New E&P player gains nod to drill with Island Drilling rig

Spirit Energy has received consent from the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) for drilling and testing wildcat wells in the Norwegian Sea with the Island Innovator drilling rig.

The PSA said on Friday that the consent given to Spirit Energy, the E&P joint venture which combines Centrica’s E&P business with Bayerngas Norge, covered the use of the Island Innovator rig for drilling and testing wildcat wells 6506/9-4 and 6506/9-4 A in production license 433 in the Norwegian Sea.

According to the offshore safety body, the drilling operation is scheduled to start in February 2018.

To remind, Island Drilling received a letter of award for drilling operations with Centrica on production license 433 in September 2017.

The contract was for one HTHP appraisal well designated 6506/9-12 at the Fogelberg field with the semi-submersible rig Island Innovator, with options for two additional wells. Start-up is scheduled for the first quarter of 2018, for a duration of 130–200 days.

Earlier in 2017, Centrica postponed the submission of its development plan for the development of its Fogelberg discovery for 2019, with a goal to have first gas in 2021. Fogelberg is estimated to contain between 6.3 and 22.5 billion standard cubic meters of gas and between 1.3 and 5.2 million standard cubic meters of associated condensate.

As for the rig, the Island Innovator semi-submersible drilling rig is of a Global Maritime GM4000 type, delivered by the COSCO Shipyard in China in 2012. It is owned by Island Drilling Company, operated by Odfjell Drilling and classified by DNV GL.

The Island Innovator rig was issued with an Acknowledgement of Compliance (AoC) by the PSA in August 2013.