PGNiG signs deal with Wellesley for Ørn field interest
PGNiG Upstream Norway AS agreed to purchase 40% interest in PL942 covering Ørn gas field in the Norwegian Sea, about 20 km from Skarv field, from Wellesley Petroleum AS.
PGNiG expects natural gas production attributable to its interest to average 0.25 billion cu m/yr from 2026-2035, the company said in a May 20 release.
AkerBP-operated Ørn field was discovered in 2019 (OGJ Online, Sept. 17, 2019). Development is expected to start in 2023, with production expected to begin in 2026.
According to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, the field's recoverable reserves are about 6.75 billion cu m natural gas, 0.17 million tonne oil, and 0.79 million tonne NGLs.
PGNiG Upstream Norway also holds an interest in AKerBP-operated Skarv (11.92%) and may use existing production infrastructure, including the Skarv FPSO, to reduce production start-up time and cost, as well as reduce CO2 emissions associated with field development.
AkerBP, as operator of Ørn, holds 30% interest. Equinor Energy also holds 30%. Acquisition of the remaining 40% from Wellesley Petroleum by PGNiG is subject to consents from, among others, the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.
Alex Procyk | Upstream Editor
Alex Procyk is Upstream Editor at Oil & Gas Journal. He has also served as a principal technical professional at Halliburton and as a completion engineer at ConocoPhillips. He holds a BS in chemistry (1987) from Kent State University and a PhD in chemistry (1992) from Carnegie Mellon University. He is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).
