Norwegians to invest €872 million in new gas field

OMV Norge and its partners have submitted the plan for development and operation (PDO) for the Berling gas field, previously known as Iris Hades, to Norway’s Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.

(L to R) Odd Kjørholt (DNO), Lars Drage (OMV), Knut Egil Mauseth (OMV) , Minister Terje Aasland, Randi Elisabeth Hugdahl (Equinor) and Jan Peter Kårbø (Equinor). Photo: Margrete Løbben Hanssen / OED
(L to R) Odd Kjørholt (DNO), Lars Drage (OMV), Knut Egil Mauseth (OMV), Minister Terje Aasland, Randi Elisabeth Hugdahl (Equinor) and Jan Peter Kårbø (Equinor). Photo: Margrete Løbben Hanssen / OED

The Berling field, which stretches across three licenses with aligned ownership interests (PL644, PL644B and PL644C), will be developed as a subsea tieback to the Åsgard B platform located some 20 kilometers away.

Total investment in the development is estimated at approximately NOK 9.1 billion (€872 million).

The expected recoverable reserves are estimated at around 45 million oil equivalents, most of which is gas. The planned start of production is in 2028.

“The Berling development is an important and large industrial project for the country. The resources in the underground are worth approximately 68 billion at today’s oil and gas prices,” said Norway’s Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland“Developments such as Berling provide great value to the community, jobs in Norway and energy to our allies in Europe. At the same time, existing infrastructure is being utilised.”

In addition, DNO Norge just acquired an additional 10 per cent stake in the Berling field development from Sval Energi. Following the acquisition, DNO holds a 30 per cent interest in the discovery, with operator OMV Norge and Equinor Energy retaining 30 per cent and 40 per cent interests.

OMV Norge in mid-Ferbruary received consent from Norway’s Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) for exploration drilling of a pilot hole in the Norwegian Sea.

The company recently awarded a contract for the use of the Transocean Norge semi-submersible rig for the drilling of three development wells for the project, two exploration wells and one optional slot.

TechnipFMC is in charge of providing front-end engineering and design (FEED) for the subsea production system (SPS & SURF) for the field.