Equinor discovers new oil field in Barents Sea

Equinor and partners Vår Energi and Petoro have struck oil in exploration well 7220/7-4 in production license 532 in the Barents Sea, said Nick Ashton, Equinor’s senior vice president for exploration in Norway, Report informs referring to World Oil.

Recoverable resources are so far estimated at between 5 and 8 million standard cubic meters of recoverable oil, corresponding to 31 – 50 million barrels of recoverable oil.

‘Succeeding in the Barents Sea requires perseverance and a long-term perspective. This discovery strengthens our belief in the opportunities that exist, not least around the Castberg, Wisting, Snøhvit and Goliat areas,’ Nick Ashton noted.

The well was drilled about 10 kilometers southwest from the well 7220/8-1 on the Johan Castberg field, and 210 kilometers northwest of Hammerfest.

Equinor has been active in the Barents Sea since it was opened more than forty years ago. Exploration well 7220/7-4 is the first of four planned exploration wells for Equinor in the Barents Sea this year.

The well struck 109 meters of oil in the Stø and Nordmela formations. The top reservoir was encountered at a vertical depth of 1,788 meters below sea level. The expected gas cap was not encountered in the well.

The well was not formation tested, but extensive data acquisition and sampling took place.

Further development of the discovery towards the planned infrastructure for the Johan Castberg field will be considered at a later stage. The proven resources may thus generate important additional value and tax revenues for society from the Johan Castberg field.

This is the eleventh exploration well in production license 532. The license was awarded in the 20th licensing round in 2009.

The well was drilled to a vertical depth of 2,080 meters below sea level and completed in the Tubåen formation from the Early Jurassic period in 351 meters of water.

At the end of 2020, Equinor lost $5.5 billion.