Wellesley Petroleum and its partners have confirmed the gas condensate discovery named Carmen after completing the drilling of appraisal well 35/10-16 S in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. The results strengthen the commercial potential of the find and open up new possibilities for its development using the infrastructure already installed in the region.
According to preliminary estimates, the reservoir contains between 3.4 and 17 million standard cubic meters of recoverable oil equivalent, representing approximately between 21 and 107 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Gas discovery near the Troll and Kvitebjørn fields
The well was drilled about 25 kilometers northwest of the Troll field and 35 kilometers east of the Kvitebjørn field, two of the most important producing areas on the Norwegian continental shelf.
Production license 1148 was awarded in 2022 and comprises Wellesley Petroleum as operator together with DNO, Equinor and Aker BP. This well represents the third drilling operation carried out within the license.
In addition to confirming the presence of hydrocarbons, the results obtained provide additional information on the extent of the reservoir initially identified in wells 35/10-10 S and 35/10-10 A drilled in 2023.
Positive results in multiple geological formations
Geological evaluations revealed gas condensate accumulations in several units of the Middle Jurassic Brent Group, including the Ness, Etive and Oseberg formations.
In the Ness Formation, a 14.6-meter gas condensate column was identified, with reservoir quality ranging from poor to very good. Meanwhile, the Etive Formation recorded a 41.3-meter column in rocks with reservoir properties ranging from poor to moderate.
Likewise, the Oseberg Formation showed a five-meter hydrocarbon column and made it possible to identify the gas-water contact at a depth of 3,966 meters below sea level.
The analyses also detected indications of hydrocarbons in the Early Jurassic Cook Formation. However, this section showed predominantly aquifer characteristics.
Development options and regional integration
The licensees will now evaluate different alternatives to connect Carmen to the existing infrastructure in the area. Proximity to production facilities already in operation could help optimize future development plans and reduce the time required for a potential start-up.
In addition, the companies do not rule out carrying out new exploratory drilling to define more precisely the total size of the resource and the associated development opportunities.
Deepsea Yantai will continue appraisal activities
Drilling was carried out by the Deepsea Yantai rig, which reached a vertical depth of 4,153 meters below sea level before concluding operations.
After the campaign ended, the well was plugged and permanently abandoned in accordance with applicable regulatory procedures. The drilling unit will now continue its activities at appraisal well 35/7-2, corresponding to the Aphrodite discovery within production license 293.
Source and photo: Norwegian Offshore Directorate
