Equinor, as operator, and its partners—Lundin Norway, Petoro, Aker BP, and Total SA—have accelerated the planned start-up schedule for Phase 1 production of Johan Sverdrup oil field to October from November.
“As we enter the final stretch of the project, we believe it is possible to start production up to a month earlier” than previously planned, said Anders Opedal, Equinor executive vice-president for technology, projects, and drilling.
Equinor is completing equipment and systems tests for a full-field center to operate as one installation. The schedule revision was announced shortly after the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate approved the start-up of the field (OGJ Online, Sept. 3, 2019).
During Phase 1, Johan Sverdrup will produce 440 million b/d when plateau production is reached by mid-2020, increasing to 660 million b/d after Phase 2 is scheduled to start in the fourth quarter 2022. The field is expected to produce oil for 40 years.