Rig: Transocean Searcher

NPD confirm Haribo prospect dry well

Edison Norge AS, operator of production licence (PL) 616, is in the process of completing the drilling of wildcat well 2/11-11. The well was drilled about seven kilometres southwest of the Valhall field and about five kilometres west of the Hod field in the North Sea. The primary exploration target for the well was to prove petroleum in Upper Cretaceous chalk rocks (the Hod formation). Well 2/11-11 encountered about 330 metres of reservoir rocks in the Hod formation with poor reservoir quality. The well is dry. Data acquisition and sampling have been carried out. This is the first exploration well in production licence 616. The licence was awarded in APA 2011. Well 2/11-11 was drilled to a vertical depth of 3388 metres below the sea surface and was terminated in the Hidra formation (Upper Cretaceous). Water depth at the site is 68 metres. The well will now be permanently plugged and abandoned. Well 2/11-11 was drilled by the Transocean Searcher drilling facility, which will now be laid up.

Dry well at Haribo prospect in Norway

The Haribo exploration well has been drilled to total depth without encountering hydrocarbons. The well will now be plugged and abandoned. Noreco Norway AS (“Noreco Norway”), part of Norwegian Energy Company ASA group, holds a 20% interest in the licence. Spudded on 21st June 2015 the well was drilled by the semi-submersible drilling rig Transocean Searcher on the Haribo prospect, which is located 10 km south west of the Valhall Field in the Norwegian part of the North Sea. The partners in Licence PL616 include Edison Norge (operator with 25%), Noreco Norway (20%), Concedo (20%), Lime Petroleum Norway (15%), North Energy (15%) and Skagen 44 (5%).

Haribo prospect spudded in Norway

Noreco Norway AS (“Noreco”) has announced that the drilling of the Haribo prospect in Norwegian licence PL616 has started. Noreco holds a 20% interest in the licence. The Haribo well (2/11-11) is being drilled by the Transocean Searcher semisub. The drilling period is expected to take approximately 45 days. The Haribo prospect is located 10 km south west of the Valhall Field in the Norwegian part of the North Sea. The predicted reservoir is chalk of Upper Cretaceous age in a depth of about 2900 meter. Noreco Norway estimates the prospect to contain 69 to 192 million barrels of oil gross on licence PL616 with a 42 per cent chance of success. These volume and risk estimates are in line with what Noreco has previously communicated to the market.

Edison set to spud new exploration well on PL 616

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has issued a drilling permit for wellbore 2/11-11 to Edison Norge AS. Wellbore 2/11-11 will be drilled from the Transocean Searcher drilling facility at position 56°12’11.75’’N and 03°23’26.53”E. The drilling program for wellbore 2/11-11 applies to drilling of a wildcat well in production licence 616. Edison Energy Norge AS is the operator with an ownership interest of 25 per cent. The licensees are Noreco Norway AS with 20%, Concedo ASA with 20%, Skagen 44 AS with 15%, North Energy ASA with 15% and Lime Petroleum Norway AS with 5%. Production licence 616 was awarded in 2012 (APA 2011). The area in this production licence is located in the southernmost part of the North Sea and consists of parts of boundary blocks 2/7, 10 and 11. The well will be drilled about 8 km south of the Valhall field. This is the first well to be drilled in the licence. The drilling permit is granted on the condition that all other permits and consents required by other authorities have been secured before the drilling activity commences.

BG comes up dry in North Sea

BG Norge AS, operator of production licence 373 S, is completing drilling of exploration well 34/3-5, located approximately five km southeast of the Knarr Field in the Northern North Sea, around 120 km West of Florø. The objective of well 34/3-5 was to prove petroleum in Early Jurassic reservoir rocks (Cook Formation). Well 34/3-5 encountered a gross Cook Formation interval of approximately 82m, of which 47m were good reservoir quality with traces of residual hydrocarbons interpreted. Extensive data acquisition and sampling has been carried out. The well is classified as dry. The well was the seventh exploration and appraisal well in production licence 373 S, which was awarded in APA 2005. The well was drilled to a total vertical depth of 4,253m below the sea surface (4,275m measured depth), and terminated in the Lower Jurassic Amundsen Formation. The water depth is 403 m. The well will now be permanently plugged and abandoned. The 34/3-5 well was drilled by the Transocean Searcher semi-submersible rig. The rig will be left in Kristiansund for approximately 2 months prior to commencing opeations in the North Sea where it will move on to drill well 2/11-11 in production license 616 where Edison Norge AS is the operator.

BG comes up dry with Strawberry wells

BG Group AS, operator of production licence 373 S, is in the process of completing the drilling of wildcat wells 34/3-4 S and 34/3-4 A. The wells were drilled about 5 kilometres east of the Knarr field in the northern part of the North Sea. The purpose of wildcat well 34/3-4 S was to investigate a large channel system in reservoir rocks in the Pleistocene. The well encountered a 250-metre thick channel system, about 50 metres of which was of very good reservoir quality. Traces of gas were encountered in two thin sandstone layers. The purpose of well 34/3-4 A was to prove petroleum in lower Jurassic reservoir rocks (the Cook formation). Well 34/3-4 A encountered about 110 metres of the Cook formation, 53 metres of which was sandstone with good reservoir quality and traces of gas. Data sampling and aquisition have been carried out in both wells. Both wells are classified as dry. These are the fifth and sixth exploration wells in production licence 373 S. Wells 34/3-4 S and 34/3-4 A were drilled to measured depths of 1607 and 4535 metres, respectively, and vertical depths of 1584 and 4321 metres below the sea surface, and were terminated in the Hordaland group in the Miocene and the Amundsen formation in the Lower Jurassic. Water depth at the site is 406 metres. The wells will now be permanently plugged and abandoned. Wells 34/3-4 S and 34/3-4 A were drilled by the Transocean Searcher drilling facility, which will now move on to drill wildcat well 34/3-5 S in the same production licence.

BG set to spud exploration well in Tampen area

BG Norge AS (“BG”) has received consent to drill exploration well 34/3-5. BG is the operator for production licence PL 373 in the Tampen area in the northern North Sea. The PSA has given BG consent to drill exploration well 34/3-5 in a prospect named Jordbær Sør. The well is to be drilled by the Transocean Searcher mobile drilling facility. Drilling is estimated to last for 66 days. Water depth at the site is 403 metres.

Drilling start-up on Gjøa

The Transocean Searcher drilling rig has started drilling the first of a total of 13 production wells on the Gjøa field in the North Sea. The rig will drill nine oil wells and four gas wells. "The first well to be drilled on Gjøa is an appraisal well in the northern segment," says vice president Kjetel Digre. “The information gathered here will be important when we are going to look at the overall plan for wells and drainage strategy for Gjøa.” Gjøa is located in the Sogn area. With this development, a new part of the North Sea is being opened for oil and gas production. The Vega and Vega South satellites will be developed with subsea installations and tied back to Gjøa. The total development of Gjøa, Vega and Vega South is currently the largest development project on the Norwegian continental shelf.

Gjøa drilling contract

As development operator, Statoil has signed an agreement with Transocean Offshore for drilling of production wells at the North Sea's Gjøa field. Valid for three years, the contract is worth around USD 427 million. The deal covers drilling of 13 wells, with options for a further three. The Transocean Searcher rig will drill the wells. First drilling is planned to start in October 2008. "It's important to have the big and important contracts in place in good time in relation to the implementation," says project manager Kjetel Digre. "We are therefore particularly pleased with the signing. The deal secures us a familiar rig with good results." Earlier this autumn Statoil signed an agreement for the construction of the platform deck and supply of subsea installations to Gjøa. The next big contract will be the building of the platform jacket for the semi-submersible production platform. Plans call for the Gjøa field to produce oil and gas from 2010. Total investment is estimated at around NOK 27 billion in 2006 money. Gjøa was proven in 1989. The field lies in blocks 35/9 and 36/7, around 70 kilometres north of the Troll field and 45 kilometres off the coast of western Norway. Reserves are estimated at around 40 billion cubic metres of gas and around 83 million barrels of oil and condensate. Gaz de France takes over as operator when the field comes onstream with a 30% stake. Other licensees are Petoro with 30%, Statoil (20%), Shell (12%) and RWE Dea (8%).

Transocean Searcher to Åsgard

Rig contractor Transocean Offshore has received a letter of intent from Statoil covering a charter for the Transocean Searcher drilling and completion unit, initially worth some NOK 300 million. Due to be placed by the Åsgard licence in the Norwegian Sea, this job involves drilling three wells through the new Q subsea template on the Smørbukk South deposit. Currently working on Statoil’s Sleipner fields in the North Sea, Transocean Searcher is due to mobilise on Smørbukk South during the first half of this year.

Drilling on Alpha North

Drilling began on the first production well on the Statoil-operated Alpha North satellite in the North Sea's Sleipner West field in the early hours of 13 August. A gas and condensate field, Alpha North is to be developed with three or four wells and a subsea production system. The Transocean Searcher rig will be performing the drilling, which is expected to take about a year, reports Turid Eikebu Alfsen, head of the Sleipner drilling and well completion department. "The drilling programme has been well planned and builds on earlier experiences from Sleipner West," says Ms Eikebu Alfsen. Alfa North will be tied back to the Sleipner T gas treatment platform via an 18-kilometre pipeline. The gas which is rich in carbon dioxide will be passed through the T platform’s separation plant where the carbon dioxide is removed and pumped into the Utsira aquifer via the Sleipner A platform. The gas is then exported to Europe. Sleipner West is the only field in the world with such a separation plant. Technically recoverable reserves in Alpha North are put at roughly 13 billion cubic metres of gas and about 32 million barrels of condensate. The field is due to start producing on 1 October 2004. Statoil has 49.5 per cent of Alpha North, with ExxonMobil holding 32.24 per cent, Total 9.41 per cent and Norsk Hydro 8.85 per cent.

Drilling contract for Alpha North

Statoil and Transocean have entered into a new agreement for the use of the Transocean Searcher drilling rig on the Alpha North satellite in the North Sea's Sleipner West field. The contract comprises drilling and completion of three wells on the Alpha North structure, which will be tied back to the Sleipner A platform. Operations are expected to last for 270 days. The value of the contract is estimated at over NOK 200 million, excluding options. Plans call for the Transocean Searcher to start drilling work in the summer of 2003 once the rig has finished work on the Åsgard field in the Norwegian Sea. Alpha North is due to begin producing gas and condensate on 1 October 2004.

Searcher heading for Mikkel

Operator Statoil has awarded Transocean the contract to drill and complete wells on the Mikkel field in the Norwegian Sea. The contract, which includes the drilling and completion of three wells, is valued at around NOK 150 million, reports Kjell Herigstad, special adviser in the production services unit. The work will be carried out from the Transocean Searcher rig starting in September 2002 and is expected to take 140 days. The Mikkel field lies 37 kilometres south of the Åsgard field, where Transocean Searcher has been carrying out drilling and completion operations since 1996. Statoil is exercising its option in the Åsgard drilling contract to extend the work to include the Mikkel field.