Det Norske Gets Green Light to Drill Wildcat in PL 414, Offshore Norway

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted Det norske oljeselskap ASA a drilling permit for well 25/6-4 S, cf. Section 8 of the Resource Management Regulations.

Well 25/6-4 S will be drilled from the Songa Delta drilling rig at position 59°41’10.27’’N 02°53’01.23’’E after the facility has completed its five-year classification at the Coast Center Base (CCB) at Ågotnes outside Bergen.

The drilling programme for well 25/6-4 S applies to the drilling of a wildcat well in production licence 414. Det norske is the operator with a 40 per cent ownership interest. The other licensees are Faroe Petroleum Norge AS, Bayerngas Norge AS and Norwegian Energy Company ASA (Noreco) with 20 per cent each.

The area in this licence consists of parts of blocks 25/3, 5 and 6. The well will be drilled in the central part of the North Sea about 20 kilometres southeast of the Frøy field and 37 kilometres northeast of the Heimdal field.

Production licence 414 was awarded on 16 January 2007 (APA 2006). This is the first well to be drilled in the licence area.

The semi-submersible drilling facility Songa Delta is owned by Songa Offshore.  Songa Delta is a third-generation mobile drilling facility of the Ocean Ranger type, commissioned at Rauma Repola in Finland in 1981. The facility has been modified a number of times, and is registered in Norway with Det Norske Veritas (DNV) as classification society.

The permit is contingent upon the operator securing all other permits and consents required by other authorities before commencing drilling activities.

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Offshore Energy Today Staff, December 8, 2011; Image: Songa Offshore