Up to 7 Barents Sea wells among Statoil’s 2014 exploration plan

Statoil has announced plans to drill 20 to 25 exploration wells on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) in 2014; approximately two-thirds will be Statoil-operated. “Statoil’s exploration success rate on the Norwegian Continental Shelf has been over 70% the last five years, compared to an industry average of 49%,” said Gro G. Haatvedt, senior VP for NCS exploration, citing data from the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate for the past five years. “This confirms that our exploration strategy is paying off.”

Statoil will continue its exploration campaign in the Barents Sea in 2014, with five to seven new wells. The company will test the potential in the Hoop area and continue exploration drilling around the Johan Castberg discoveries (Skrugard and Havis). The company is a partner in the OMV-operated Wisting Central discovery in PL537 announced in September, which opened a new oil play in the Hoop area. In Q2 to Q3 of 2014, Statoil will drill the Atlantis and Apollo prospects in PL615, approximately 50 km north of PL537.

“The Apollo well will target the same geological formation as the Wisting Central well. We have a solid understanding of the subsurface and are well prepared to conduct safe and secure operations in this area of the NCS,” Mr Haatvedt said.

In the Johan Castberg area, the Skavl prospect is currently being drilled, to be followed by the Kramsnø and Drivis prospects in late 2013 or early 2014. “We still believe we can find more oil in the Johan Castberg area to make the field development project more robust. Currently we are evaluating several prospects around Johan Castberg for drilling in 2014,” he continued.

“In the North Sea, our plan is to further explore around the King Lear discovery and continue our hunt for barrels in the greater Utsira High area. We will also pursue our exploration effort around existing infrastructure in order to discover timely, high-value barrels for the new fast-track developments,” Mr Haatvedt stated.

In the Johan Sverdrup/greater Utsira High area, the Geitungen appraisal will be drilled in PL265 at the turn of the year, and Statoil will drill the Tastaveden prospect in PL628.

In 2012, Statoil made a significant gas and condensate discovery in the King Lear prospect. In 2014-2015, two new wells will be drilled in PL146/PL333. The Romeo prospect will test the potential north of King Lear, while the Julius prospect will both appraise the King Lear discovery and test additional potential south of the find.

In the Norwegian Sea, the focus next year will be to mature the deepwater exploration campaign in the Aasta Hansteen area, which is planned to start in 2015.

“We are confident there are new, exciting opportunities to be explored on the Norwegian Continental Shelf going forward,” Mr Haatvedt concluded. “We believe that our competence and experience throughout the value chain give us an advantage when prioritizing the right prospects, performing efficient exploration and ensuring value creation.”