The Norwegian Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) has authorized the oil and gas exploration company Tullow Oil to drill an exploration well in the North Sea with the Borgland Dolphin semi-sub. The well 16/5-6 will be drilled in block 16/5 in the North Sea production licence 776, in a prospect called R
A joint venture between a Russian and Norwegian oil company, Rosneft and Statoil, has started drilling the exploration well in the Sea of Okhotsk. The Sea of Okhotsk lies south of the Arctic zone boundary and the sea depth on the drilling site is less than 150 m. The signal to begin drilling was giv
Norwegian oil major Statoil has marked thirty years of production from the Heimdal field located in Block 25/4 of the Norwegian North Sea, at the far north-west edge of the Utsira Formation. The Heimdal field was discovered in 1972. Development was approved in 1981 and production started in 1986. Th
Offshore drilling contractor COSL Drilling has been hit by a safety order from the Norwegian offshore safety watchdog, the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA), following a fatal incident on board one of COSL’s rigs at the end of 2015. The offshore safety agency gave COSL Drilling Europe the order follo
The rig dispute between the offshore drilling contractor Songa Offshore and the South Korean shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) is yet to be resolved. The dispute between the pair remains unresolved even after the delivery of all four Cat D rigs, that Songa ordered from DSME
After Statoil encountered mixed results in two North Sea wells, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted the oil company a drilling permit for another three wells located offshore Norway. The three wells, 30/11-14, 30/11-14 A and 30/11-14 B, will be drilled from the Songa Delta drilling
Maersk Drilling’s 2008-built jack-up drilling rig has arrived in Danish Port of Esbjerg for service and maintenance. The port said via social media on Friday that the Maersk Resolute had arrived at the Port of Esbjerg after completing a job on the oilfield South Arne in the Danish North Sea, approxi
Norwegian oil company Statoil is in the process of concluding the drilling of a wildcat and an appraisal well offshore Norway that resulted in a minor oil discovery and a dry well. The wells are located in production licence 035 in the North Sea, offshore Norway, where Statoil is the operator. The o
Big news from Russia. According to a report, a Russian shipyard has scored a mega deal to build offshore drilling rigs for the Iranian oil and gas industry. According to this week’s report by Reuters, Russian shipyard Krasnye Barrikady has secured a contract to construct five offshore drilling rigs,
Norwegian oil company Det norske oljeselskap has completed the drilling of two appraisal wells in the Ivar Aasen field area, with mixed results. According to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, the company drilled the wells in the 001 B to delineate the West Cable (16/1-7) discovery made in 2004. T
Danish driller Maersk Drilling has acquired a newbuild harsh environment jack-up rig from its distressed rival Hercules Offshore. What is more, the rig comes with a five-year drilling contract in the North Sea. The company has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the newbuild harsh environment j
Norway’s offshore safety authority, the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA), has identified irregularities and improvement points during a recent audit aboard the Borgland Dolphin drilling rig. The PSA was conducting the audit of the management of emergency preparedness and the working environment. The
Wintershall Norge AS has awarded a series of four-year contracts for supply of well completion equipment and services for the Maria development it operates in the Norwegian Sea, and for other operations on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. The contracts have been awarded to six companies including Ha
Norwegian drilling contractor Odfjell Drilling posted a net loss for the first quarter of 2016. The reported loss was $21 million, down from a profit of $18 million in the first quarter of 2015. Odfjell said its operating revenue fell to $158 million for the quarter due to a reduction in activity wi
