Norwegian oil giant Statoil says it will scale back its North Sea drilling programme next year as it looks to push into Arctic exploration.
The company will look to test the Hoop formation in the Barents sea, following recent discoveries in the region, as it extends its Arctic operations.
The region yielded a substantial find for OMV in September, with a 164million barrel discovery south of the Hoop formation at Wisting.
Statoil said it planned up to seven new wells in the Barents Sea, but would cut back its North Sea operations following the end of its appraisal campaign on the Joahn Sverdrup field. In all, it was targeting 20-25 wells next year.
“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,” said Statoil exploration director Gro Haatvedt.
“We will also pursue our exploration effort around existing infrastructure in order to discover timely high-value barrels for the new fast-track developments,” says Haatvedt.
“We are confident there are new, exciting opportunities to be explored on the Norwegian continental shelf going forward.”
Don’t miss Jeremy Cresswell’s detailed analysis of operations in the Atlantic in December’s issue of Energy, only in the Press and Journal.
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