Norway Launches 2016 APA Licensing Round

Norway's Ministry of Petroleum and Energy has announced the launch of its 2016 Awards in Predefined Areas (APA 2016).

In a statement released March 17, the ministry said the latest licensing round would include 24 blocks in the Norwegian Sea and would also extend to 36 blocks in the Barents Sea. The inclusion of the Barents Sea blocks is part of a government plan to increase activity, Minister of Petroleum and Energy Tord Lien said. 

The licences available include blocks close to the Aasta Hansteen gas field, which is scheduled to begin producing in 2018 north of the Norwegian Sea, and areas around the Johan Castberg (formerly Skrugard) discovery, the Alta field and the Gotha field, all in the Barents Sea.

"Allocation of new and interesting exploration areas is critical to maintaining employment, activity and value creation on the Norwegian Continental Shelf over time," Lien said. "This is particularly important in the current [economic] situation. Offering companies new exploration opportunities in a predictable manner is one of the pillars of the government's petroleum policy."

The awards will be announced during the first quarter of 2017. The closing date for applications is September 6 2016. 

Last year's APA round saw the government award 56 licences on the Norwegian Continental Shelf to 36 firms. The majority of the licences (27) were awarded in the North Sea with a further 24 licences granted for blocks in the Norwegian Sea. 

Erica Mills