Norwegian Energy Co. ASA (Noreco), to be renamed BlueNord ASA following a shareholders meeting in May, will partner with Semco Maritime A/S to jointly investigate oil and gas opportunities, and has submitted a license application for acreage containing the Elly-Luke gas discovery in the Danish part of the North Sea.
With the application, the company will participate in the Danish Ministry of Climate, Energy, and Utilities' upcoming licensing mini-round. If successful in its application, BlueNord expects to carry out a preliminary technical review of Elly-Luke prior to any longer-term commitment, which is currently believed to hold potential to provide about 5 billion cu m of natural gas to Denmark and Europe, the company said.
BlueNord expects the license to be awarded late this year, with an initial study period of limited financial commitment through 2024.
The application is the company's first tangible step taken outside of its 36.8% non-operated ownership in the TotalEnergies Denmark A/S-operated Danish Underground Consortium (DUC), which holds four hubs containing 15 fields, four export pipelines, and related infrastructure.
The DUC is currently producing oil and gas from three operational hubs (Dan, Halfdan, and Gorm), of which BlueNord’s share was 26,700 boe/d in 2022. The fourth hub, Tyra, is being redeveloped and is set to start production in winter 2023-24, which will lead to a more than doubling of BlueNord’s net production to over 55,000 boe/d.