Shell Announces Delineation Of Ormen Lange Field In Norwegian Sea

Published: 30-Oct-2009

A/S Norske Shell (Shell), operator of the Ormen Lange field, has concluded the drilling of appraisal well 6305/5-3 S in production license 209. Ormen Lange was proven in 1997 and has been in production since 2007. The reservoir is in Paleocene and upper Cretaceous reservoir rocks (Egga reservoir unit and the Jorsalfare formation).

The field is situated in 800-1,100 meters of water in the southern part of the Norwegian Sea, about 130 kilometers northwest of Kristiansund. The well was drilled six kilometers northeast of the field's main production area.

The objective of well 6305/5-3 S in production license 209 was to delineate the northern extent of the field. The well encountered reservoir rocks of variable quality in both the Egga reservoir unit and the Jorsalfare formation. Gas was encountered in Egga, and it was confirmed that there is pressure communication with the area from which gas is produced. Preliminary evaluations show water- gas contact in the Egga reservoir unit. The water-gas contact was found at a shallower point than in the main part of the field. The well was not formation-tested, but extensive data acquisition and sampling have been carried out.

The result of this appraisal well will be incorporated into a major interpretation task aimed at providing a better resource estimate for the Ormen Lange field. It is uncertain whether the original upside potential can be realized. Parts of the future field development and the production profile may be affected by the new estimate.

Well 6305/5-3 S is the seventh exploration well to be drilled on the Ormen Lange field. The appraisal well was drilled to a vertical depth of 2,815 meters below the sea surface, and was terminated in the Kyrre formation in the upper Cretaceous. The water depth is 832 meters. The well has been temporarily abandoned. The well was drilled by the semi-submersible drilling facility Leiv Eiriksson, which will now carry out drilling operations outside the Norwegian shelf.

The licensees in production license 209 are ExxonMobil Exploration & Production Norway AS 10%, Shell 15%, Petoro AS 35% and StatoilHydro Petroleum AS 40%.

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