Oil and gas company Equinor has failed to find hydrocarbons at the wildcat well 16/5-7, near the Johan Sverdrup field in the North Sea, offshore Norway.
The Norwegian company drilled the well around one kilometer west of the Johan Sverdrup oil field and 200 kilometers west of Stavanger.
According to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, the objective of the well was to prove petroleum, as well as to investigate potential reservoir rocks in several levels: Upper Jurassic (intra Draupne formation sandstones), Upper Triassic (Skagerrak formation), Upper Permian (the Zechstein group) and weathered/fractured basement rock.
The well was drilled about 110 meters into basement rock, of which 77 meters of weathered and fractured basement rock with poor to moderate reservoir properties. In the upper part of the basement, the well encountered traces of oil in a zone of about 19 meters.
At this time, it is impossible to determine whether the oil is producible or simply residual. No sedimentary rocks were encountered in other levels. Pending new information and interpretation of collected data, the preliminary classification is that the well is dry.
The well was not formation-tested, but extensive volumes of data have been acquired and samples have been taken. It will now be permanently plugged and abandoned.
The well has yielded important information about the potential for reservoir properties in the basement rock, as well as pressure communication in the area.
This is the second exploration well in production license 502, which was awarded in APA 2008. Water depth at the site is 105 meters.
The well was drilled to a vertical depth of 1988 meters below the sea surface, and was terminated in the basement rock.
The well was drilled by the Transocean Spitsbergen drilling rig, which will now proceed to the shipyard before well operations start up on the Snorre field in the northern part of the North Sea.
Spotted a typo? Have something more to add to the story? Maybe a nice photo? Contact our editorial team via email .
Also, i f you’re interested in showcasing your company, product or technology on Offshore Energy Today please contact us via our advertising form where you can also see our media kit.