NORWAY’S Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) has given the green light to StatoilHydro and Marathon to carry out exploration and development drilling with the semi-submersibles, Polar Pioneer, West Alpha and Deepsea Bergen.
StatoilHydro has received its approval to conduct exploration drilling of well 30/9-22 in the Oseberg area, licence 104, with the Polar Pioneer, a Transocean unit that has drilled a number of wells lately offshore Norway.
Water depth at the drillsite is some 95m (300ft). Drilling should have started by now and is expected to last for 49 days.
StatoilHydro has also been granted consent to conduct exploration drilling of the wells 30/3-10S and sidetrack 30/3-10A with the Seadrill-oprated West Alpha.
The task was scheduled to start as soon as West Alpha had completed exploration well 30/11-7. Again, drilling should be under way by now.
The drillsites are located 7km (four miles) south-east of Huldra, 11km (seven miles) east of Veslefrikk and 150km (94 miles) west of Bergen. Drilling activity is estimated to last 160 days.
Finally, Marathon’s consent is for the Odfjell Drilling unit Deepsea Bergen for production drilling on the Volund field on block 24/9, in the Heimdal area, which it operates.
The drillsite is 10km (six miles) south of Marathon’s Alvheim asset.
The plan is to drill three production wells and one water-injection well. Drilling activities are scheduled to last about 150 days.