Statoil Announces Discovery in North Sea

Statoil made a gas discovery in the Askja West prospect in the North Sea.

"We are pleased to start 2014 with a gas and oil find in the Askja West and East prospects, in the very heart of the North Sea. This demonstrates once again that even the most mature parts of the NCS still have an exciting value creation potential," May-Liss Hauknes, vice president exploration North Sea in Statoil, said in a note released on Thursday. 

Norway’s major together with its partners also made an oil discovery in Askja East prospect in the North Sea. 

‘Statoil estimates the total volumes in Askja West and Askja East to be in the range of 19 - 44 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalent,’ reads the press release.

The company is the operator of exploration wells 30/11-9 S and 30/11-9 A situated in PL272. The partners are Svenska Petroleum Exploration (25%) and Det norske oljeselskap (25%). 

According to a note released by the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, the two wells were drilled to respective vertical depths of 3,637 and 3,646 metres below the sea surface.

The wells are the second and third exploration wells in production licence 272, which was awarded in the 2001 North Sea Awards in 2002. 

"Askja will be considered developed together with the Krafla and Krafla West discoveries made by Statoil in 2011," Knut Skjoldli, vice president field development in Statoil, commented.