Statoil tests N. Sea oil, plans other projects

Norways Den norske stats oljeselskap AS has gauged what appears to be the largest oil strike off Denmark in almost 20 years. License partner Enterprise Oil plc, London, said preliminary estimates indicate Statoils 1 Siri wildcat in Block 5604/20 of the North Sea is Denmarks biggest discovery since Skjold field was found in 1977. Meantime, Statoil announced plans to develop three discoveries near its Gullfaks field in the Norwegian North Sea as subsea satellites of Gullfaks A platform.

Jan. 1, 1996

2 min read

Norways Den norske stats oljeselskap AS has gauged what appears to be the largest oil strike off Denmark in almost 20 years.

License partner Enterprise Oil plc, London, said preliminary estimates indicate Statoils 1 Siri wildcat in Block 5604/20 of the North Sea is Denmarks biggest discovery since Skjold field was found in 1977.

Meantime, Statoil announced plans to develop three discoveries near its Gullfaks field in the Norwegian North Sea as subsea satellites of Gullfaks A platform.

Siri discovery

Statoils 1 Siri discovery flowed at a maximum rate of 5,988 b/d of oil, along with some associated gas, Enterprise reported. A Statoil official said the discovery, drilled to 2,200 m by the Deepsea Bergen semisubmersible in 60 m of water, is thought to hold reserves of 150 million bbl of oil.

Enterprise said the find is the first off Denmark outside the Viking graben area and confirms a new exploration model.

Although the strike is not near infrastructure, the Statoil official said it appears to be large enough to support a stand-alone development: We are looking at floaters.

License partners are operator Stat- oil 50%, Enterprise and Dansk Olie & Gasproduktion AS 20% each, and Denerco KS 10%.

Gullfaks satellites

Statoils South Gullfaks, Rimfaks, and the Delta discovery, with combined reserves estimated at 260 million bbl of oil, will be developed using a total of seven subsea templates and 23 wells.

Total development cost is estimated at 6.5 billion kroner ($1 billion). First oil production is slated for late 1998, with peak output of 125,000 b/d expected to coincide with declining flow from Gullfaks.

New processing modules will be installed on Gullfaks A platform, and processed oil will be stored and exported along with oil from Gullfaks A and B platforms.

Gullfaks A is a concrete platform with oil storage facilities in its base. Oil is exported in shuttle tankers, which receive production through loading buoys. Associated gas from the satellites will be reinjected.