Gas discovery in the Norwegian Sea

Preliminary estimates indicate that the “Velocette” discovery totals between 0.2 – 1.8 million cubic metres of recoverable oil equivalent.

The Transocean Norge rig drilled the well, which is the first to be drilled in production licence 1016. The discovery is located 45 km southeast of the Aasta Hansteen field.
The licence was awarded in the Awards in Predefined Areas (APA) in 2018.

The three licensees, OMV (operator), Inpex Idemitsu and Longboat Japex, “will continue to assess the discovery”.

Geological information

The objective of the well was to prove petroleum in reservoir rocks in the Nise Formation in the Upper Cretaceous.

Well 6607/3-1 S encountered a gas/condensate column of about 9 metres in the Nise Formation, around 5 metres of which in a sandstone reservoir with quality varying from moderate to very good. The total thickness of the sandstone intervals in the Nise Formation was 55 metres. The gas/water contact was encountered in the well.

The well was not formation-tested, but data acquisition and sampling have been performed.

Well 6607/3-1 S was drilled to respective vertical and measured depths of 3645 and 3770 m below sea level. The well was terminated in the Nise Formation in the Upper Cretaceous.

Water depth at the site is 475 metres. The well will be permanently plugged and abandoned.

The Transocean Norge drilling facility will now move to production licence 836 S, where Wintershall Dea is the operator.