The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted Lundin Energy a drilling permit for a wildcat well in the Norwegian Sea.
The well 6306/9-1 will be drilled from the Deepsea Stavanger semi-submersible drilling rig, the directorate informed on Tuesday.
The drilling programme for well 6306/9-1 relates to the drilling of a wildcat well in production licence 886. Lundin Energy Norway is the operator of the licence with an ownership interest of 60 per cent. Other licensees are Spirit Energy Norway (20 per cent) and Petoro (20 per cent).
The area in this licence consists of parts of blocks 6306/6, 6306/8 and 6306/9. The well will be drilled around 72 kilometres east of the Ormen Lange field.
The production licence 886 was awarded on 10 February 2017 (APA 2016) and this is the first exploration well to be drilled in the licence.
Lundin secured the Deepsea Stavanger rig for its Norwegian drilling campaign back in March 2021. The contract is for three firm wells plus six optional wells with a value of about $33 million. The contract was set to begin in the third quarter of 2021, back-to-back with Deepsea Stavanger’s contract with Aker BP .