Activities

RWE Dea in Norway

 

Oil discovery offshore Norway near the Gjøa Field

Oslo, 07.12.2010

 

The series of exploration successes for RWE Dea in Norway continues. Having already made a major gas discovery in the Zidane licence area in mid-September, the semi-submersible drilling rig Bredford Dolphin just made another discovery in the Titan prospect (PL 420) – with a promising oil discovery.

 

RWE Dea Norge AS, operator of production licence 420, is in the process of completing the drilling of wildcat well 35/9-6 S. The well was drilled approximately 16 km west of the Gjøa Field in the North Sea. Petroleum was proven (mainly oil) in a 435-metre column in the Heather Formation, the Brent Group, the Drake Formation and the Cook Formation. The reservoir levels in the well are in different pressure regimes, and no hydrocarbon-water contact was encountered.

“It’s been an exciting year. We’ve drilled two of our operated licences this year, and we’ve made two discoveries. We’re very pleased about making another discovery that looks promising, but it’s too soon to draw any firm conclusions until an appraisal well has been drilled”, says Hugo Sandal, Managing Director of RWE Dea Norge. “We also believe there is further exploration potential in the licence”, he continues.

Preliminary estimates of the size of the discovery indicate between 2 and 10 million Sm3 of recoverable oil equivalents. Small scale formation tests (mini-DST) were carried out, showing a variation in reservoir quality.

The well is the first exploration well in production licence 420, which was awarded on February 16th, 2007 (APA 2006). The well was drilled to a vertical depth of 3,664 meters and was terminated in Upper Triassic rocks. The water depth at the site is 370 meters. The well will be permanently plugged and abandoned.

Well 35/9-6 S was drilled by the Bredford Dolphin drilling facility, which will now proceed to Coast Centre Base (CCB Ågotnes) for a stay at the yard.

“With this oil find in the Titan prospect, RWE Dea Norge as the operator once again demonstrates the technical expertise of its interdisciplinary team, as well as underscoring the great potential for hydrocarbons in the Norwegian North Sea. RWE Dea Norge will be working closely with its partners and with the public authorities in an effort to continue this success story” explained Ralf to Baben, Chief Operating Officer of RWE Dea AG.

 

Licencees:

RWE Dea Norge (operator): 30%
Statoil: 40%
Idemitsu: 30%

 

 


RWE Dea Norge makes significant gas discovery offshore Norway

Oslo, 16.09.2010


RWE Dea Norge is pleased to announce that the company has made a significant gas discovery near the Heidrun field in the Norwegian Sea. RWE Dea Norge A/S, operator of production licence 435 (Zidane) is in the process of finishing the drilling of exploration well 6507/07-14S. The well is located approximately 15 kilometres North West of the Heidrun field and 35 kilometres South of the Skarv field in the Norwegian Sea.

Primary objective for the well was to prove hydrocarbons in Middle Jurassic reservoir rocks (the Fangst group). Secondary objective was to prove hydrocarbons in Lower Jurassic reservoir rocks (the Tilje formation). The well encountered gas in a 150 meter column in the Fangst group. Preliminary estimates of the size of the discovery range between 5 and 18 billion standard cubic metres (Sm3) of recoverable gas. The possibility of finding more hydrocarbons in the license is good.

“We are very pleased that the drilling operation has been successful, both with regards to the discovery itself and to the technical aspects. Throughout the operation our top priorities have been safety and the environment”, says Hugo Sandal, Managing Director of RWE Dea Norge. “This excellent new discovery increases our hydrocarbon resources and shows further growth potential on the Norwegian continental shelf,” said Ralf to Baben, Chief Operating Officer of RWE Dea AG.

Comprehensive data acquisition and sampling have been carried out, and a successful drill stem test was performed. The test produced 1.2 million Sm3 gas per day on a 36/64 inch choke. Preliminary gas/oil ratio is estimated to 20,000-30,000 Sm3/Sm3. “Finding solutions to commercialize the discovery will be an exciting task”, Hugo Sandal continues. The licensees will consider producing the discovery using existing infrastructure.

The well is the first exploration well in production licence 435, which was awarded in APA 2006. The well was drilled to a vertical depth of 4,477 metres below the sea surface, and it was terminated in the Tilje formation in the Lower Jurassic. Water depth at the site is 344 metres. The well will now be permanently plugged and abandoned. Well 6507/7-14S was drilled by the Bredford Dolphin rig, which will now proceed to production licence 420 in the North Sea to drill exploration well 35/9-6S where RWE Dea Norge is the operator.

Licencees:

RWE Dea Norge AS (operator): 40%
Edison International Norway Branch: 20%
Maersk Oil Norway AS: 20%
Norwegian Energy Company ASA: 20%


Overview of the Company's activities on the Norwegian Shelf

RWE Dea Norge AS has close to 40 years’ experience with exploration and production of oil and gas in Norway. At present, the company is partner in several licences on the Norwegian Shelf and is operator of four licences; PL330, PL420, PL435 and PL582.

To ensure protection of the environment in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea it is of outmost importance that the operators and partners the Norwegian authorities choose as cooperation partners have a long term perspective. The combination of competence, experience from exploration in environmentally sensitive areas, financial strength and a long term perspective is the best guarantee for a sensible management of the environment. RWE Dea has all of these qualifications.

Norway is of the highest priority to RWE Dea. Our goal is to be one of the main participants on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.