Chevron's Gulf of Mexico test a success

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SAN RAMON, Calif., March 1 (UPI) -- Chevron said a test at its St. Malo well in deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico yielded an oil flow rate of more than 13,000 barrels per day.

Chevron said it a production test of the St. Malo well with oil flow rates exceeding 13,000 barrels of oil per day, the company said.

The U.S. supermajor is developing St. Malo together with the nearby Jack field. Both are in about 7,000 feet of water about 280 miles south of Louisiana.

Chevron said the test highlights its leadership position in developing deep-water reserves.

"The jointly developed Jack and St. Malo fields are expected to provide a major step-up in Chevron's production from 2014 and produce domestic energy for decades to come," Gary Luquette, president of Chevron's North American exploration and production company, said in a statement.

A floating production unit planned for the developments is designed to accommodate the production of 177,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. Chevron said it expected the Jack and St. Malo developments to produce 94,000 boe per day.

Chevron holds a majority stake in the project alongside a group of U.S. and European partners. The development comes as British energy BP faces a civil trial for its 2010 oil spill in the region, where witnesses testified the oil company was putting profit over protection.