Uchenna Izundu
International Editor
LONDON, Jan. 16 -- Statoil ASA plans to spud a well on Aug. 1 and start production in December 2008 from its Alve gas-condensate field in the Norwegian Sea.
At its peak, Alve is expected to produce 4 million cu m/day of gas. The field's reserves are pegged at 6.78 billion standard cu m and 8.3 million boe of condensate.
The field's development will be phased in via a tieback to Statoil-operated Norne field using a single subsea template with four drilling slots. Statoil has informed the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy that it will spend about $310 million on Alve.
The development will exploit available capacity on the Norne production ship and in the Aasgard transport gas trunkline, said Jostein Gaasemyr, operations vice-president for Alve. Urd satellite field was tied back to Norne in 2005, and developing Alve requires some modifications to the Norne ship.
Alve lies in PL 159B and is 16 km southwest of Norne field in 390 m of water. Alve comprises the Garn, Not, Ile, and Tilje formations, with proven reserves lying in Garn and Not.
Statoil holds a 75% share in Alve. Other licensees are Danish Oil & Natural Gas 15% and Norsk Hydro AS 10%.
Contact Uchenna Izundu at [email protected].
