Norwegian oil and gas company Vår Energi has made an oil discovery at Ringhorne Nord in the North Sea, while drilling the exploration well with Odfjell Drilling’s Deepsea Yantai semi-submersible rig.
The discovery was made in wells 25/8-23 S and 25/8-23 B, north of the Ringhorne Øst field, 200 kilometers northwest of Stavanger.
Preliminary calculations indicate the size of the discovery at between 2 and 3.7 million standard cubic metres of recoverable oil equivalent (Sm3 o.e.). This is the equivalent of 13-23 million barrels, according to Norwegian Offshore Directorate.
The licensees are considering a tieback of the discovery to existing nearby infrastructure.
These are the first exploration wells in production license 956, which was awarded in 2018, and was drilled by the Deepsea Yantai drilling rig.
The Deepsea Yantai is a harsh environment semi-submersible drilling rig able to operate at - 22℃. It can operate at a water depth of up to 500 meters and drill wells down to a depth of 8000 meters. It is owned by CIMC Raffles and managed by Odfjell Drilling.
The license 956 is operated by Vår Energi with 50% working interest, together with partners Aker BP 20%, Sval Energi 15%, and Harbour Energy 15%.
Vår Energi has recently conducted exploration activity in the area, including the drilling of two exploration wells in production licence PL 917 in the Hubert and Magellanprospects.
Vår Energi operates the Balder and Ringhorne Øst fields.
According to Norwegian Offshore Directorate, the results of Vår Energi's exploration activity are important for future area development and the lifetimes of the Balder and Ringhorne Øst fields.