan stratjgraphy and nomenclature,
deiineated roughly equal areas of closure within onshore rock terminology have not been ex-
both company’s production sharing contract tended offshore into the Attaka field. Therefore,
areas, each company agreed to contribute this papcr only consiaers regional stratigraphic
approximately equal and contiguous portions patterns and not regional correlations
of their respective PSC areas to the common Beginning with depostion of a basal Tertiary
unit Under terms of the agreement all costs of transgressive clastic sequence East Kalimantan
exploration, development and production are basinal areas were subsequently filled with
to be borne equally by- the two companiesand marginal marine and marine sediments during
Union is designated as operator. Miocene, Pliocene and Plektocene time. In the
deeper parts of the basin, greater than 35.000
DISCOVERY of Tertiary rocks were probably laid down.
The field discovery well, Attaka 1-A, was From at least as early middle Miocene time
drilled during May to September, 1970, to a onward, an eastward flowing river system
total measured depth of 11,65Y feet in deposited a series of superposed delta facies
probable middle Miocene marine sediments. in about the position of the present day
After several good hydrocarbon shows were W a k a m River delta. Several transgression-
recorded over the interval 4000 to 7700 feet, regressions of middle and late Tertiary seas
the well was cased with 9 5/8 inch ca&g and concurrent lateral shifting of the delta
before drilling on to total depth. Below 10,300 complex between 0 9 0 ’ North and 1’30
feet, considerable drilling problems were South latidude‘s formed afavorable environment
experienced in an ”overpressured” shale section for generation and entrapnient of hydrocarbons.
Repeated reaming and increasing of mud
weight to 12.6 pounds per gallon failed to STRATIGRAPHY - STRUCTURE.
completely m e n o m e “sticky” hole conditions,
so well was plugged back into 9 518 inch casing An early Pliocene delta complex built across
to prepare for tests of promising shows. the Attaka structure, depositing a series of
Although aIl potentially productive zone were lenticular channel and delta front sands. The
not tested, a sufficient number and variety of main hody of the deka is characterized by
log anomalies were tested to permit a good thick channel sands comprisirrg 40 to 60
evaluation of the validity of calculations based
on wwe line log data. The cumulatwe totals of *) Union Oil of Indonesia

percent of the total section and containing
fresh t o brackish formation water. In the
transitional shallow marine section marginal to
the main body ot the delta and also in delta
front and shallow marine bar sands overlying
or underlying the delta proper.
The Attaka structure is a lobate anticline
trending north northwest Three large east
dipping normal faults separate the structure
into four distinct fault blocks. Most of the oil
production is associated with the second lowest
block, whick itself is cut by three minor west
dipping normal release faults Time of faulting
was relatively late, following primary migration
and accumulation of hydrocarbons
PRODUCTION.
Production schedule calls for 15 Platform "A'
completions to be on stream with 22,500
bamls per day by October, 1972. Successive
completions of Platforms "B", "C", "D"and
"E" will increase daily production to about
100,000 barrels per day by June 1973.
Oil and associated gas will undergo first stage
separation at the well platforms before
transportation to the production platform via
10" and 12" gas lines. At the production
platform the crude oil will undergo further
separation then will be sent 13 miles to the
Santan Storage Terminal via an 18" submarine
line.
STORAGE PROCESSING.
The crude oil from offshore will arrive at the
Santan Terminal at an approximate pressure
of 300 PSIG. There two identical processing
trains, each capable of 50,000 barrel per day
***
I39
through put, will process the crude as follows:
a) Crude is sent to the first stage separator and
flashed at 185 psig and 80%. Gas then goes
t o the flash gas scrubber. Crude then goes to
heat exchangers and a crude heater which
raises the temperature from 80°F to 148' F.
b) Crude then passes tD the intermediate
separator and is flashed at 65 psig and 148'
F, and again through the flash gas scrubber.
c) Crude next enters the low pressure separator
and is flas hed at 5 pasi and 144' F.
Stabilized crude is the passed through
heat exchangers dropping the temperature
from 144' t o lQOo F.
l h e crude is next pumped into one of three
500,000 barrel, floating roo1 storage t o await
shipment
LOADING.
Tanker loading will be accomplished from a
single buoy mooring located 4 1/2 pliles
offshore. anchored by chain to six 85 feet
anchor piles. Crude will arrive from Santan
Terminal via a 30 inch submarine pipeline.
Connection from 30 inch manifoid to buoy
is by 20 inch submarine hoses fitted with
buoyancy tanks. Finally, oil is transferred to
moored tanker by two 16 inch self float oil
loading hoses
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.
The author wishes to thank Union Oil Compa-
ny of California for permitting publication of
this paper. Thanks are also due t o various
Union engineering and exploration staff who
were respons ible for the discovery and exploi-
tation ideas and methods ptesented herein