ConocoPhillips Norge is due to start a multi-year drilling campaign on the Greater Ekofisk area, offshore Norway, this Spring, as it seeks to continue production from the Ekofisk and Eldfisk fields for decades.
The campaign follows start up on the Ekofisk South development, which saw a new wellhead platform, 2/4 Z, installed, and the end of production on the 2/4 A platform, which was the oldest permanent platform in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea.
A new drilling rig, Seadrill's West Linus jackup, built at Jurong Shipyard in Singapore is, is due to arrive at the Ekofisk complex in May for a drilling program at Ekofisk 2/4 Z, which will last for several years, says ConocoPhillips Norge.
When the campaign is completed, 2/4 Z will have 36 wells, comprising 35 production wells and one well for drill cutting reinjection. Read more: A new era on Ekofisk - http://www.oedigital.com/component/k2/item/4309-first-oil-on-ekofisk-south
The jackup is a Gusto MSC CJ70-X150A design. West Linus is designed to operate in harsh environments, in water-depths down to 150 m with drilling depths down to 12,190 m.
ConocoPhillip's contracted the West Linus from May this year thu May 2019, with options to May 2023, on a US$375,000 day rate.
On the neighboring wellhead platform Ekofisk 2/4 M, Rowan Drilling's jackup drilling rig Rowan Norway will perform slot recovery on seven wells.
Mærsk Drilling's Mærsk Innovator jackup is in the process of completing the wells on the Ekofisk 2/4 V B seabed installation.
This installation has eight wells for injection of water into the reservoir, to maintain pressure. Later this year, Mærsk Innovator will start drilling production wells on Eldfisk 2/7 S.
A total of 35 new wells will be drilled over the next few years. In total the 2/7 S platform has 40 well slots. Four production wells and one well for reinjection of drill cuttings have been pre-drilled by Mærsk Gallant.
The Rowan Gorilla VI will also arrive in the spring. The drilling rig will plug wells on Ekofisk 2/4 A. When 2/4 A, or Alpha, was shut down in September 2013, this marked the end of 39 years of oil production. A total of 23 wells will be plugged on 2/4 A, the Nowegian North Sea's first permanent production platform. Read more: End of an era at Ekofisk - http://www.oedigital.com/component/k2/item/3989-end-of-an-era-for-ekofisk
In addition to the contracted drilling rigs, there will also be high levels of activity on two of the company’s permanent drilling rigs - Ekofisk 2/4 X and 2/4 K.
"The year will be very challenging for the well operations organisation," says David Forbes, Norway well operations manager. However, we are highly motivated to deliver the new wells on schedule and abandon the old wells efficiently. All our operations are executed to our high HSE standards."
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