Finance
Shell greenlights US Gulf waterflood project to boost oil recovery
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 16, 2025
Last updated: January 7, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 16, 2025
Last updated: January 7, 2026
LONDON, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Oil major Shell has taken a final investment decision on a waterflood project at its Kaikias field in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, aiming to boost oil recovery and extend the life of its Ursa platform.
The project is expected to add 60 million barrels of oil equivalent to recoverable resources.
It is the latest investment in the U.S. Gulf for Shell, the region's top deep-water operator, as it seeks to sustain liquids output near 1.4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day until 2030.
First injection for the project is slated for 2028 and is due to extend Ursa's production lifecycle by several years.
Waterflood is a secondary recovery technique that injects water into the reservoir to displace additional oil and re-pressurize the formation.
Shell operates Ursa, a tension-leg platform in the Mars Corridor, and holds a 61.3% stake alongside BP and ECP GOM III. Shell announced in February it had grown its working interest in the Ursa platform.
Kaikias, discovered in 2014 and producing since 2018, lies in more than 4,000 feet (1,219 metres) of water about 130 miles (209 km) off Louisiana.
(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly; Editing by Jan Harvey)
A waterflood project is a secondary oil recovery technique where water is injected into an oil reservoir to displace oil and maintain reservoir pressure, thereby enhancing oil recovery.
The Ursa platform is a tension-leg platform operated by Shell in the Gulf of Mexico, designed for deep-water oil production and is part of the Mars Corridor.
A final investment decision (FID) is a commitment by a company to proceed with a project after evaluating its feasibility, costs, and potential returns.
Recoverable resources are the quantities of oil or gas that can be extracted from a reservoir using current technology and under current economic conditions.
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