Norwegian Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Terje Søviknes, has officially opened Ivar Aasen field in the North Sea, on February 13, 2017.
“The development of Ivar Aasen is an important milestone for the oil industry, and represents significant values for the Norwegian society,” said Søviknes at the opening ceremony, which was conducted on the helideck on the Ivar-platform.
Oil production from the Aker BP-operated field started on December 24, 2016 , four years after the Plan for Development and Operation (PDO) was submitted.
The project has a total cost framework of NOK 27.4 billion.
A total of more than 5000 people, primarily in Trondheim, London, Singapore, Arbatax (Sardinia), Stord and Oslo, have spent more than 17 million working hours on the Ivar Aasen project.
“Production start-up was a huge milestone for Aker BP as a company. This would not have been possible without skilled, safety-conscious employees and suppliers working closely together. We have achieved good results by working as a single team with a common goal – completely in line with our values,” said Aker BP CEO, Karl Johnny Hersvik .
The recoverable reserves for the Ivar Aasen project are estimated at more than 200 million barrels of oil equivalents. The field’s economic lifetime could be 20 years, depending on oil prices and production development.