Oil & gas license duo offshore Denmark formally changes hands following approval by Danish Energy Agency

The Danish Energy Agency (DEA) has cleared the transfer of ownership shares in two oil and gas licenses in the Danish sector of the North Sea.

As disclosed by the Danish regulator, Petrogas Denmark, Petrogas E&P UK, and Danoil Exploration have taken over the full ownership of two existing licenses for oil and gas exploration and production in the North Sea following the withdrawal of previous co-owners, Dana Petroleum and Nordsøfonden. 

This will enable Petrogas to get an 85% operating share and Danoil a 15% interest in the so-called Robin Hood licenses in the North Sea, comprising license 12/06 and license 4/16 awarded in 2006 and 2016, respectively.

License 12/06 holds the Broder Tuck and Lille John discoveries, with exploration wells drilled in 2011 confirming that the former contains mid-Jura gas/condensate and the latter mid-Miocene oil. License 4/16 is an expansion of the acreage holding the Broder Tuck gas discovery.

According to DEA, the permits are valid until 2046 and no decision has yet been made on the development of the fields with production facilities or established oil and gas production. 

The approval was granted on the condition that Petrogas’ and Danoil’s parent companies provide guarantees for their obligations, while Dana needed to submit a declaration of subsidiary liability for damages that may later arise in connection with the already decommissioned wells.

Petrogas’ affiliate Petrogas E&P Netherlands recently started production from the first well on the B10 platform in the Dutch sector of the North Sea. This forms part of the Dutch firm’s Stage 2+ project, which also entails the A15 field that achieved its first production in February.