Norway’s state-owned energy giant Equinor has secured a drilling permit for operations in the North Sea on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), which will be conducted with a semi-submersible rig owned by COSL Drilling Europe , an offshore drilling contractor.
The Norwegian Offshore Directorate has granted Equinor a drilling permit for the wellbore 34/10-56 S in production licence 050 HS , which is valid from April 11, 2012, up to September 10, 2031. The drilling operations are scheduled to begin in June 2026.
Equinor, as the operator of the license, owns a 70% interest, while its partner, Petoro, holds the remaining 30% stake. The permit comes shortly after the Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority (Havtil) granted the company consent for exploration drilling in block 34/10 in the North Sea.
The well will be spud with COSL Drilling Europe’s COSL Innovator drilling rig, which Equinor booked in August 2023 for a two-year contract starting in the second quarter of 2025.
The rig deal entails extension options for three additional years. The 2012-built COSL Innovator semi-submersible rig is designed to operate in water depths of up to 750 meters.
Equinor is actively increasing its oil and gas output, as demonstrated by the start-up of production from a subsea tie-back development in the Norwegian North Sea.