Eni to Plug & Abandon Salina Well After Gas Discovery

Eni has hit gas on the Salina prospect in the Barents Sea, Norway, partner Det Norske has said today, with gas found in two reservoirs.

In a statement today, Det Norske said that exploration well 7220/10-1, which was spudded in June this year,  hit gas after drilling down to a total depth of 2,371 metres below sea level. The exploration well discovered gas in two reservoir units, the company said: in the Cretaceous Knurr formation, and in the Jurassic Stø formation.

Regulatory body the Norwegian Petroleum Dictorate (NPD) says that the discovery in both reservoirs measures between 5-7 million standard cubic feet of recoverable oil equivalents. 

However, Det Norske said today that it did not consider the gas to be a commercial find.

"The operator’s estimate of recoverable gas volumes is between six and eight billion cubic meters (40-50 million barrels of oil equivalents)," Det Norske's statement said. "With the existing infrastructure for gas processing and transport in the Barents Sea, the gas discovery is not considered commercial by Det Norske."

According to the NPD, the well will now be permanently plugged and abandoned.

Eni Norge is the operator of production licence 533, under which the well was drilled, and holds a 40 per cent stake in the project. The other three partners in the licence, Det Norske, Lundin Norway and RWE Dea Norge, each hold a 20 per cent stake each.