North Sea drilling ops on Equinor’s agenda for this month

January 16, 2026, by Melisa Cavcic

Norway’s state-owned energy giant Equinor has received a drilling permit from the Norwegian Offshore Directorate (NOD) for a wildcat well in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea.

The drilling permit has been granted for the wellbore 34/8-A-37 H in production license 120, which was awarded on August 23, 1985, and is valid until the same date in 2034. The license partners are Equinor (53.2%), Petoro (30%), ConocoPhillips Skandinavia (9.1%), and Repsol Norge (7.7%).

The 34/8-A-37 H wildcat will be drilled from Visund with a planned entry date in January 2026. Located in the northern part of the North Sea, northeast of the Gullfaks field, the Visund field lies in a water depth of 335 meters.

The field was discovered in 1986, and the plan for development and operation (PDO) was approved in 1996. The production from the Visund field started in 1999.

The field is developed with a semi-submersible, integrated accommodation, drilling and processing platform – Visund A – and a subsea facility in the northern part of the field.

Equinor recently obtained 35 licenses in Norway, thanks to the award in the pre-defined areas 2025 (APA 2025) round.