UK oil and gas company Baron Oil has decided to surrender the UK license P2478 to North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) following delays with the acquisition of 3D seismic data for the block, located in the Inner Moray Firth area of the North Sea.
Baron Oil said it faced ‘unavoidable and significant delays’ in acquiring seismic data as part of Phase A extension of the license.
The delays largely result from the continuous wind farm construction activities in the area, the company said.
All Phase A commitments have been fulfilled and there remain no further obligations beyond the statutory submission of a relinquishment report, Baron Oil said, adding that the license will be surrendered to the NSTA on March 31, 2024.
The P2478 license is administrated by Reabold Resources which holds 36% working interest, with partners Baron Oil 32% and Upland Resources with the remaining 32% working interest.
"Despite strenuous efforts by the license administrator on behalf of the joint venture, ourselves and the NSTA to establish a way forward for the license, we have reluctantly agreed that there is no clear pathway to acquiring the necessary 3D seismic and subsequently drilling an exploration well on P2478 in a timely fashion given the competing activities in the license area.
"In terms of further potential activity offshore UK, we continue to await the result of our 33rd Round of Licensing application,” said Jon Ford, Technical Director of Baron Oil.
The P2478 block contains the Dunrobin prospect, said to be one of the few remaining targets yet to be drilled in the UK North Sea with estimated gross mean prospective resources of the order of 100 MMbbl.