Significant Gas and Condensate Discovery in the North Sea

Statoil has made a significant gas and condensate discovery in the King Lear prospect in the southern part of the Norwegian North Sea along with its partner Total E&P Norge.

Exploration well 2/4-21 drilled by the jack-up rig Maersk Gallant in production licences 146 and 333, has proven a 48-metre gas/condensate column in the main bore 2/4-21 and an additional 70-metre gas/condensate column in the side-track 2/4-21A. Statoil estimates the total volumes in King Lear to be between 70 and 200 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalent (o.e.).

Gro Gunleiksrud Haatvedt , senior vice president exploration Norway in Statoil. “Statoil had earlier defined King Lear as a potential high-impact prospect. The drill results confirm our expectations and show once again that the Norwegian continental shelf still delivers high value barrels,” says Gro Gunleiksrud Haatvedt , senior vice president exploration Norway in Statoil.

Data acquisition is currently being finalised in the sidetrack. As King Lear is a high-pressure, high-temperature well, special attention is given to ensuring safe drilling operations. The King Lear discovery is an important contribution to Statoil’s corporate strategy of revitalising the NCS with high-value barrels.

“King Lear lies approximately 20 kilometres north of the Ekofisk field. It is encouraging to see that this part of the Norwegian continental shelf – home to the first commercial oil find in Norway – is still delivering significant discoveries,” says Haatvedt.

“This reinforces our faith in the exploration potential of the Norwegian continental shelf. Not only does it have a proud past, but also an exciting future,” she adds.

Statoil will plan for appraisal drilling of the discovery as well as exploration drilling on other interesting prospects in the licences.

Going forward, Statoil as operator will look into an optimal development solution for King Lear and evaluate if the discovery should be developed as a stand-alone or as a tie-in to infrastructure in the area. This area, normally considered an oil province, may on the basis of this discovery and other gas resources form the basis for future gas development.

Wells 2/4-21 and 2/4-21 A are the eleventh and twelfth wells drilled in production licence PL146. Well 2/4-21 was drilled to a vertical depth of 5,344 metres below sea level in 67 metres of water, while well 2/4-21 A was drilled to a vertical depth of 5,237 metres below sea level.

Statoil is operator for production licences PL146 and PL333 with an ownership share of 77.8%. The licence partner is Total E&P Norge (22.2%).

The King Lear discovery is the eighth high-impact* discovery made by Statoil over the last 15 months. The other high-impact discoveries are Zafarani and Lavani in Tanzania, Skrugard and Havis in the Barents Sea, Johan Sverdrup (formerly Aldous/Avaldsnes) in the North Sea, and Peregrino South and Pão de Açúcar (non-operated) in Brazil.

* High impact = > 100 million barrels of o.e. net for Statoil or > 250 million barrels o.e. in total.