Norwegian oil and gas firm OKEA has submitted a 6.3 billion Norwegian crowns ($571 million) plan to develop its Bestla oil and gas discovery in the North Sea, the country's energy ministry said on Tuesday.
The discovery, formerly called Brasse, is estimated to hold 24 million barrels of oil equivalent in recoverable reserves, which will be produced with a subsea installation connected to the Brage field platform.
Production is expected to start in the first half of 2027, with gross output seen peaking at 26,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed), OKEA said.
Norway, Western Europe's largest oil and gas producer, wants oil firms to continue developing new petroleum resources on its continental shelf, which critics say contradicts its international pledge to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
Norway's Minister of Energy Terje Aasland said the world will need oil and gas for many years to come and therefore it was important for companies to continue developing new projects.
"I hope I will get more plans for development this year, because the Norwegian continental shelf is still attractive and there are good projects remaining," Aasland told Reuters.
Both state-controlled Equinor and independent Aker BP have promised more projects to come, although the timing of new plans was not yet clear, the minister added.
Bestla will extend the commercial viability of the Brage facilities, allowing to get out more oil and gas from Brage, which has been in production since 1993, OKEA's partner DNO said on April 8.
DNO and OKEA each hold a 39.28% stake in Bestla. Other partners are Lime Petroleum with 17% and M Vest Energy with 4.42%.
($1 = 11.0256 Norwegian crowns)
(Reuters - Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis, editing by Terje Solsvik)