Aker BP gearing up to spud North Sea wildcat with Odfjell Drilling’s rig

Norwegian oil and gas player Aker BP has secured a drilling permit for an exploration well in the North Sea off the coast of Norway, which will be drilled this month with a semi-submersible rig owned by Odfjell Drilling, an offshore drilling contractor.

The Norwegian Offshore Directorate (NOD) has granted Aker BP a drilling permit for the wellbore 30/11-16 S in production license 873, which was awarded on February 10, 2017, and is valid until December 31, 2052.

Aker BP is the operator of the production license and holds a 47.7% stake, with its partners being Equinor and Orlen Upstream Norway, holding 40% and 12.3% interests, respectively.

The drilling of the wildcat well, which will be carried out using the Deepsea Stavanger semi-submersible rig, is planned to start in April 2025.

The 2010-built Deepsea Stavanger rig is a sixth-generation deepwater and harsh environment semi-submersible of an enhanced GVA 7500 design, which is capable of working in water depths of up to 3,000 meters.

With a drilling depth capacity of 10,670 meters, the rig has eight mooring lines and can accommodate 157 people. At the end of 2024, Equinor used the rig to drill two wells, which ended up being dry.

However, the firm had better luck at another prospect in the North Sea, where it made an oil and gas find in an area rich with previous commercial discoveries.

Meanwhile, Aker BP recently extended its ties with SLB and Stimwell Services to ramp up oil production with the assistance of the Well Intervention and Stimulation Alliance.