Offshore staff
FORNEBU, Norway — Aker BP has sent plans for the Utsira High project in the central Norwegian North Sea to Norway’s Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.
This is one of four major new development projects the company and its partners have ushered forward today, in this case involving three separate subsea tiebacks.
Symra (formerly known as Lille Prinsen) will be produced via a connection to the Ivar Aasen platform. Solveig Phase 2 and Troldhaugen (ex-Rolvsnes) will export their production to the Edvard Grieg platform.
The Utsira High project will target recoverable resources of 124 MMboe, with drilling set to start in third-quarter 2025. Solveig and Troldhaugen should come onstream in first-quarter 2026, followed by Symra in first-quarter 2027.
Aker BP estimates the combined investments at about NOK 21 billion (US$2.13 billion. Partners are Equinor, OMV, Sval Energi and Wintershall Dea.
All three projects are covered by the temporary tax regime ratified by Norway’s Parliament (Stortinget) in 2020 during the initial COVID-19 crisis.
“We expect the Utsira High Project to add valuable production to our portfolio, as we already have the necessary processing capacity and export facilities in the area,” said Stine Kongshaug McIntosh, vice president of projects execution for Edvard Grieg and Ivar Aasen. “Further we provide new infrastructure in the northeastern part of the Grieg/Aasen asset area opening possibilities for further developments in the vicinity. The Troldhaugen development unlocks potential for future development of additional volumes in basement reservoirs.”
Troldhaugen will be Norway’s first offshore development of a reservoir consisting mainly of weathered and fractured basement rock (granite). Due to the density of the bedrock, oil deposits in this setting have not previously been seen as technically or economically viable for production.
However, if the granite is cracked and water has dissolved the minerals, it may be saturated with hydrocarbons, Aker BP said.
All producing fields on the Utsira High will be operated with electrical power from shore via a link from the newly onstream fifth platform at the Johan Sverdrup field center.
Edvard Grieg’s platform, which was designed and built with the capacity to host production from other fields nearby, currently receives the wellstream from the Solveig Field (phase 1) and handles test production from Troldhaugen.
The Ivar Aasen field development was coordinated with Edvard Grieg’s, and Ivar Aasen’s oil and gas are transported to the Edvard Grieg platform for final processing.
Licenses and partners:
- Symra – PL 167, 167B, 167C: Aker BP (50%, operator); Equinor (30%) and Sval Energi (20%)
- Solveig Phase 2 – PL 359: Aker BP (65%, operator); OMV (20%) and Wintershall Dea (15%)
- Troldhaugen – PL 338C: Aker BP (80%, operator) and OMV (20%)
12.16.2022
