Aker BP discovers oil in Norwegian Sea, considers Skarv tieback

Aker BP ASA encountered hydrocarbons in the E prospect near Skarv field in the Norwegian Sea and will consider development through tieback to the Skarv FPSO.

Wells 6507/5-13 S and A, the ninth and tenth exploration wells in license 212, which is part of the Skarv unit, were drilled by the Scarabeo 8 semisubmersible drilling rig 6 km southwest of the FPSO. Water depth at the site is 383 m.

Well 6507/5-13 S was drilled to a measured depth of 4,022 m and a vertical depth of 3,998 m subsea. It was terminated in the Åre formation. The objective was to prove petroleum in reservoir rocks in the Fangst and Båt groups. The well also aimed to confirm the reservoir quality and delineate a potential discovery.

The well encountered a 14-m oil column in the Garn formation in 43 m of sandstone with moderate reservoir quality. The oil-water contact was encountered at 3,702 m subsea. The other formations in the Fangst and Båt groups were aquiferous.

The well also encountered hydrocarbons from the Early Cretaceous (Apt-Alba) in multiple sandstone layers with moderate reservoir quality. The oil-water contact was estimated at 3,414 m subsea. 

Well 6507/5-13 A was drilled to a measured depth of 3,607 m and a vertical depth of 3,465 m subsea. It was terminated in the Melke formation. The objective was to delineate the discovery in the Early Cretaceous. The well proved a reservoir of moderate quality, but the reservoir was saturated with water.

A preliminary estimate of the Garn formation discovery is 0.48-1.11 million std cu m of recoverable oil equivalent (3-7 MMboe). A minor discovery was also made in the Early Cretaceous estimated at 0.16-0.32 million std cu m (1-2 MMboe).

The wells were not formation-tested, but extensive volumes of data and samples were collected. The wells have been permanently plugged.