Det norske to scrap Vette field development plans

Following a decision to decommission its Jette field in Norway, after only three years in production, Det norske, a Norwegian oil and gas company, is now contemplating scrapping the development plan for Vette (Bream), another oil field located offshore Norway.

The company bought its stake in the North Sea-located field through the acquisition of Premier Oil’s Norwegian business in December 2015, for $120 million. 

Premier Oil had been in a position to submit a development approval documentation in early 2015 for Vette project, formerly known as Bream. However the company at the time said that it would postpone the final investment decision until the end of 2015, citing the sharp reduction in the oil price and the potential cost savings it might negotiate. Premier had envisioned the field would be developed via a floating production storage and offloading unit.

This did not materialize as Premier sold all of its Norwegian business to Det norske at the end of the year, and it will not materialize judging by the statement Offshore Energy Today obtained from Det norske’s spokesperson.

“Unfortunately, we did not succeed in establish good enough economy in any of the two stand-alone projects we have been looking at on this field. Low oil price in combination with a lower potential in the reservoir is the main reason for our conclusion of closing down the project. The final decision of closing down the project will be taken together with the other partners in the license,” Det norske spokesperson said.

Det norske is the operator of the project with a 50% stake, with Kufpec (30%) and Tullow (20%) being the partners.

Offshore Energy Today Staff