Mittelplate
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Mittelplate is
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
's largest
oil field A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons contained in porous or fractured rock formations. Such reservoirs form when kerogen (ancient plant matter) is created in surrounding rock by the presence ...
, from the shore, in the environmentally important
Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...
Wadden Sea National Parks The Wadden Sea National Parks in Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands are located along the German Bight of the North Sea. In Germany and Denmark they also mark the area of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Wadden Sea. Divided from each other ...
tidal flats Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal fl ...
.Offshore Technology. Mittelplate Redevelopment, Germany
/ref> The development of the field was done by a consortium of
RWE Dea DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG was an international oil and gas company headquartered in Hamburg, Germany. It was a subsidiary of L1 Energy. In 2018, DEA owned stakes in oil and gas licenses in various countries and operated natural gas underground storage ...
and
Wintershall Wintershall Holding GmbH, based in Kassel, was Germany's largest crude oil and natural gas producer. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of BASF. The company was active in oil and gas exploration and production with operations in Europe, North Afr ...
. By the 20th anniversary of the start of production, (about 146 million barrels) of crude had been produced from the field.RWE description of Mitteplate
Mittelplate field holds nearly 65% of Germany's crude oil reserves.


History

The field was discovered in 1981 through the Mittelplate 1 well, which confirmed that the reservoir contained of crude oil. As early as the 1950s,
geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...
s suspected the presence of oil off the German coast. Preliminary test drilling in the 1960s did indeed turn up indications of oil, though not in economically profitable quantities. The oil crisis of
1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...
and
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
raised awareness of indigenous oil sources. In 1980 and 1981, exploration wells in the Mittelplate vicinity found oil in several sandstone layers. Due to the location of the field in an ecologically sensitive area, hydrographic, hydrodynamic and meteorological studies modelling storm, wave and ice-flow conditions were done, with the result that an
artificial island An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those tha ...
holding a drilling and production facility was built in 1985.


Geology

The oil in the Mittelplate field is trapped in Dogger (Middle Jurassic) sandstones of uppermost
Aalenian The Aalenian () is a subdivision of the Middle Jurassic Epoch/Series of the geologic timescale that extends from about 174.1 Ma to about 170.3 Ma (million years ago). It was preceded by the Toarcian and succeeded by the Bajocian. Stratigraphic ...
to lowermost
Callovian In the geologic timescale, the Callovian is an age and stage in the Middle Jurassic, lasting between 166.1 ± 4.0 Ma (million years ago) and 163.5 ± 4.0 Ma. It is the last stage of the Middle Jurassic, following the Bathonian and preceding the ...
in age. The five main sandstone reservoir units, known from oldest to youngest as the alpha-sand, beta-sand, gamma-sand, delta-sand and epsilon-sand, are separated by intervening sandy claystones, not of reservoir quality. The
trap A trap is a mechanical device used to capture or restrain an animal for purposes such as hunting, pest control, or ecological research. Trap or TRAP may also refer to: Art and entertainment Films and television * ''Trap'' (2015 film), Fil ...
is formed on the flank of the Büsum
salt dome A salt dome is a type of structural dome formed when salt (or other evaporite minerals) intrudes into overlying rocks in a process known as diapirism. Salt domes can have unique surface and subsurface structures, and they can be discovered using ...
, with the hydrocarbons sealed up-dip by the edge of the salt dome. The overall top seal is provided by Lower Cretaceous mudstones. The
source rock In petroleum geology, source rock is rock which has generated hydrocarbons or which could generate hydrocarbons. Source rocks are one of the necessary elements of a working petroleum system. They are organic-rich sediments that may have been depos ...
for the oil found at Mittelplate is thought to be the underlying Lower Jurassic Liassic organic-rich claystone.


Technical features

The island is protected by sheet piling measures at . The western section of the field includes 18 production wells. The first oil came onstream in 1987 and was delivered ashore on double hull
barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...
s. A new redevelopment plan included the construction of a land-based facility in Dieksand from which extended-reach production wells were to tap into the eastern part of the field. As per the development program, a pilot well and seven high-tech extended-reach wells measuring at , , , , , , and a section cutting through the
Büsum Büsum () is a fishing and tourist town in the district of Dithmarschen, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated on the North Sea coast, approx. 18 km southwest of Heide. Büsum is also the administrative seat of the ''Amt'' ("collec ...
salt diapir were to ensure a faster exploitation of the field. The redevelopment plan also included construction of pipelines from the island to
Friedrichskoog Friedrichskoog ( nds, Friechskouch) is a municipality in the district of Dithmarschen, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated near the outflow of the Elbe into the North Sea, approximately 25 km southwest of Heide, and 25 km nor ...
-Spitze and a pipeline to the Dieksand Land Station. This was expected to enable the Mittelplate consortium to transport up to 1 million tonnes or of oil a year. Oil is pumped ashore and water extracted during processing is then routed back by the second pipeline for reinjection into the lower section of the reservoir. The modified island facility now contains living accommodation for up to 96 people.The Mittelplate project - a production platform in the North Sea tidal flats
/ref>


Ownership

The Mittelplate is operated and solely owned by Wintershall Dea. Out of a total capital spending of €670 million, €100 million was spent on construction of the pipeline transporting crude oil ashore and €50 million was spent on construction of a new T-150
drilling rig A drilling rig is an integrated system that drills wells, such as oil or water wells, or holes for piling and other construction purposes, into the earth's subsurface. Drilling rigs can be massive structures housing equipment used to drill wat ...
.


Production

Starting from October 1987, the field has been tapped in several sandstone layers at depths reaching . The size of the deposit was adjusted upward to over 100 million tons, of which 15 million tons were extracted by June 2005. The annual production of Mittelplate Island amounts to 900,000 tons of oil (about 18,100 barrels of oil per day). Under prevailing conditions, about 40 million tons are still economically extractable. Since 2000, nearly horizontal wells (some up to about long) have been extracting from the eastern part of the field directly from land on Dieksand /
Friedrichskoog Friedrichskoog ( nds, Friechskouch) is a municipality in the district of Dithmarschen, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated near the outflow of the Elbe into the North Sea, approximately 25 km southwest of Heide, and 25 km nor ...
. The oil is
piped A pipe is a tubular section or hollow cylinder, usually but not necessarily of circular cross-section, used mainly to convey substances which can flow — liquids and gases (fluids), slurries, powders and masses of small solids. It ...
from there to
Brunsbüttel Brunsbüttel () is a town in the district of Dithmarschen, in Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany that lies at the mouth of the Elbe river, near the North Sea. It is the location of the western entrance to the Kiel Canal. History The earliest re ...
and onward to
oil refineries An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, liquefie ...
in
Hemmingstedt Hemmingstedt is a German municipality in the district of Dithmarschen in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. History Hemmingstedt is the namesake of the Battle of Hemmingstedt, which took place south of the place in today's municipal area of Epenwà ...
.


Safety and environmental protection

The companies developing the field spent a substantial part of €670 million already invested over 20 years into industrial safety and environmental protection programs due to unique location of the field in Wattenmeer tidelands. Pipe-laying in the area and production in the field have been in accord with National Parks Law. However,
Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth t ...
along with
World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wo ...
(WWF) have been active critics of the field development in Wattenmeer. The national park is home to nearly 4,000 species, 250 of which do not exist anywhere in the world but Wattenmeer. Up to 12 million
migratory birds Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting by ...
use the park—which is rich of mussels, worms, snails, and shrimp—as a resting place. Nearly 200,000
shelduck The shelducks, most species of which are found in the genus ''Tadorna'' (except for the Radjah shelduck, which is now found in its own monotypic genus ''Radjah''), are a group of large birds in the Tadorninae subfamily of the Anatidae, the biologi ...
s are believed to gather around the Elbe river estuary each summer.


References


External links

*
Bird's-eye view of the Mittelplate drilling island
*Further information from the broadcast Quarks & Co o
25 May 2004

VIDEO: RWE Dea Invites Visitors to Learn More About Mittelplate
{{in lang, de Oil fields of Germany Geography of Schleswig-Holstein North Sea energy