German oil and gas company Wintershall Dea has made a discovery of gas, condensate and oil in an exploration well next to the Vega field in the North Sea, using Transocean’s Transocean Norge semi-submersible rig.
The Cuvette discovery was made in production license 248, which was awarded in 1999.
The well - 35/11-27 S - drilled 100 kilometers southwest of Florø, resulted in discoveries in four different formations, according to Norwegian Offshore Directorate (NOD).
The preliminary estimate of the size of the discovery in the Tarbert and Upper Ness formations is between 1.5 - 3.5 million standard cubic meters of recoverable oil equivalent (Sm3 o.e.). This corresponds to 9 - 22 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The preliminary estimate of the size of the discovery in the Upper Jurassic is between 1.1 – 2.6 million Sm3 o.e. This corresponds to between 7 - 16 million barrels of oil equivalent.
An additional interval in the Upper Jurassic was also encountered during the drilling operation.
An oil zone was also encountered in the Etive Formation. As of now, there is no preliminary volume estimate here.
The Transocean Norge rig drilled the well, three kilometers south of the Vega field, for the operator Wintershall Dea and its partners, Petoro and DNO.
Vega an oil, gas and condensate field comprising three subsea templates tied back to the nearby Gjøa platform.
The licensees are considering tying the field back to existing infrastructure in the area.
Cuvette is the latest Wintershall Dea-operated well to be drilled with the Transocean Norge rig in a period of high activity by the company. The rig has already drilled development wells in the Maria field in the Norwegian Sea, successfully appraised the Bergknapp and Adriana discoveries and drilled production wells on the Nova field in the North Sea.
During the rest of 2024 and 2025 it is scheduled to complete the Maria Phase 2 wells and to commence drilling of the Dvalin North development wells. It may also be used to drill additional wells for exploration and carbon storage licenses.