North Sea operator unveils $571 million investment in oil & gas field

Norwegian oil and gas company OKEA has handed over a plan for the development and operation (PDO) of an oil and gas field in the North Sea off the coast of Norway, which will be tied back to an existing platform. This comes less than a month after a final investment decision (FID) was made for the project.

After signing a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) in December 2022 with DNO Norge to enter into the Brasse license (PL740) in the North Sea, OKEA completed the acquisition in August 2023 and took over the operatorship of the license. Currently, the PL740 partnership consists of OKEA (operator 39.2788%), DNO Norge (39.2788%), Lime Petroleum (17%), and M Vest Energy (4.4424%). The FID for the Brasse project, to be renamed Bestla upon approval of the PDO, was taken in April 2024.

According to Rex International’s Lime Petroleum, a ceremony to officially submit the PDO to Norway’s Ministry of Energy was held on Tuesday, April 30. This PDO envisages a NOK 6.3 billion (about $571 million) investment for the Bestla field, which is estimated to contain 24 million barrels of oil equivalent gross in recoverable reserves. This project will be developed as a tie-back to the Brage platform on the OKEA-operated Brage field.

Lars B. Hübert, Chief Executive Officer of Lime, commented: “We are pleased to be in the partnership that has proposed a commercially viable development of the Bestla field, with a project breakeven at around US$40 per barrel. Besides synergies and economies of scale, the tie-back of Bestla to Brage will mean the extension of Brage field’s lifespan and potential unlocking of additional resources in Brage.”

The development plan for Bestla, located in the northern North Sea, 13 kilometers south of the Brage field, consists of a two-well subsea tie-back to the Brage platform, which will serve as the host facility for production, processing, and export. The field is anticipated to come on stream during the first half of 2027 and operate until 2031, with the potential for extension.

Furthermore, the plateau production is estimated at around 26,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) gross and is expected within the first year of production. The name Bestla, which originates from Norse mythology, is the name of Odin’s mother. The Brage unit partnership consists of OKEA (operator 35.2%), Lime Petroleum (33.8434%), DNO Norge (14.2567%), Petrolia Noco (12.2575%), and M Vest Energy (4.4424%).