Type:
Oil & Gas
Design:
TLP
Installed:
1996
Facility:
Production
Water Depth:
896
meters
Country:
USA - New Orleans District
Block:
MISSISSIPPI CANYON 60. Block 807
Intro
Mars is a deepwater tension leg platform located in the Mississippi Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico. Producing oil and gas since 1996, it was one of the earliest large-scale deepwater TLP developments. The platform serves as a major production hub, with direct export via dedicated oil and gas pipelines to shore.
Field
The Mars Field spans multiple blocks in the Mississippi Canyon area. Reservoirs are Miocene turbidite sandstones with significant structural complexity. The field is large in scale and was developed using a TLP with both platform-drilled wells and subsea infrastructure, representing a cornerstone deepwater development in the Gulf.
Facilities
The Mars TLP is installed in approximately 896 m of water and supports numerous dry-tree wells drilled from the platform, alongside subsea tie-backs. The facility includes extensive topsides processing with multi-stage separation, oil stabilization, and gas compression. Oil is exported via a 116-mile, 18/24-inch pipeline to Clovelly, Louisiana, while gas is exported via a 55-mile, 14-inch pipeline to West Delta 143. Produced water is treated prior to discharge. The platform includes water injection systems for reservoir pressure maintenance. Power is generated by gas turbines. The TLP is moored by vertical tendons, providing stability for drilling and production. Control systems manage both surface and subsea wells, and the infrastructure supports long-term phased development of the field.
Similar Platforms
Image Source: "Shell Sees Volumes on Mars Oil Pipeline System Rise in First Quarter" - Pipeline & Gas Journal [https://pgjonline.com/] (All rights belong to the original owner.)
SUBMIT YOUR STORIES AND PHOTOS
RigOil is built on the stories of the people who lived and worked offshore. If you have photos or memories from life on a North Sea platform, we’d love to include them in the archive.
Upload your photos and help preserve this shared history.*
*By submitting content, you confirm you have the right to share it and grant RigOil a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to use the material for editorial, promotional, and commercial purposes. Copyright remains with the contributor.