Aker BP, Equinor and DNO they raised the resource estimate for the Verdandi and Lillefix discoveries after completing new assessment operations in the Norwegian North Sea. Preliminary results now place the volume between 8 and 15 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The appraisal well 16/1-EA-4 H yielded new data on the extent of the reservoir and the hydrocarbons present. Before this drilling, the companies estimated that the discoveries contained between 4 and 12 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Aker BP assesses Verdandi and Lillefix in the North Sea
The well was drilled about 200 kilometers west of Stavanger using the Deepsea North Cape platform, operated by Odfjell Drilling. The operation was carried out from the Symra field subsea rig and corresponded to the eleventh exploration well of production license 167.
The drilling reached a vertical depth of 1,864 meters below sea level and ended in the Paleocene Heimdal Formation. One of the main objectives was to verify the presence and quality of the reservoir rocks, as well as to obtain more information about their extent.
The work also sought to confirm the expected contact between oil and water, a fundamental piece of information to more accurately define the volume of hydrocarbons present in Verdandi and Lillefix.
The well found plumes of oil and gas
During the evaluation, the well passed through a column of gas of 14 meters and a column of oil from 44 meters within sandstone layers of the Heimdal Formation. The gas-oil contact was identified at 1,776 meters below sea level.
Furthermore, the drilling ran horizontally 1,515 meters of reservoir within the oil zone, the reservoir quality was considered moderate, and fluid samples and pressure measurements were collected during the operation.
The information obtained will allow the partners to more accurately define the volume of hydrocarbons available and evaluate alternatives for possible commercial development.
Resources rise to 15 million barrels
Before drilling the appraisal well, estimates placed the discoveries between 0.6 and 1.9 million standard cubic meters of oil equivalent, roughly equivalent to between 4 and 12 million barrels.
Following the new work, the preliminary estimates increased to a range of between 1.3 and 2.4 million standard cubic meters of oil equivalent in terms of barrels, resources now stand between 8 and 15 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The assessment campaign thus made it possible to reduce some of the uncertainty associated with Verdandi and Lillefix and to raise both the lower and upper limits of the estimated resources.
The partners are exploring a connection with Symra
The well was drilled in an area with a water depth of 116 meters once the information gathering was complete, the borehole was sealed and permanently abandoned.
Aker BP and its partners are now analyzing the economic viability of the discoveries and the possibility of connecting them to the existing infrastructure of the Symra field.
The proximity of existing underwater installations could become a relevant factor in defining the future of these oil and gas resources in the North Sea.
Source: Offshore Energy
Photo: Shutterstock
