Updated: Gjoa leak shuts down production

Engie E&P has found the cause of a gas leak that shut down production at the Gjøa field offshore Norway on Wednesday (21 June).

Gjøa. Image from Engie.

Engie identified the direct cause of the leak to be a fracture in a weld on a 3/4in pipe associated with a condensate pump.

“The leakage generated gas detection with following shutdown, depressurization of the facility and release of deluge,” says Engie on 22 June. “The condensate leak was stopped and the situation on board the Gjøa platform is under normalization. No leakages to sea took place. Production remains shut down.”

According to the company, a gas leak occurred at 20:01 local time on Wednesday at the ENGIE E&P-operated Gjøa field in the North Sea.

Gjøa is situated West of Florø on the West coast of Norway, and contains an estimated 40 Bcm of gas reserves.

“The situation quickly came under control, and no injuries are reported,” says Engie. “The gas leak has been stopped and the situation on board the Gjøa platform is under normalization. Production is currently shut down.”

The installation had 49 people on board when the incident occurred. Of those, 19 people were demobilized by helicopter and brought to a support center in Florø.

The company's emergency response organization is mobilized to coordinate all support required, and is in talks with the authorities.

Due to good reservoir management, Gjøa is set to produce 60 MMboe more than estimated at start of production. Yet, it still has capacity to handle extra resources, says Engie.

ENGIE E&P Norge is the operator with 30% stake. Partners include Norske Shell (12%), DEA Norge (8%), Petoro (30%), and Wintershall Norge (20%).