Norwegian oil company Statoil Petroleum AS (Statoil) has received consent to use the Polar Pioneer semi-submersible drilling rig.
The consent, given by the Norwegian Petroleum Safety Authority, applies to permanent plugback of well 31/5-J-41 and sidetrack drilling of well 31/5-H-2 in the Troll field in the North Sea in production licence 085.
Water depth at the site varies from 313 to 318 metres.
The expected start-up is September 2013. The duration of the activity is estimated at some 4 months.
Polar Pioneer is operated by Transocean Offshore. The rig was built by Hitachi Zosen, Ariake, Japan.