Barents Sea Drillers Strike Gas, Expected Oil

Eni, with partners Lundin and Det Norske hoped for oil but discovered gas & condensate at the Salina structure in western part of the Barents Sea.

Det norske oljeselskap ASA earlier announced the discovery of hydrocarbons in the Salina prospect in production license 533, operated by Eni.

The well confirmed the existence of gas in two reservoir units; in the Cretaceous Knurr formation, and in the Jurassic Stø formation. The well was drilled to a total depth of 2,371 meters below sea level, down to Triassic rock in the Snadd formation.

The operator’s estimate of recoverable gas volumes is between six and eight billion cubic meters (40-50 million barrels of oil equivalents). With the existing infrastructure for gas processing and transport in the Barents Sea, the gas discovery is not considered commercial by Det norske.

 Det norske specialize in extracting petroleum resources on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) and holds a 20 percent interest in the license, which was awarded in the 20th Licensing Round.