Italy's Eni said it has started production from the Vandumbu field in Block 15/06 through West Hub N’Goma floating production, storage and offloading unit (FPSO).

Block 15/06 is located approximately 350 kilometers northwest of Luanda and 130 kilometers west of Soyo, Angola.

Eni said first oil from the Vandumbu field was achieved in late November, three months ahead of schedule.

This, along with the early December startup of a subsea multiphase boosting system (SMBS), is boosting the oil production from Block 15/06 by 20,000 barrels of oil per day via West Hub’s N’Goma FPSO.

The Vandumbu ramp-up is expected to be completed in Q1 2019, to achieve a total production of about 170,000 barrels of oil per day and further extending the production plateau, Eni said.

The two startups mark a further step in the phased and clustered development strategy that Eni has adopted for Block 15/06, and which has allowed the start-up of eight fields since November 2014, when production from West Hub started from the Sangos field.

Block 15/06 is developed by a joint venture formed by operator Eni (36.84 percent), Sonangol P&P (36.84 percent) and SSI Fifteen Limited (26.32 percent).

Eni also announced on Monday a new oil discovery in the Afoxé exploration prospect located in the southeast area of Block 15/06. The Italian oil and gas company plans to drill up to four new exploration wells in Block 15/06 during 2019.