Lundin produces first oil from tie-back project in North Sea

Oil and gas company Lundin Energy has achieved the first oil from the Solveig field, a subsea tie-back development into the Edvard Grieg platform in the North Sea offshore Norway.

The field development plan was submitted back in March 2019 and approved in June of the same year. Lundin received consent from the Norwegian authorities for the start-up of the Solveig field at the beginning of September and the first production started on Thursday 30 September 2021.

The Solveig field in PL359 is located 15 km south of the Edvard Grieg field and the Phase 1 development consists of a five well subsea tie-back to the Edvard Grieg platform. Phase 1 has gross proved plus probable (2P) reserves of 57 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe) and with gross peak plateau production of 30 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (Mboepd).

Announcing the first oil on Friday, Lundin said that the field will be a significant contributor to the extension of the plateau production period at Edvard Grieg, which has already been extended by five years to the end of 2023.

According to the operator, the first oil has been delivered on schedule and in line with the budget estimate of $810 million gross, and with a breakeven oil price of below $20 per boe.

Solveig Phase 1 drilling results to date have been above expectations, with two of the five development wells already completed. With further discovered resources in the area, such as Segment D, and further upside potential being de-risked by the Phase 1 development drilling data and production performance, Lundin believes that a Plan for Development and Operation (PDO) for a Phase 2 development could be submitted by the end of 2022.

The total gross resource potential for Solveig, including upsides, is up to 100 MMboe. In combination with the results from the Rolvsnes extended well test, currently on stream, the plateau production period at the Edvard Grieg platform could be further extended beyond 2023.

Nick Walker, President and CEO of Lundin Energy, commented: ”I am very pleased to announce first oil from our Solveig development, a key pillar of our strategy to extend the plateau production period at Edvard Grieg. The development has been executed on time and on budget and the breakeven cost is below USD 20 per boe, making these barrels highly valuable for us.

“I am also confident that there is significant potential to bring additional resources on stream in the area, to extend the plateau production period even further at Edvard Grieg”.

Lundin Energy is the operator of both the PL359 (Solveig) and PL338 (Edvard Grieg) licences with a 65 per cent working interest and the partners are OMV and Wintershall Dea with 20 and 15 per cent working interests, respectively.