ACCENT ON NORTH SEA FIELD DEVELOPMENT DIVERTS FUNDS FROM EXPLORATION, APPRAISAL

Industry's commitment to field development in the North Sea is diverting money from exploration and appraisal programs there. Further strains are placed on exploration budgets of companies that have decided to move into the former Soviet Union, says Arthur Andersen & Co., London. The analyst predicts a slide in exploration and appraisal g in the, U.K. and Norwegian North Sea this year, although activity off Netherlands should increase.

Jan. 19, 1993

2 min read

Industry's commitment to field development in the North Sea is diverting money from exploration and appraisal programs there.

Further strains are placed on exploration budgets of companies that have decided to move into the former Soviet Union, says Arthur Andersen & Co., London.

The analyst predicts a slide in exploration and appraisal g in the, U.K. and Norwegian North Sea this year, although activity off Netherlands should increase.

Industry spudded 138 wells in 1992 off the U.K., a 26% drop from 1991 when 187 wells were drilled. At the beginning of last year, U.K. operators predicted they would drill 177-220 wells.

During 1992, 40 wells were spudded off Norway and three were reentered. Netherlands saw 99 wells spudded, while Ireland had two, Germany three, and Denmark 10.,

Despite growing interest in other areas such as Russia and Yemen, there is still a large degree of interest in explorations of Northwest Europe's continental shelf, Andersen said.

Discoveries are being drilled in frontier areas, and new technology is, allowing development of fields that were once shelved because they were not commercial at the time of discovery.,

Andersen data show industry has firm plans to. drill 177 wildcats, this year off Northwest Europe. There are contingent plans for another 42 wildcats.

The analyst is compiling a report on European offshore development drilling. Analyst Simon Roper recorded 117 U.K. offshore development wells during 1992, five off Norway, 17 off Netherlands, and 19 off Denmark.