Norwegian energy company Equinor and its partners plan to extend the oil production from the Statfjord Area in the Norwegian part of the North Sea towards 2040. The area has been in production for 40 years.
Based on the extensive mapping of the underground the remaining potential of the Statfjord area is still considerable, Equinor said Thursday.
Equinor and its partners have resolved a new, business plan for the Statfjord main field and satellite fields.
Vår Energi, Spirit Energy Norway, Petoro, Idemitsu Petroleum Norway, and Wintershall Dea Norge are partners in the Statfjord area, Equinor is the operator.
The Statfjord area covers the following licenses: Statfjord Unit (or Statfjord main field), Statfjord Øst Unit, Statfjord Nord (PL 037) and Sygna Unit. The Statfjord Unit development covers the big Statfjord A, B, and C concrete gravity base platforms, the other fields are subsea developments tied back to the main field platforms. Equinor is the operator for all licenses.
100 new wells by 2030
"Statfjord A was scheduled for decommissioning in 2022, however, the field life will now be extended to 2027. The lives of Statfjord B and C will be extended beyond 2035, continuing to create high value from the field and securing profitable jobs,” Equinor said.
The new plan calls for extending Statfjord production by maturing new reserves for recovery and making necessary upgrading of the platforms, strongly increasing field activity, Equinor said.
Around 100 new wells will be drilled towards 2030. The wells will help reach an ambition of maintaining the current production level from Statfjord beyond 2025. This will require considerable investments and upgrading of the three platforms, Equinor added. The company did not share the expected cost of the whole operation.
Arne Sigve Nylund, Executive Vice President for the Norwegian continental shelf in Equinor: “We have a responsibility to society and our owners for realizing the full value potential from our producing fields on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS). Statfjord is a world-class oil and gas field that has supplied the world with huge amounts of energy.
"The field has created high value and been a cornerstone in the development of the entire Norwegian petroleum industry. It is, therefore, a pleasure to see that we, together with our partners in the area, can extend the production period and continue the value creation.”