Equinor (as operator) and partners ExxonMobil, Idemitsu and Neptune have discovered oil and gas in exploration well Echino South, 35/11-23, by the Fram field in the North Sea. Recoverable resources are estimated at 6-16 million standard cubic metres of oil equivalent, corresponding to 38-100 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The licensees in production licence 090 are Equinor Energy AS (45%), ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Norway AS (25%), Idemitsu Petroleum Norge AS (15%) and Neptune Energy Norge AS (15%). In September, Vår Energi signed an agreement to acquire ExxonMobil’s upstream assets in Norway, including this license. The transaction is expected to close later in 2019.
“We are making one of this year’s biggest discoveries in the most mature area of the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS), not far from the Troll field. This demonstrates the opportunities that still exist for value creation and revenue from this industry,” says Nick Ashton, Equinor’s senior vice president for exploration in Norway and the UK.
Adding considerably to the resources in this part of the North Sea, the discovery will probably be tied back to existing infrastructure. The discovery well was drilled to a vertical depth of 2947 metres below sea level, in water depth of 350 metres.
“After more than 50 years of geological surveys on the NCS, we are still learning something new and finding hydrocarbons where we previously thought there were none. By utilizing existing infrastructure, these resources may be recovered at good profitability and with low CO2 intensity,” says Ashton.
