Equinor’s drilling activities end up unearthing more Norwegian gas

Norwegian state-owned energy giant Equinor has made a new gas and condensate discovery in the Norwegian Sea off the coast of Norway, using one of the semi-submersible rigs owned by Transocean, an offshore drilling contractor.

Based on the data provided by the Norwegian Offshore Directorate (NOD), the Transocean Spitsbergen rig drilled the well 6406/2-L-2 H in production license 199 in the Haltenbanken Vest Unit in the Norwegian Sea to prove petroleum in Lower Jurassic sandstones in the lower part of the Tilje Formation. Equinor spud the well to respective measured and vertical depths of 6,075 and 5,045 meters below sea level, terminating it in the Åre Formation in the Lower Jurassic.

Furthermore, the well encountered a gas/condensate column of about 30 meters in the lower parts of the Tilje Formation, with moderate to good reservoir properties. While gas/condensate was also proven in the upper parts of the Tilje Formation in a sandstone reservoir with moderate to poor reservoir properties, the well was not formation-tested.

Equinor (operator, 52% ownership interest) and its partners – Petoro (27%), Vår Energi (15%), TotalEnergies EP Norge (6%) – have proven gas/condensate in development well 6406/2-L-2 H, 260 kilometers southwest of Brønnøysund. The well was drilled in connection with the Lavrans discovery, which is currently undergoing development.

With the preliminary estimates placing the size of the discovery in the range of 2-4 million standard cubic meters (Sm³) of recoverable oil equivalent (o.e.), the licensees will consider tying the discovery back to infrastructure being developed for Lavrans – which is a part of the Kristin field.

The wellbore has been permanently plugged, and the Transocean Spitsbergen rig will continue drilling the production well 6406/2-L-2 AY1H in the same location. Transocean recently picked up another three-well contract extension in Norway at a day rate of $483,000 for the rig with Equinor, which is expected to begin in October 2025, in direct continuation of the rig’s current program, and end in March 2026.

The 2010-built Transocean Spitsbergen sixth-generation dual-derrick winterized semi-submersible rig capable of drilling high-pressure/high-temperature formations has been in Equinor’s employ for several years.

The interest in hydrocarbon exploration on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) is still strong judging by the applications 21 companies submitted for production licenses, as part of the award in pre-defined areas 2024 (APA 2024) licensing round.