Norwegian exploration firm Equinor has been given the green light to drill the Sputnik exploration well in the Barents Sea.
Well 7324/6-1 will be drilled in about 449 meter water depth using Seadrill's West Hercules semisubmersible drilling rig in production licence 855, operated by Equinor. Drilling is expected to start in May 2019 and is estimated to last 33 days.
Sputnik is about 95 kilometers from Bjørnøya and 275 kilometers from Magerøya in Finnmark, Norway. The well is about 30 kilometers northwest of the Wisting discovery, and 6 kilometers from the nearest well, Gemini Nord, which was drilled in 2017, within the same license.
Seadrill Norway Operations was been awarded a contract for drilling two exploration wells for Equinor in the Barents Sea this year, using the West Hercules. The contract includes options for drilling nine additional wells.