Norwegian oil company Aker BP has been offered interests in six exploration licenses in the 24th licensing round in Norway.
Aker BP said on Monday that of the six licenses, all located in the Barents Sea, it won two licenses as an operator and four as a partner.
Gro Gunleiksrud Haatvedt , SVP of exploration of Aker BP, said: “We are very pleased with today’s awards in the 24th licensing round, which further strengthen our presence and operator position in the Barents Sea.
“These awards will provide more valuable exploration potential and supplement our existing portfolio, and position the company for further growth in the region.”
The two awarded licenses where Aker BP is the operator are PL 963 (Aker BP 70%, Equinor 30%) and PL 964 (Aker BP 40%, Wintershall 20%, DEA 15%, Petoro 25%).
The four other licenses are PL 962, PL 852C, PL 961, and PL 966 where Aker BP holds 20, 40, 30, and 30 percent respectively.
The 24th licensing round awards were announced by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy on Monday, June 18 . In total, 12 licenses were offered to 11 companies.
The Norwegian Government announced the 24th licensing round on June 21, 2017. The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy announced 102 blocks/parts of blocks, of which 9 were in the Norwegian Sea and 93 in the Barents Sea.