Halliburton wins Eni contract for the Cronos project in Cyprus

Halliburton it obtained a multi-year contract from Eni to provide integrated services on the Cronos project, a natural gas development located in ultra-deep waters of the Eastern Mediterranean. The agreement includes drilling, construction, and well completion activities, expanding the US oil services company’s involvement in offshore operations in Cyprus. The contract is linked to the development located in the Block 6 of the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone, where Eni works together with TotalEnergies.

The company will consolidate various disciplines under an integrated scheme that will support both exploration and development wells. The contract will allow a single provider to participate in several critical stages of well construction, this model aims to reduce the interfaces between services during a campaign that is particularly demanding due to the unique conditions of ultra-deep waters.

Halliburton will provide integrated services in the Cronos project

The planned activities include the drilling fluids, directional drilling, cementing, surface well testing, and continuous pipe operations or coiled tubing the package will also incorporate automation tools and remote operating capabilities. The company will also utilize its own technology, LOGIX designed to automate certain drilling tasks and facilitate the remote execution of some operations, integrating these solutions allows for the coordination of processes that traditionally may require the participation of different teams and suppliers during well construction.

Combining drilling and completion services under a single scope can also simplify the coordination of a multi-year campaign, this is especially important in ultra-deep waters, where logistics, equipment availability, and the sequencing of each intervention directly impact development execution. To support these operations, the company will leverage its existing infrastructure and capabilities in Cyprus. This regional presence provides a logistical base from which to mobilize personnel, equipment, and services as the Cronos campaign progresses.

Jean-Marc Lopez, Halliburton’s senior vice president for Europe, Eurasia and sub-Saharan Africa, noted that the award continues the company’s relationship with Eni and reflects its ability to deliver integrated solutions in complex offshore projects.

Cronos advances from discovery towards development

The Cronos site was discovered in 2022 and subsequently evaluated in 2024 both stages allowed for obtaining additional information about the resource and advancing its technical definition before entering the development phase. Contracting the services necessary to construct and complete the wells now marks a new operational step. The project envisions a configuration based on four underwater wells, from which the gas will be extracted and subsequently connected to the infrastructure planned to transport the production.

This architecture reveals one of the project’s central aspects how the Cronos will partially utilize existing facilities outside of Cyprus. Instead of developing the entire processing and export chain from scratch, the plan envisions connecting Cypriot resources with existing infrastructure in Egypt. This approach creates an energy corridor between the two countries and directly links production offshore of the Eastern Mediterranean with facilities capable of processing the gas and preparing it for export.

The gas from Cronos will travel from Cyprus to Egypt

Once extracted, the gas will be transported by a underwater gas pipeline from Cyprus to Egypt the hydrocarbon is scheduled to pass through the Zohr facilities for processing. Afterward, the supply can be directed to the terminal LNG from Damietta where it will be liquefied. By considerably reducing its volume through this process, the gas can be loaded onto LNG carriers and transported to international markets.

The configuration connects three segments of the same energy chain how the offshore production in Cyprus, processing in Egypt, and export as liquefied natural gas (LNG), the development of Cronos is thus linked to both upstream operations and the regional LNG and transport infrastructure. Leveraging existing facilities can also reduce some of the construction work that would be necessary to establish an independent processing and export chain from Cyprus. The project therefore relies on regional assets to transport the resource from the subsurface to consumer markets.

Europe is among the main destinations planned for this LNG, in this context, Cronos is integrated into a network of gas projects in the Eastern Mediterranean that seeks to connect new marine resources with international markets through the infrastructure available in the region.

Cronos is scheduled for production in 2028

According to the plans announced for the project, Production should begin in 2028 once the plateau phase is reached, Cronos could produce around 500 million cubic feet of gas per day that volume is approximately equivalent to 2.8 million tons of LNG per year, taking as a reference the planned production and its subsequent transformation for export.

TotalEnergies Eni’s partner in Block 6 will market the 50% of the volume associated with development, the participation of both companies connects the exploitation of the field with commercial networks capable of placing the supply in different markets.

Before reaching that stage, however, it will be necessary to construct the underwater wells and complete the infrastructure required to transport the gas. It is precisely at this phase that the contract of Halliburton it acquires technical relevance, by concentrating a large part of the services necessary to build and prepare the wells that will feed the production system.

Automation and remote operations enter the campaign

Another component of the contract will be the incorporation of LOGIX automation and remote operations these tools are part of the growing digitalization of drilling and well construction activities in offshore projects. In a campaign carried out in ultra-deep waters, automating certain procedures can lead to more uniform execution and facilitate coordination among the specialists involved at each stage. Remote operations, meanwhile, allow certain monitoring and support functions to be transferred from the offshore installation to onshore centers.

These capabilities are complemented by directional drilling, necessary to control the well’s trajectory to reach the defined subsurface targets. Drilling fluids perform equally essential functions, such as transporting cuttings to the surface and helping to control conditions within the wellbore. Cementing contributes to structural integrity during construction, while testing provides information on well performance. Finally, coiled tubing operations allow for various interventions using a continuous pipe that can be run directly into the wellbore.

The awarded package therefore encompasses distinct but complementary functions, this integration explains why the contract goes beyond the scope of a conventional drilling service and covers a significant portion of the technical cycle required before a subsea well can be brought into production.

Eastern Mediterranean expands its offshore gas activity

Cronos also reinforces the importance of Eastern Mediterranean as an area for offshore natural gas development discoveries off the coast of Cyprus, combined with Egypt’s existing energy infrastructure, have opened new possibilities for developing resources through regional connections. In this scenario, the relative proximity of producing fields, subsea systems, processing plants, and LNG terminals allows for the evaluation of models that leverage existing assets. For operators, this regional integration can become a key factor in defining how to bring deepwater reserves to market.

At the same time, the activity generates demand for oilfield services companies capable of working under complex marine conditions. Well drilling, automation, cementing, testing, and remote operations are among the capabilities required before connecting new discoveries to production systems. Halliburton believes the integrated model applied at Cronos could be used in future offshore campaigns. This possibility will depend on the progress of other projects and the decisions operators make regarding new deepwater developments in the region.

Cronos connects underwater drilling, gas pipelines and LNG

The field’s development demonstrates how an ultra-deepwater gas discovery can be integrated into an energy chain spanning multiple countries and facilities. The four planned wells are the starting point. From there, production will travel through subsea infrastructure to Egypt for processing and eventual liquefaction.

For Eni and TotalEnergies, this configuration offers a route to bring gas from Block 6 to market, for Halliburton, the contract represents a multi-year campaign in which it can deploy several of its service lines within a single project.

Looking ahead to 2028, the construction and completion of the wells will be a key step toward achieving the planned start of production. If the schedule progresses as planned, Cronos will incorporate a new flow of gas from the Eastern Mediterranean, connected to Egypt’s LNG infrastructure and providing access to international markets.

Source: Offshore Energy

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