Oil discovery in the North Sea (2/6-7 S and A)
The well was drilled using the Noble Invincible jack-up rig. (Photo: Nobel)
02/12/2024 DNO and its partners have discovered oil in the “Othello” prospect in the southern North Sea.
The discovery was made in wildcat well 2/6-7 S in production licence 1086, which was awarded in the Awards in Predefined Areas (APA) in 2021.
DNO is the operator of the joint venture with partners Petoro, Aker BP and Source Energy.
The well was drilled using the Noble Invincible jack-up rig. An appraisal well was also drilled; 2/6-7 A.
Preliminary estimates indicate the size of the discovery is between 4-9 million standard cubic metres of oil equivalent, which corresponds to 25-57 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The licensees will assess the discovery along with other discoveries and prospects in the vicinity, with a view towards potential future development.
Geological information
The primary exploration target for wildcat well 2/6-7 S was to prove petroleum in Upper Jurassic reservoir rocks in the Ula Formation.
The secondary exploration target was to prove petroleum in Palaeocene reservoir rocks in the Borr Member in the Våle Formation. The objective of appraisal well 2/6-7 A was to confirm the size of the discovery in the Borr Member.
Wildcat well 2/6-7 S encountered an oil column in the Borr Member, spanning two sandstone layers totalling 16 metres with moderate to good reservoir quality. The oil/water contact was not encountered.
No reservoir was present in the primary exploration target in the Ula Formation.
Appraisal well 2/6-7 A encountered a 12-metre oil column in the Borr Member, 8 metres of which were in a sandstone reservoir. The Borr Member had a total thickness of 39 metres, 26 metres of which was net sand of moderate to good reservoir quality. A possible oil/water contact was encountered at 2929 metres below sea level.
The wells were not formation-tested, but extensive data acquisition and sampling have been carried out.
These are the two first exploration wells in production licence 1086.
Wildcat well 2/6-7 S was drilled to a vertical depth of 3642 metres below sea level and was terminated in the Smith Bank Formation in the Upper Triassic.
Appraisal well 2/6-7 A was drilled to vertical and measured depths of respective 2987 metres and 3386 metres below sea level, and was terminated in the Ekofisk Formation in the Lower Palaeocene.
Water depth at the site is 56 metres. The wells have been permanently plugged and abandoned.
Updated: 02/12/2024