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    Statoil Takes Decision on Snefrid Nord

Summary

Statoil and partners have decided to develop the Snefrid Nord gas discovery in the Norwegian Sea, the operator and 51% owner said July 6.

by: William Powell

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Statoil Takes Decision on Snefrid Nord

Statoil and partners have decided to develop the Snefrid Nord gas discovery in the Norwegian Sea, the operator and 51%-owner said July 6.

The discovery, scheduled to come on stream in late 2019, will be tied back to the nearby Aasta Hansteen field, whose plan for development and operation has been modified to reflect the new decision.

Aker Solutions, which supplies the subsea equipment for the Aasta Hansteen development, will also deliver the single-slot subsea template, a suction anchor and umbilicals for the Snefrid Nord development. Subsea 7 will deliver flowlines and spools in addition to performing all subsea installations. They are also contractors for Aasta Hansteen and, by using them on both projects, Statoil expects to capture synergies.

Snefrid Nord was discovered in 2015; its recoverable reserves are estimated at about 5bn m³ of gas and production at plateau will reach about 4mn m³/day for five or six years. The capital expenditures for the Snefrid Nord development total about Nkr 1.2bn ($143mn).

“Aasta Hansteen is a strategically important development as the platform and Polarled pipeline open a new area in the Norwegian Sea for gas exports to Europe. The projects also establish a new infrastructure, which will create opportunities for future field development projects in the area. Snefrid Nord is an excellent example of this,” said Statoil's senior vice president for operations north, Siri Espedal Kindem.

Aasta Hansteen and Snefrid Nord have the same equity structure, so operator Statoil with 51%, partnered by Germany's Wintershall 24%, Austrian OMV 15% and US ConocoPhillips 10%.

Located north of the Arctic Circle, Aasta Hansteen (previously known as Luva) is expected to start production at the end of 2018, according to Norwegian upstream regulator NPD. Its gas will flow via the newly-built Polarled pipe to Nyhamna onshore mid-Norway and thence for export.

 

William Powell