Statoil has hired the Transocean Spitsbergen semisubmersible rig to drill a total of nine wells offshore the UK and Norway, in a US$113 million deal.
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From left: Ian Paterson (Transocean Drilling UK), Rannfrid Skjervold (Statoil) and Karl-Erik Johannessen (Transocean Norway Operations. Image from Statoil / Kjetil Eide |
The Transocean Spitsbergen will drill three exploration wells offshore the UK at the Mariner, Jock Scott and Verbier licenses. The exploration drilling campaign is planned to start in the summer, with a cost of some $18 million. The deal includes integrated drilling services such as fuel, casing running, ROV, slop treatment and cuttings handling, says Statoil.
“We believe that the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) still presents exciting opportunities. Securing this rig will enable us to fulfil our exploration ambitions of testing potential along the underexplored margins and more mature areas of the basin, in addition to near-field potential at Mariner. This year will see our most active exploration campaign for Statoil in the UK since repositioning in 2011 and we look forward to testing our three diverse prospects,” says Jenny Morris, vice president Exploration UK.
Mariner, one of the largest projects currently under development in the UKCS, is estimated to have 250 MMbbl of recoverable reserves from the initial development. Those estimates exclude near field exploration potential.
Statoil says that Mariner’s topsides modules will be installed in the field some 150km east of the Shetland Islesthis summer. First oil is expected in 2018.
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The Transocean Spitsbergen, from Transocean. |
At Verbier, in Blocks 20/5b and 21/1d, estimated prospective resources are expected to be 162 MMboe. Statoil is expected to fund all costs at Verbier, up to $25 million, according to partner Jersey Oil & Gas.
Towards the end of 2017 or beginning of 2018, the Norwegian giant will mobilize the Transocean Spitsbergen for a six-well production drilling campaign on the Aasta Hansteen license, offshore Norway.
The $95 million contract includes integrated drilling services such as fuel, casing running, ROV, slop treatment and cuttings handling, plus mobilization-, demobilization and modification costs.
Aasta Hansteen consists of three separate discoveries: Luva, Haklang and Snefrid South. Together, the fields have estimated recoverable reserves of 47 Bcm of gas.
The gas field will be developed with a Spar FPSO platform, as the first on the Norwegian Continental Shelf and the largest in the world, says Statoil. Spar is a floating installation consisting of a vertical cylindrical hull moored to the seabed
Statoil’s plans include assembling the hull and platform deck in Stord this year, and towing the platform to the Norwegian Sea next year.
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