Wintershall Finds Oil in PL 418, Norway

Wintershall Norge AS, operator of production licence 418, is in the process of completing the drilling of wildcat well 35/9-7. The well has been drilled about 17 kilometres southwest of the Gjøa field in the North Sea.

The purpose of the well was to prove petroleum in reservoir rock from the Upper Jurassic. The well proved light oil in two sandstone strata at 90 and 14 metres with good reservoir quality in the Heather formation in the Upper Jurassic. Preliminary estimates of the size of the discovery range between 10 and 25 million standard cubic meters (Sm3) of recoverable oil.

The well was not formation-tested, but extensive data collection and sampling have been carried out.

The well is the first exploration well in production licence 418. The licence was awarded in APA 2006. The well was drilled to a vertical depth of 2976 metres below sea level and was terminated in the Rannock formation in rocks from the Middle Jurassic. Water depth at the site is 368 metres. The well will now be permanently plugged and abandoned.

Well 35/9-7 was drilled by the drilling facility Songa Delta, which will proceed to production licence 375 B to drill appraisal well 33/6-3 S for Suncor Energy Norge AS.

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Offshore Nieuws  Staff, April 16, 2012; Image: Songa Offshore