Norwegian Petroleum Directorate News

Esgian has published its Week 49 Rig Market Roundup highlighting new drilling activity in the North Sea and a new licensing deal in Morocco.Drilling Activity and DiscoveriesSerica Energy is continuing with plans for its four-well drilling campaign in the UK North Sea, scheduled for 2024 and early 2025. The campaign will be carried out using the semisubmersible COSLInnovator. All four wells are production wells. The first well in the campaign will be a sidetrack of an existing well (B1z) on the Bittern field.

Esgian has published its Week 48 Rig Market Roundup highlighting that new contract awards were revealed for a Velesto Drilling jackup, two Seadrill drillships and a Dolphin Drilling semisub. Meanwhile, Wintershall Dea is planning to drill a new carbon storage well in Norway.ContractsMalaysia’s Velesto Drilling has agreed on an extension of a contract with Carigali Hess Operating Company for another year and six months.Seadrill has secured a short-term contract for 12,000ft drillship West Vela in the US Gulf of Mexico with QuarterNorth Energy…

In the global quest for achieving net zero emissions and slowing down global warming, carbon capture and storage (CCUS) technology has emerged as an important solution. Among the notable projects being developed in the field is the Northern Lights offshore carbon capture and storage project in Norway, a country with long experience with offshore CO2 storage.The transition to a sustainable energy future requires innovative solutions that go beyond simply halting fossil fuel projects.

Marine minerals are coming under sharp focus offshore Norway. Analysts suggest it could be a $20 billion annual revenue industry by 2050, which is why many are taking an interest and developing the technology to make it happen. Marine mineral mining has been something of a slow burner in the wider marine world. It has some clear challenges, not least location and depth of these potential resources, but also concerns around its environmental impact.Yet it now appears to be coming into a distinctly sharp focus…

Norway's oil and gas reserves have made it one of the world's wealthiest countries but its dreams for deep-sea discovery now center on something different.This time, Oslo is looking for a leading role in mining copper, zinc, and other metals found on the seabed and in hot demand in green technologies.Norway could license companies for deep-sea mining as early as 2023, its oil and energy ministry told Reuters, potentially placing it among the first countries to harvest seabed metals for electric vehicle batteries…

Norway's preliminary production figures for November 2019 rose in November from the previous month, beating official forecast by 13.2%, said the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD).The average daily production stood at 2,016,000 barrels of oil, NGL and condensate in November, which is an increase of 235,000 barrels per day compared to October.Total gas sales were 10.0 billion Sm3 (GSm3), which is an increase of 0.6 GSm3 from the previous month.Average daily liquids production in November was: 1 711 000 barrels of oil, 277 000 barrels of NGL and 28 000 barrels of condensate.Oil production in November is 13.2 percent higher than the NPD's forecast…

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has announced the appointment of Ingrid Solvberg as Director for the Norwegian Sea and Barents Sea, replacing Bente Nyland.According to a note from NPD, Sølvberg was appointed by the King in Council on 11 October. The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy has not yet set the date for the transition.The director general position in the NPD is posted as a fixed term engagement of six years, with the option of an additional six-year period. Bente Nyland’s second term period will expire at the end of the year.She congratulates Ingrid Sølvberg on her new job saying: “This is one of the most exciting jobs in the petroleum activities. I’ve looked forward to going to work every single day.

Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) informed that candidates can now register for “Course for the industry" (Kurs for næringen) which will be held on 14 November in our offices in Stavanger. The registration deadline is 8 November.The course provides an introduction to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate’s roles and tasks, and how our work affects your working day in the oil and gas industry.This is a popular course that has received good feedback from the participants in the three previous courses, it said.Torhild S. Nilsen, the NPD’s assistant director Framework and finances, explains why we hold the course: “It’s important to have a good dialogue between the authorities and the industry players on petroleum resource management.

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) announced that it has just completed a successful data acquisition expedition on the Mohns Ridge in the north-western Norwegian Sea, using the Seabed Constructor vessel.According to the Norwegian government agency responsible for the regulation of the petroleum resources on the Norwegian continental shelf, during the four-week expedition, the NPD has made several discoveries of previously unknown sulphide deposits, and collected data covering large areas. These deposits include metals and minerals that are important in battery technology, wind turbines and mobile telephones.The Mohns Ridge is an oceanic spreading ridge that separates two tectonic plates…

For the next month, Jan Stenløkk will trade his office in Stavanger for the vessel "M/V Seabed Constructor" in the Norwegian Sea.On this voyage, the geologist will continue the task of mapping seabed minerals for the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate on behalf of the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy – which is responsible for managing the minerals."The voyage will go to the volcanic Mohns Ridge between Jan Mayen and Bjørnøya, a sea area that is still virtually unexplored. It’s exciting that the NPD has been given the task of exploring the geology and the deposits, as well as performing the mapping. We are now at the very beginning of work that could have a significant impact on Norwegian resources and industry in the future…

The offshore and onshore reliability data project by Norwegian Petroleum Directorate(NPD), OREDA goes digital with new collaboration to improve accessibility and efficiency for oil and gas industry reliability data, said DNV GL.Vast amounts of offshore and onshore reliability data are to be made available through Veracity as OREDA provides access to their new and updated electronic version through the marketplace on DNV GL’s data platform.For almost 40 years now, the OREDA consortium formed by several oil and gas majors and supermajors with worldwide operations has been collecting and exchanging offshore and onshore reliability data, with the main aim of improving safety, increasing availability and reducing maintenance costs.

The extent of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles outside Bouvet Island has now been clarified with the Continental Shelf Commission (CSC) in New York.The Commission’s recommendation is in line with Norway’s proposal submitted to the Commission in 2009 and revised in 2015.According to a press note from Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs led the work on the shelf proposal.NPD, which is the State’s authority charged with geotechnical mapping of the continental shelf, has been responsible for preparing the technical and scientific documentation required by the UN Convention on Law of the Sea.

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted consent to Equinor for the extension of production on Norne FPSO with associated facilities for the Norne, Urd and Skuld fields in the Norwegian Sea.Lifetime extension granted for FPSO is for four years to March 2026, as the operator eyes additional 132m barrels from Norwegian Sea field.In its application for extension, operator Equinor has described an improved drainage strategy for the Norne field and the nearby Urd and Skuld fields.The Norne, Urd, Skuld, Alve and Marulk fields are tied in to the Norne ship. The authorities approved an amended Plan for Development and Operation…

Offshore vessel owner ESVAGT says it has set its sights on growth opportunities in Arctic regions where an uptick in oil and gas production is expected in coming years. In the Barents Sea, for example, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate as recently as 2017 updated its evaluation of the area’s oil and gas reserves to over 17 billion barrels, a doubling compared to prior estimates.ESVAGT says it possesses the particular skillset and assets required for operations in the Arctic."It is on many levels challenging to work in the Arctic regions…

Norwegian multinational energy company Equinor Energy has made discovery containing up to 24billion cubic feet of gas in the Barents Sea. Two exploration targets were found, with the first containing between 10 and 20billion cubic feet, the other between one and four billion.The discovery’s profitability is currently unclear, said a statement from the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD)."Equinor Energy AS has completed the drilling of wildcat well  about 15 kilometres northwest of discovery well (Atlantis) and 370 kilometres north of Hammerfest. The well's primary exploration target was to prove oil in reservoir rocks from the Late Triassic Age (upper part of the Snadd formation)…

An oil tanker and a Norwegian navy frigate collided off Norway's west coast on Thursday, injuring eight people and triggering the temporary shutdown of a North Sea crude export terminal, Norway's top gas processing plant and several offshore fields.The frigate, which recently took part in a major NATO military exercise, was aground and tilting on one side, live television pictures showed. The Norwegian military was attempting to save the ship."We are working on stabilizing the vessel…

Swedish oil firm Lundin Petroleum expects to increase its resource estimate for the Alta discovery in Norway's Arctic region following a successful two-month production test.Finding significant oil reserves in the Norwegian Arctic has been challenging for oil firms, but Alta is among the exceptions along with ENI's Goliat field and Equinor's Johan Castberg discovery.Lundin and its partners are considering developing the discovery as a subsea field connected to a floating production and storage vessel…

Norway's independent oil firm Aker BP has agreed to buy stakes in 11 production licenses off Norway from French Total for a cash consideration of $205 million, the company said on Tuesday.The portfolio includes four discoveries with net recoverable resources of 83 million barrels oil equivalents based on estimates from the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), it added."With this transaction, we get access to new tie-back opportunities in the Alvheim and Skarv areas, we strengthen our resource base in the NOAKA area, and we increase our interest in exploration acreage near the Ula field," Ake

Oil firms are expected to drill 40-50 exploration wells off Norway this year compared to 36 wells drilled the previous year, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate said on Thursday.The Norwegian continental shelf still held an estimated 4 billion cubic meters (25.2 billion barrels) of oil equivalents in undiscovered petroleum resources, with two-thirds located in the Arctic Barents Sea, it added.Half of estimated undiscovered resources in the Barents Sea, however, are located north of the areas opened for petroleum activities, and it's unclear when oil firms can get access to them.(Reporting by N

Norway must identify potential offshore oil and gas reserves near its northern maritime border with Russia to better protect its economic interest in the remote Arctic region, energy minister Terje Soeviknes said on Wednesday. The two countries agreed in 2010 to split previously disputed areas of the Barents Sea between them, allowing each to exploit resources hidden beneath the seabed. An increase in drilling activity on the Russian side of the border should lead Norway to push its own agenda, the minister said. "We need to start the discussion about what to do in the far north. We see a development on the Russian side of the border, where they are drilling and likely will find oil," Soeviknes told an energy conference in Sandefjord.

Norway's Statoil will soon start drilling this season's most promising Arctic prospect, Korpfjell, after several disappointing wells in the Barents Sea, the company said on Monday. The majority state-owned company has stepped up drilling in the Barents Sea this year as the government seeks to attract more explorers to its Arctic waters to make up for declining North Sea output. The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate said on Monday Statoil's latest well in the Barents Sea, Gemini North, had found only minor volumes of gas and oil.

Sweden's Lundin Petroleum has found additional oil and gas near its Alta discovery in the Norwegian Arctic, the firm and the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate said on Tuesday.   "The total gross resource estimate for the Neiden discovery is between 25 and 60 million barrels of oil equivalents," Lundin Petroleum said in a statement.   Lundin is the operator of the well and has a 40-percent stake. Its partners are Japan's Idemitsu and DEA, the oil firm controlled by Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman, who have stakes of 30 percent, respectively. (Reporting by Gwladys Fouche, editing by Terje Solsvik)

Loading of tankers suspended, unclear when it will resume. Oil spilled into the North Sea during the loading of a tanker at Norway's Statfjord field on Thursday, operator Statoil said. The leak occurred at 0630 GMT during the loading of oil to a tanker from the Statfjord A platform via a loading buoy, Statoil said. Production at the platform was proceeding as normal, but loading of tankers has been suspended and it is unclear when it will resume, it added. "We are currently focusing on determining the cause of the leak and how much oil leaked," a spokesman told Reuters. "The leak has been located ... The Norwegian oil safety regulator was unable to provide further details. The Statfjord A platform can store up to 1.3 million barrels of oil.