Husky Plans $600m Expansion at White Rose

According to reports, Calgary-based Husky Energy is planning a $600-million expansion of the White Rose oil field on the Grand Banks. The company is proposing to develop up to 25 million barrels of oil by late 2009 using what's known as a subsea tieback to the field's existing production infrastructure. The additional oil was found several years ago during exploration drilling in the southern part of the White Rose field. It was declared a significant discovery in 2004.

Subsea tiebacks are commonly used in the North Sea to develop small pools of oil and gas up to 30 kilometres away from an existing production platform. In this case, the White Rose southern extension is about four kilometres away from the field's southern glory hole, a man-made crater dredged in the ocean floor. Husky owns 72.5 per cent of the oil field, while Petro-Canada owns the remaining 27.5 per cent. The White Rose field produced first oil in November 2005, and by the following February, Husky was considering ways to develop the southern extension. In September 2006, Husky filed documents with the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board applying for an amendment to its development plan that would allow for a southern extension.