Starting in the 1990s, the supermajor became a leader in US deep-water production via a fleet of TLPs pumping volumes from multi-hundred million barrel fields like Auger, Mars and Ursa.
However, as Shell´s exploration focus shifted to deeper waters, it proved too costly and technologically challenging to take its favourite development solution along for the ride.
When the company discovered the Great White field in 2002, near 8000-foot water depths meant the operator would need to look beyond the TLP for a development scheme.
While
