Aker BP hits pay in North Sea well

Norwegian oil company Aker BP has made an oil and gas discovery northwest of the Bøyla field in the North Sea offshore Norway. 

Aker BP, the operator of production license 869, has concluded the drilling of wildcat well 24/9-14 S and a horizontal appraisal well, 24/9-14 A in the Froskelår Main prospect, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) said on Tuesday.

Appraisal well 24/9-14 A was drilled 2650 meters northeast of wildcat well 24/9-14 S. The wells were drilled about 4 kilometers northwest of the Bøyla field and 225 kilometers west of Stavanger.

The objective of wildcat well 24/9-14 S was to prove petroleum and the reservoir potential in reservoir rocks (injectites) in the Eocene (Intra Hordaland group sandstones). The objective of well 24/9-14 A was to investigate the lateral extent, as well as the reservoir potential of the injectites.

Wildcat well 24/9-14 S encountered a total gas column of 30 meters, and a total oil column of 38 meters in the Hordaland group in sandstone layers (injectites) totaling 35 meters, mainly with very good to excellent reservoir properties. The sandstones are interpreted as being remobilised sand from the Heimdal and Hermod formations in the Palaeocene which are injected into the overlying Hordaland group. The gas/oil contact was observed in the well. The oil/water contact was not observed, as the logs showed oil down to the situation.

Appraisal well 24/9-14 A, which was drilled horizontally, encountered several gas-bearing and oil-bearing injectite zones totalling 540 meters, with many sandstone layers with variable reservoir properties, mainly from good up to excellent. Here too, the sandstone layers are interpreted as being injected sands in the Hordaland group with variable quality and thickness. The gas/oil and oil/water contacts are as in the wildcat well.

Tying into existing infrastructure

According to the NPD, preliminary estimates place the size of the discovery between 10 and 21 million standard cubic meters (Sm3) of recoverable oil equivalents. The nearby 24/9-3 (Gamma) oil discovery can be viewed as being a part of this discovery. Part of the discovery may extend over to the UK sector. The licensees will consider tying the discovery into existing infrastructure in the Alvheim area.

The wells were not formation-tested, but extensive volumes of data have been acquired and samples have been taken. These are the first and second exploration wells in production license 869, which was awarded in APA 2016.

The 24/9-14 S well was drilled to respective vertical and measured depths of 2097 and 2252 meters below sea level, and was terminated in the Sele formation in the Palaeocene. The 24/9-14 A well was drilled horizontally in the Hordaland group in the Eocene to respective vertical and measured depths of 1847 and 4398 meters below sea level.

Water depth at the site is 120 meters. The wells have been permanently plugged and abandoned.

The wells 24/9-14 S and 24/9-14 A were drilled by the Saipem-owned Scarabeo 8 drilling rig, which will now drill a combined wildcat and test production well, 24/9-15 S, in production license 340, where Aker BP is the operator.

Evy Glørstad-Clark, SVP Exploration in Aker BP, commented: “The exploration success at Froskelår Main is an encouraging result of a long -term strategy to unlock the exploration potential in the Alvheim area. This strategy has involved extensive data acquisition and detailed technical analysis.

“In parallel, we have been expanding our acreage position in the area through licensing rounds and business development activities. The Froskelår Main discovery represents a significant addition to the resource base in the Alvheim area. The discovery also illustrates the significant resource potential yet to be uncovered on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.”