COSL rig cleared to spud North Sea wildcat pair next month

July 9, 2025, by Melisa Cavcic

Norway’s state-owned energy giant Equinor has secured a drilling permit for two exploration wells in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea, which will be drilled with a semi-submersible rig owned by COSL Drilling Europe, an offshore drilling player.

The Norwegian Offshore Directorate has granted Equinor a drilling permit for the wellbores 34/8-20 S and 34/8-20 A in production license 554 E, which was awarded on February 17, 2023, and is valid until the same date in 2030.

Equinor is the operator of the license with a 40% stake, while its partners, Vår Energi and Aker BP, hold a 30% interest each. The drilling of the wildcat wells, which is slated to begin in August 2025, will be undertaken with the COSL Innovator drilling rig.

The Norwegian state-owned oil and gas giant selected the rig in August 2023 for a two-year contract, starting in the second quarter of 2025. This deal comes with extension options for three additional years. The 2012-built COSL Innovator semi-submersible rig is designed to operate in water depths up to 750 meters.

Norway is setting the stage to witness more oil and gas exploration activity, as illustrated by the addition of new blocks in the award in pre-defined areas 2025 (APA 2025) round for oil and gas exploration compared to APA 2024.