Equinor begins additional Martin Linge drilling

Equinor commenced drilling of new wells at Martin Linge oil and gas field in the North Sea after a review showed that four gas wells drilled before the company took over operatorship of the field from Total in 2018 do not have enough barriers for safe production. Petoro carried out an independent assessment of well barriers that support the operator's view.

“The wells are considered safe as they are now, but we will keep them plugged and under continuous monitoring until we have reduced the pressure in the formation by producing from other wells,” said Geir Tungesvik, acting executive vice-president for technology, projects, and drilling.

“Our number one priority is to ensure safe start-up of the field. We will therefore plan to drill up to three new gas wells in addition to the two remaining wells from the plan for development and operation for the field to produce as originally planned,” he said.  

Martin Linge field lies 42 km west of Oseberg in water depth of 115 m. The main reservoir is structurally complex and contains gas and condensate at high pressure and high temperature. The field is scheduled to come on stream at the end of this year.

The costs for drilling up to three new wells total about 2 billion kroner. The Maersk Intrepid drilling rig recently started operations following an April contract award (OGJ Online, Apr. 30, 2020).  The Martin Linge plant is designed for a mixture of oil and gas and needs gas wells that produce at a certain rate for start-up and production.    

Equinor is the majority shareholder and operator of Martin Linge (70%) with partner Petoro (30%).