Offshore staff
STAVANGER, Norway –Wintershall and its partners have selected a development concept for the Maria field in the Norwegian Sea.
Maria, estimated to hold 130 MMbbl of oil and 2 bcm-plus (70 bcf-plus) of gas, will be connected to the Statoil-operatedKristin semisubmersible platform via two subsea templates, with injection water imported through a new 43-km (27-mi) pipeline from the Heidrun complex.
Aasgard B will supply lift gas via the Tyrihans (Kristin satellite) facilities, said Bernd Schrimpf, managing director of Wintershall Norge speaking at ONS. “There is no final investment decision yet from the partners, but we aim to submit a plan for development and operation to the authorities early in 2015, followed by start-up in 2018.”
This is the first time the company will take its own Norwegian shelf discovery into production, he added.
Wintershall has been one of the most successful companies in terms of exploration results offshore Norway over the past few years, and it plans to invest $2 billion in exploration and development through 2015, Schrimpf said.
Another recent find was the 120-230 MMboeSkarfjell field in the northeastern Norwegian North Sea, where there is capacity in surrounding infrastructure. This could be either a standalone or tie-in development. The partners have completed the screening phase, evaluating over 20 options – at least one of which appears to be economic (probably subsea). “We aim to produce this field as soon as possible,” he said.
In addition, Wintershall is a partner inBG’s Knarr development in the northern Norwegian North Sea, which holds 85 MMboe recoverable. The FPSO has left South Korea and is on its way to Norway.
Wintershall recently concluded a deal to increase its operated stake in theBrage field in the North Sea to 35.2%, subject to regulatory approvals. The field, developed by Norsk Hydro and previously operated by Statoil, currently produces 11,000-11,500 b/d of oil, Schrimpf said.
As the new operator, the company is currently drilling two new wells and has been looking at how to develop more oil compartments. One problem is that the platform was not located optimally over the center of the field, Schrimpf said, and some of the targets are 8,000-10,000 m (5 mi-6.2 mi) out.
The partners are therefore considering installing a subsea template on the north of the field for a potential Brage Nord tieback to the platform.
8/27/14
