Statoil steps on the E&P pedal

Statoil received permission from the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate to drill a wildcat and a pilot well in the Carmen prospect in the Norwegian Sea, international media reported on Tuesday.

The news came a day after the Norwegian major said it had discovered approximately 2 bcm-3 bcm (70.6 bcf-105.9 bcf) of recoverable gas in the nearby Barents Sea, and amid a flurry of developments in the area.

Statoil officials downplayed the importance of the discovery announced on Monday together with partners Eni and Petoro.

“We were exploring for oil and this is not the result we were hoping for,” said Jez Averty, Statoil’s senior vice president for exploration in Norway and the UK, noting that the find could nevertheless be linked to the nearby Snøhvit project.

The discovery comes just two weeks after Statoil announced a larger find of between 25 million and 50 million boe of recoverable hydrocarbons at the Kayak well in the Barents Sea and said it was ramping up exploration and production both there and in the area.

Elsewhere, the Gina Krog oil and gasfield in the North Sea offshore Norway came on stream at the end of June. Days later Statoil announced that it would invest some USD 143 million in the Snefrid Nord gas discovery in the Norwegian Sea, and that it had contracted Ocean Installer to perform subsea work at the Johan Sverdrup, Bauge and Utgard fields.

In other news from the area, the European Commission has approved the purchase by chemicals company INEOS of BP’s Forties Pipeline System and other North Sea infrastructure for USD 250 million, international media reported on Monday.